Labour's love affair with rock hits sour note

In its early, heady days of popularity, New Labour shamelessly deployed the stars of Britpop to drive home the message that it had captured the spirit of the age. Tony Blair told Brit Awards guests that the UK music industry was "once again in its right place, at the top of the world". Blur's Damon Albarn met the future Prime Minister in his Commons office. The Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher was among the first visitors to Downing Street after Labour's 1997 landslide.

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