Are You What you Listen To?

As if there were a shortage on inane criteria for comparing our presumptive Presidential nominees, the Entertainment desk for the BBC NEWS Web site has released this news flash:

Frank Sinatra is the only artist to feature among the top 10 favourite songs of both US presidential candidates, it has been revealed.

Democrat Barack Obama included You'd Be So Easy To Love and John McCain I've Got You Under My Skin in the lists compiled by US magazine Blender.

Abba are favoured by Republican Mr McCain with Dancing Queen at number one and Take a Chance On Me at three.

Obama's favourite song, meanwhile, is Fugees' 1996 hit Ready Or Not.

The rest of Obama's top five features older tracks with Marvin Gaye's What's Going On at number two and Bruce Springsteen's I'm On Fire at number three.

His top five is made up by Gimme Shelter by Rolling Stones and Nina Simone's Sinnerman.

Pro-Obama song

Mr McCain's second favourite song after Dancing Queen is Blue Bayou by Roy Orbison.

His fourth favourite track is 1973 country hit If We Make It Through December, by Merle Haggard, followed by As Time Goes, recorded in 1942 by Dooley Wilson.

The top 10 of 71-year-old Mr McCain is made up exclusively of older tracks.

But the choices of 46-year-old Mr Obama include rapper Kanye West's 2006 hit Touch the Sky at number six and Yes We Can by Will.i.am at number 10.

For the record, out of all of these selections, the only one I listen to with the slightest regularity is "Sinnerman;" and I know the words well enough to ask whether Obama has ever paid much attention to them! (So, if Obama were not running for the office of President of the United States and already counting his electoral votes, would "Sinnerman" have been displaced from his list by "Mississippi Goddam?" Enquiring minds want to know! Those are the words that still demand attention!) What interests me more is the dog-that-did-not-bark-in-the-night phenomenon: Note that "My Way" was not on either candidate's list! What does that say?