A radical folk singer from Horsforth is striking a chord with his latest work in support of unions.
Teacher Gary Kaye has enlisted a group of left- leaning folk musicians and performers to record two tracks in support of the action being taken by various trade unions during the autumn.
Mr Kaye, 42, who unsuccessfully stood for a place on Leeds City Council earlier this year, is an active member of the NUT and has performed in bands across Europe over the past 22 years.
A former Leeds United Poet in Residence, he once performed his poetry to over 26,000 supporters at Elland Road.
He has recently worked with singer Billy Bragg to establish Jail Guitar Doors, a guitar tuition course at HMP Leeds.
Now he has recorded two tracks, along with a number of other artists, in support of the action being taken by various trade unions during the autumn.
The tracks – Union Made, an updated version of the Woody Guthrie classic, and No Pasaran, an anti-fascist anthem penned by Kaye himself – are supported by the NUT and RMT unions.
Mr Kaye said: “It seems fitting that in the year we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Woody Guthrie that one of his most memorable songs should become an anthem for a new generation of trade unionists.
“Despite what the Tories and Lib Dems might tell us, the trade union movement is alive and well in this country.
“No Pasaran is an equally important song as we still stand up to racism and intolerance in times of economic downturn, when people look to scapegoat immigrants and asylum seekers for the country’s woes.
“There are good people out there who are willing to join together and say to this Government ‘No to austerity. No to social division. No to your class politics’.”
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