While tipoeing over the implied national slurs I've often wondered about American inflections among English popular singers. Leaving aside Neil Tennant of the Petshop Boys and Morrissey's northern RP vocalisation, there's something antipathetic about BBC/Queen's English to delivering a tune.

I'm not so daft to suggest Old Kentish, Bucks or estuary can't wrap itself round a song but standard English doesn't lend itself, which may be where the misplaced accusations of north American short vowels come in. I think it was Clive James who suggested the aim of the upper classes was never to reveal the teeth while talking - not much good for blasting out a shanty.