Let's get one thing straight if I say that I don't particularly like the Unthanks it's not because I "begrudge" their success! To make that inference is so stupid, childish and immature it takes my breath away! The initiator of this thread should grow up.

Finally...just to make things crystal clear... just because I might not enjoy a particular artist's music(and say so) doesn't mean that I begrudge them their success nor that I am guilty of harbouring such views and prejudices which have been suggested by the opening poster and some others here. Such suppositions are "a nonsense" as well as being offensive.

Are you allowed to just not like someone's musical output, without being accused of "begrudging" something or other?

The Unthanks seem like very nice, sincere people. But what they do doesn't impress me. I don't resent their success, I'm not jealous or any other neurotic thing, they're just not my cup of tea. Is it permissible to merely express a negative opinion, based on the work the artists produce (not their Selves) without getting called names and cod-psychoanalised by a bunch of people who don't know me?

I started this thread NOT because of the Jools Holland thread. The Jools Holland thread was one of a number of threads over time which are particularly critical of artists with very little reference to anything objective; it's like people saying of others 'well they're just rubbish' or 'they have no talent' - schoolground stuff. I can't express it better than Will's last post which is similar to what I had started writing.

I didn't say that ALL people do this - perhaps I should have said 'why do some people...' but I didn't realise how ultra-sensitive some people here are. Nor how quickly do some leap to conclusions that are neither there nor meant. I opened the tread up as a discussion not as a flame to the one word review that some people have presumed this is about.

It isn't about whther you like someone or not. I'm desperately trying to work out what part of my contribution to the thread has anything to do with whether you like something or not; what part says that you shouldn't criticise people; what part was about name calling; what part is offensive? I'm tempted to mention caps fitting but I won't (but I have, d'oh!) because I'll be accused of being childish and immature again which cut me to the very heart of my being.

In starting a thread you have a very short subject line to try and write something pithy that will attract attention and encourage people to contribute. If I wanted to just know my own view then I'd talk to myself. I posed a question that I thought would get a reaction and it did. Some of it was even relevant to the question!

I believe that the phenomenon exists in many spheres of life so it would be strange if it were not also demonstrated here on Mudcat as it is a cross section of all sorts of people - ie some people hae an illogical reaction to success and need to rubbish that, based less on any objective grounds but purely because one can.



(From a different world. I have for a long time had a soft spot for Tottenham Hotspur FC who I first saw in 1962. I heard today that there are people starting a 'get rid of Harry campaign' to 'move the club on'. As a reaction to a manager who has moved the club from the bottom of the Premier division in Nov 2008 to their present position seems a reasonable example of the above phenomenon. Reactions like 'he's not the man for the job', 'he's not a big enough manager', 'he does't have the vision' are typical comments that are made in circumstances like this that mean absolutely nothing. It's their right to express the view though - I have no problem with that)