Western Promise Homepage

ON 15 April 1989 96 people died at a football match in
what has become known as the Hillsborough disaster.
Eighteen years later and the events of that tragic day
still have not been fully investigated, no one has ever
been held to account and the cover ups - particularly
regarding the role of the police - continue. The families
of the dead and many others continue with their fight for
justice. (See Nerve issue 4) One of these is John
McGlone. His band Western Promise along with The
Choir Of Justice - featuring Tommy Scott from Space,
Digsy from Smaller, various members of Dead Class
and The Wombats and a whole host of other local talent
- have recently recorded a reggae flavoured single
called appropriately Justice (For The 96) which hopes
to raise both support and funds for the continued fight.
John is a real live wire who describes himself as "once
an angry young man but now a moaning old git". When
asked what his motivation was for bringing this project
together at this time he replied vehemently "Kelvin
McKenzie popping his ugly fucking head above the rim
saying he really didn't think he was wrong regarding
comments he made about us pissing on each other
when we were dying". McKenzie of course is the
ex-editor of Rupert Murdoch's THE S*N who caused so
much outrage across Liverpool and beyond with his
'THE TRUTH' headline, and more recently rubbed salt in
the wounds with his appearance on BBC's Question
Time. THE S*N's sales across the city have dropped
dramatically since it published 'THE TRUTH' with some
newsagents still refusing to stock it. John urges us to go
one step further and boycott anything to do with
Murdoch including SKY TV and MYSPACE.COM
attesting "we should hit them where it hurts the most - in
their pockets. It's the best way as it takes away their
power".
No stranger to political activism John was involved in
the Rock The Dock movement organising gigs by
artists like Primal Scream, The Boo Radleys, Pete
Townsend and Noel Gallagher which helped highlight
the plight of the sacked Liverpool Dockers during the
total media blackout surrounding what was happening.
He also toured with Joe Strummer on his Rock The Rich
Tour and cites him as a major influence. His pride
shines through when he tells me that Strummer wore his
Western Promise badge throughout the entire tour. "A
good man, sorely missed" he reflects.
Following in the traditions of Strummer, Bob Marley,
Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie (but not Bruce
Springsteen, who he says is a fake) he is not afraid to
bring politics into his music. He says, "I'm sick to death
of people who don't want politics in music. I believe that
if you are given the opportunity of a platform, then you
should use it to say something for the good of the
people," in this instance by highlighting the cover-up
surrounding Hillsborough. He agrees that this cover-up
is just another example of how the ruling elite operates
with its history of cover-ups, collusions, lies and
injustices. More recently we have seen examples of this
with the war on Iraq, the circumstances surrounding the
death of weapons inspector Dr. David Kelly and the
shooting dead of Charles de Menezes on the London
tube. "It's cover-up and injustice after cover-up and
injustice," says John, "from the assassination of JFK to
the war in Ireland. We have got to bring those in high
places to book." He continues, "If you were, for
example, pissed whilst driving a train then you would be
brought to book. These people don't get charged with
anything; instead they get golden handshakes while the
families who suffer get nothing." Regarding
Hillsborough he says, "I believe passionately that if we
keep up the pressure then they will have to hold those
involved to account. It is very important that we never
give up. Eighteen years later it can be hard to keep
going and you have got to be very motivated. People
should never give up. It's your life and you won't make it,
or the lives of those around you, any better if you give
up. YOU can't give up because THEY never give up".
Encouraging words indeed.
Justice for the 96:
An Interview with John Mcglone
By Tony Whitehead (Nerve Magazine Issue 10)