PRS for Music Outstanding Contribution to British Music - Billy Bragg

“Mixing pop and politics, he asks me what the use is,” sang Billy Bragg on his brilliant 1988 hit Waiting for The Great Leap Forward, “I offer him embarrassment and my usual excuses.” It’s the sort of couplet that could only have come from the great bard of Barking, Billy Bragg, a man whose songs have expertly skewered both pop and politics like no one else over the last 30 years.

Bragg’s wit was at its most self-deprecating on that song, but, in fact, his contribution to both British music and British life in general has been the very definition of ‘outstanding’ ever since he emerged as a self-styled “one-man Clash” in the mid-80s.

Over that time, his songwriting has grown increasingly sophisticated and versatile, as he’s taken on everything from full-on chart hits (Sexuality, A New England) to obscure Americana (the Mermaid Avenue and Shine A Light albums). But the core of his writing has always been simple, direct and distinctly English, getting to the heart of the matter and, often, to matters of the heart.

Because, while Bragg made his name as a political writer – and, over the years, has proved himself to be one of the most passionate, considered campaigners in music – his love songs and wider social observations are every bit as inspirational. For every Between The Wars there’s a Greetings To The New Brunette; for every To Have And Have Not a You Woke Up My Neighbourhood.

Anyone who’s ever attended one of his concerts will know they’re an irresistible combination of political rally, stand-up comedy show and joyous indie disco, as multi-faceted as the man himself. Which is why this accolade is richly deserved, a fitting acknowledgement of how the songs he’s written have shaped the country he lives in. No embarrassment or excuses needed.