James Blunt wants to beat Taliban with music

Musician and ex-army man James Blunt seems to believe music is a good counter-insurgency tactic.

The musician, most well-known for his hits “You’re Beautiful” and “1973” told the Daily Mirror that he was “tired” of the conflict in Afghanistan and wanted to “go out and fix it.”

“I’m going out there at Christmas time and will sing the Taliban into surrender,” he told the newspaper. “If I can’t do it, then who can?”

Blunt, who served in the British army for six years and spent time in Kosovo, plans to visit troops stationed in Afghanistan soon.

His said his visit to Afghanistan was scheduled to take place six months ago but was delayed.

“I was with 120 soldiers and we got held just outside Afghanistan in a camp out there,” he said. “We waited to try and get in under the cover of darkness. We were on the runway in a plane, helmets on, armour on and were ready to go in fast at night to Camp Bastion. And then the plane broke down. So we were off the plane. We waited 24 hours and then a new plane turned up. Helmets on, body armour on, going along the runway, then the plane broke down again. We’re certainly not going to win a war like that. I wanted to get in there and scare the Taliban.”

While Blunt’s trip and his plan to ‘scare the Taliban’ are on hold, he will be busy releasing his third studio album.

The Afghan Taliban has not responded to James Blunt as yet.

There is a long tradition of musicians and actors entertaining troops on military bases. In recent years, comedians such as Stephen Colbert, Robin Williams and Drew Carey have performed in Iraq.

In Pakistan, several musicians, including Jawad Ahmad, have produced songs praising the troops. Songs by Madam Noor Jahan were reportedly broadcast by Radio Pakistan to help increase the morale of troops on the frontline during the 1965 war between India and Pakistan.

Contemporary Pakistani musicians have produced songs about the spate of bombings in the country, however they have not announced any plans to ‘sing the Taliban into surrender’ ala James Blunt.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 13^th, 2010.