Friday 3 March 2017

Hunters and Collectors and

PETA?
I wouldn't know a Hunters and Collectors track if I fell over it but I have heard of them and I never ever thought they had anything to do with hunting animals. Even I know they are some sort of band and play a form of music which does not greatly interest me. 
PETA, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, want the Hunters and Collectors to change their name. Apparently it gives people the wrong message about animals and cruelty and more.
I wonder how the PETA people feel about "Guns N' Roses" (do I have that right?) or "The Grateful Dead" or "Black Sabbath". Compared with those things "Hunters and Collectors" seems pretty mild and "The Beatles" is just a clever word. 
The Senior Cat is bewildered by the names given to groups. "Why," he wants to know, "would anyone call themselves 'Dire Straits' or 'Def Leppard'?" 
It doesn't make sense to him - any more than the noise they make does. For him it is not music at all. It is simply a noise he finds highly objectionable. He's a very tolerant cat, far more tolerant than many his age. It makes no difference he doesn't like "that noise".  His taste runs to Mozart and "music hall" songs. My taste tends to run to Beethoven et.al and the more traditional folk music but yes I have heard of groups like Pearl Jam as well as Duran Duran and Pink Floyd. 
I tend to notice not because I like their music but because names fascinate me. 
     "But do they mean anything?" the Senior Cat has asked more than once. 
My answer has to be "I don't know but not always." The nephew cats were a duo for some years. They performed gigs in venues around the city, wrote a few songs etc. They called themselves "Red Ice" and it meant absolutely nothing at all then but I doubt they would keep a name with "ice" in it now.
I have no idea where some of those other names come from. What I do know is that PETA is in all likelihood completely mistaken about what "Hunters and Collectors" means - indeed one member of the band has apparently told them they are mistaken.
PETA is likely making fools of themselves but it might be some nice publicity for Hunters and Collectors - and no, they shouldn't change their name.
 

3 comments:

Jodiebodie said...

Back in their early heyday the Hunters & Collectors were quite a large band for their time, as it was one of the few pub rock bands to have a decent brass section. They would perform in various combinations so I always thought the name pertained to hunting and collecting musicians - whoever was available at the time!

jeanfromcornwall said...

I know nothing about Hunters and Collectors, but I do know that PETA are the people who advertised that we shouldn't use wool since it was cruelty to sheep!!!! Does anyone remember that NZ ram who evaded the roundup for years then had to be captured nd sheared before the weight of his fleece killed him?

But aren't we all hunters and collecters - in my case yarn and textiles.

Anonymous said...

PETA is one group who should actually look after animals instead of trying to change the name of a band who are reaching retirement age. Do they think fans are going to go through their music collection and change the name of the band on every CD?