Adam Boult 

Living the G4S power ballad dream

Adam Boult: G4S's Blaze of Glory-esque corporate anthem will be sure to set them on track to win back public confidence
  
  


I bet you're feeling little sympathy for G4S right now – but maybe you should think twice before sneering at them? Internet snoopers have this week found a quite singular piece of music that conveys, with mindblowing emotional intensity, just how it feels to LIVE G4S's corporate values.

It's a slick, country-rock anthem that brings to mind Blaze of Glory-era Bon Jovi, and this is apt, as that song was on the soundrack of the classic 1990s western Young Guns 2. The theme of that film was Sheriff Pat Garrett's pursuit of Billy the Kid – the notorious outlaw gunman. Musically, G4S is trying to paint itself in the Garrett role — the single-minded upholder-of-the-law, who puts aside personal morality to uphold order.

And as for the lyrics, well, judge for yourself:

We're guarding you with all our might
Keeping watch throughout the night

These lines echo the quote often erroneously attributed to George Orwell and Winston Churchill: "People sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."

Which in turn refers to Kipling's poem Tommy:

O makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep / Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap.

G4S are the rough men who guard us while we sleep. And do we, the people they protect, love them for it? No. We mock them ruthlessly.

And, while we might hurt their feelings, that's OK. G4S will abide:

G4S! Protecting the world, G4S! So dreams can unfurl.

Sleep easy, and dream the dreams of the protected, for G4S are ready to take up the fight on our behalf.

• Follow Comment is free on Twitter @commentisfree

 

Leave a Comment

Required fields are marked *

*

*