The ten right-wing rockers
Some later said they didn't mean it, or changed their minds, but all of them at one time pointed right, says Luke Bainbridge Luke Bainbridge Sunday October 14, 2007
Observer Music Monthly 1. Elvis Presley
The meeting of the King and the President at the White House on 21 December 1970 was initiated by Elvis himself. Presley wrote a long, rambling six-page letter to Nixon, expressing his concern for the country and suggesting he could use his position to help as 'the drug culture, the hippie elements, the SDS, Black Panthers etc do not consider me as their enemy'. Presley also suggested he be made a 'Federal Agent-at-Large' in the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. In their face-to-face meeting, Presley stressed his love of his country and told Nixon he was 'on your side'. He also said he had been studying 'communist brainwashing' and that the Beatles had been 'a real force for anti-American spirit'. This picture is the most requested item from the US National Archive, more so than the Bill of Rights or the Constitution of the United States.
2. Tony Hadley
The Spandau Ballet singer, a long-standing Conservative, is said to be in the hunt for a Tory seat. At this month's party conference he was talking tough on crime: 'The fabric of society is torn. We need Cameron to be more like Thatcher, to say enough is enough.'
3. Ted Nugent
The hard rocker is renowned for his conservative views and anti-drug/ alcohol stances. At the National Rifle Association's 2005 convention he told delegates he wanted rapists, burglars and child molesters 'dead'. On Iraq: 'Our failure has been not to Nagasaki them.'
4. Eric Clapton
A drunk Clapton spoke out in support of Enoch Powell at a gig in Birmingham in 1976. 'I think Enoch's right ... we should send them all back. Throw the wogs out! Keep Britain white!'. His reported remarks were a factor in the creation of Rock Against Racism.
5. 50 Cent
In 2005, Fiddy told GQ he thought Dubya was 'incredible ... a gangsta'. He revealed he would vote for Bush if his felony conviction didn't prevent him from voting. 'I wanna meet George Bush, just shake his hand and tell him how much of me I see in him.'
6. Geri Halliwell
At the height of Girl Power, in 1996, the Spice Girls gave a Christmas interview to The Spectator , in which Geri revealed their true inspiration 'We are true Thatcherites,' she explained. 'Thatcher was the first Spice Girl, the pioneer of our ideology.'
7. Kid Rock
The rock rapper, ex-husband of Pamela Anderson and MTV's one-time Sluttiest Male Celebrity is also a big Republican. Rock was pencilled in to headline a youth concert organised by Bush daughters Jenna and Barbara in 2005 until various family groups protested.
8. Johnny Ramone
On induction to the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame in 2002, the Republican declared, 'God bless President Bush.' Johnny, who died in 2004, once said: 'People drift towards liberalism at a young age, and I always hope they change when they see how the world really is.'
9. Phil Collins
The drummer famously promised to leave the UK if Labour were elected in 1997, and did indeed move to Switzerland. Prior to the 2005 election, Noel Gallagher urged: 'Vote Labour. If you don't and the Tories get in, Phil is threatening to come back.'
10. Ian Curtis
The lead singer of Joy Divison - who is currently depicted in Anton Corbijn's biopic Control - helped Margaret Thatcher into power by voting Conservative in 1979, reportedly as a protest against the Labour government of James Callaghan.