I too would place Flanders and Swann in the same corpus as Gilbert and Sullivan, Wilde, Jerome K Jerome, Chesterton and Wodehouse, but that doesn't mean this box set can't sit next to your Franz Ferdinand or Scissor Sisters albums - the criterion isn't whether something is modern bur whether its good. Listen to these three CDs and you realise you are in the presence of two massive talents. Sometimes you have to look to the past to find something new and Flanders and Swann are a breath of fresh air. Brilliant!
Nothing makes me giggle more that The Gas Man Cometh or playing the Song of Patriotic Prejudice at top volume with 'foreigners' in the house!
I am proud to say I once saw Donald Swann on stage about a year before his death (and, thanks to a kindly employee, even have his autograph). Together, Flanders and Swann were one of a kind - unmissable British humour at its best!
There is still much to surprise and delight as F&S take on public transport, hi-hi, parking, xenophobia, relationships, popular songs, animals fictional and real, even war (arguably, F&S were never more powerful and relevant than in the two very dark anti-war songs included on the third CD, perhaps inspired by Swann's Quaker sympathies), and much more besides.
True, many songs and commentaries by Flanders & Swann may seem dated because the personalities are long gone, but the veracity of Flanders' rapier wit in pricking inflated egos is just as relevant today as it has ever been, echoing the skills of WS Gilbert and others to transcend their time (just insert the names of your least favourite politicians!) While Flanders publically mocked satire ("It has rightly been said that the role of satire is to strip away the veneer from society. Our role as I see it is to put it back"), he was not averse to indulging in what for the time was fairly pungent satire (shame that the wonderful 'Hole in my Budget' is not included here.)
But overall, the mood is light and affectionately funny. Who could fail to enjoy Madeira M'dear, The Gasman Cometh or Ill Wind. Simple, light, refreshing and performed with consummate skill, and leaving the listener with a smile. What more could you want?
