Song about former Bolsover MP Dennis Skinner rides high on Amazon chart – beating Kylie Minogue, Ariana Grande and Miley Cyrus

Tony Skinner’s Lad, by folk singer Robb Johnson, is currently number one on the Amazon Best Sellers download chart – beating the likes of Kylie Minogue, Ariana Grande and Miley Cyrus.

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The tune – which includes a combination of clips from Mr Skinner’s speeches – has been pushed by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn on social media.

Firebrand Labour politician Mr Skinner represented Bolsover between 1970 and 2019.

Robb, 64, who lives in East Sussex but regularly performs in Derbyshire, said: “I have always admired Dennis’ principled approach to being an MP.

“I have also always liked him as a human being – he’s wickedly funny and he likes a good song too.”

Explaining how the track came about, Robb said: “The Labour Grassroots internet show did a tribute to Dennis and I was really pleased when they asked me to write a song for it.

“I was even happier when I learned Dennis and his family had watched the show and liked the song – so we decided to record it properly and release it as a single.”

He added: “I am really happy that the song is doing so well and I think this is an indication of the great respect people have for Dennis – and the work he has done over the years for the people of his constituency and for the cause of social progress generally.”

The song is accompanied by a video created by Dan Draper, who directed Nature of the Beast – a film about Mr Skinner.

Dan said: “In this video we wanted to convey Dennis’ passion, his legacy and just how long he spent fighting for the rights of workers.

“We also wanted to emphasise the softer side that you don’t often get to see.

“There’s so much great footage of Dennis so we had plenty of material to choose from to accompany Robb’s fantastic song.”

Proceeds from Tony Skinner’s Lad will go to the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign.

To download it, visit https://bit.ly/2RXP3jR

You can also watch the official video at https://bit.ly/3hXrlPm

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