Blue Mink Banned 50 years on

I bought very few 45 rpm singles in my life time but one of them has just been banned. It is Melting Pot by Blue Mink, first released in 1969.

Global the company who run the Radio Station Gold has taken the decision to remove the song from its playlist after a complaint was made to Ofcom.

One person complained about offensive language in the music track Melting Pot by Blue Mink. No introduction to the track was broadcast, or any other content discussing it.

Global said the lyrics – which include references to yellow “Chinkies”, “Red Indian boy”, “curly Latin kinkies” and “coffee-coloured people” – would not be acceptable on a mainstream radio station.

However, it said that Gold’s position as a “station well-known and loved for its playlist of hits from the 60s and 70s” meant that the track was unlikely to cause offence to its audience.

Ofcom agreed, acknowledging that the track had been permanently deleted from Gold’s playlist, and resolved the complaint.

The song was played during The Music Marathon on the 27th of May 2019 at 12:45pm.

Ironically, the song is intended to promote racial harmony. I must asmit that I strained to understand the lyrics asa child but what I did understand even then seemed a little close to the knuckle. I remmeber the single I bought had an instrumental on the B-side.
Perhaps the most offensive line in the song is "It really doesn't matter what religion you choose"