>>>There was a review of his latest album on BBC Radio 4 here - all to do with his support for Obama?
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>>>They kept coming back to a line from one of the songs, summat like:
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>>>"Have you ever seen a one-armed man punching at thin air?"
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>>Hardly all to do with, but he did support Obama. He made some campaign appearances for him and played at a concert the day before the inaugural along with a number of other musicians. The new album is noticeably sunnier than its two predecessors.
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>While on tour here in the Thatcher era he made a large donation to a fund supporting striking miners wives and children.

That definitely sounds like something he would do. And it probably came out after the fact. Unlike some, he doesn't gather a camera crew around him every time he does something generous.