Letter: Play on, Alex

Joyce McMillan, I fear, shows some signs of desperation in her attempt to draw a few strands of political significance from Alex Salmond's appearance on Desert Island Discs (Perspective, 21 January).

In spite of the explosion of great home-brewed sounds in recent decades, especially in traditional music, she derides the First Minister's choice of five Scottish tracks as "just too many to be convincing", points out that the most recently recorded piece is a Capercaillie Gaelic song, produced way back in 1992, and concludes that the programme revealed that Salmond had "not really had much time to listen to new music for 20 years or more".

The point here is that Desert Island Discs is not, and never has been, about "new music", about displaying smart, cool taste. It's about songs and tunes that have meant a lot to you over the years and you would hate to be without.

Is it any surprise that the leader of the Scottish National Party should display a passion for Scottish music?

Mr Salmond is surely entitled to pick a few of his favourite records and enjoy his memories, without running into the media wall of political analysis.

Alastair Clark

Linn Mill

South Queensferry