GETTING IT FROM ALL SIDES

You wouldn't want to be General Motors this morning; not only have you got a USD1.1bn loss to cope with (unlike in the UK, American manufacturers make losses due to trading conditions being poor and not merely because the directors have awarded themselves a splendid renumeration package); GM's Opel brand has pissed off Tom Waits by using a soundalike in one of their ads:

"In answer to the many queries I have received: No, I did not do the Opel car commercial currently running on TV in Scandinavia. I have a long-standing policy against my voice or music being used in commercials and I have lawyers over there investigating my options. But I got to tell you, it doesn't look good. This is the third car ad, after Audi in Spain and Lancia in Italy.

"If I stole an Opel, Lancia, or Audi, put my name on it and resold it, I'd go to jail. But over there they ask, you say no, and they hire impersonators. They profit from the association and I lose time, money, and credibility. What's that about?

"Commercials are an unnatural use of my work... it's like having a cow's udder sewn to the side of my face. Painful and humiliating."

So, having your music used in ad is like having bovine boobs stapled to your head. Explians a lot about Moby, doesn't it?

music adverts tom waits