WE'D RATHER MART'S SONGS ABOUT SCREWING THAN DAVE'S ABOUT SMACK

We'd been wondering how things would have been with Depeche Mode getting back together after all that business with Gahan moaning about singing Gore's songs. Frosty, at first, it seems, to listen to Martin Gore:

"During the press for his (Gahan's) solo record , he went a bit too far saying stuff like he felt like a puppet and I was a dictator, and he felt like he had a right to contribute.

"I realised during that period that if the band were going to continue then I would have to allow that to happen up to a point. But I didn't think it was right that after 25 years he should step in and write 50 per cent of the songs."

Not without at least offering another 10 per cent to Vince Clarke, certainly.

In other Dave Gahan news, apparently Michael Stipe bumped into Gahan back in 1996, and was so shocked at how raddled he looked he, erm, phoned up Anton Corbijn for help. We often confuse "doctor" and "photographer" ourselves - both make you take your clothes off and realise that your body isn't exactly as great as you'd hoped:

He recalls, "Michael said he'd just met Dave Gahan and that Dave was in a terrible state, and could I do anything about it."

But Corbijn's help came too late - Gahan clinically died from a drug overdose in May, 1996.

That's actually the final sentence of the ContactMusic report, which would give you the impression that Gahan was dead. Which would make his persuading Martin Gore to give him some of the songwriting for ver Mode even more impressive.

music anton corbijn martin gore dave gahan depeche mode