Bookmarks: Some stuff to read on the internet

There's a great piece on Intelligent Life explaining how Bob Dylan's first major art exhibition came to be in Chemnitz:

Persuaded of Dylan's talent as a draftsman, Mössinger wanted him to "eventually complete" his sketches—something he had indicated a desire to do in his book's preface. It took her a while to get hold of him, but once she did, she received a positive reply within two days. Dylan was inspired by her commitment. "I was fascinated to learn of Ingrid's interest in my work, and it gave me the impetus to realise the vision I had for these drawings many years ago. If not for this interest, I don't know if I even would have revisited them", the singer is quoted as saying in the museum's literature. Over eight months Dylan elaborated on his 322 works.

No O2 Doh show

Thursday night's NME-thrown secret gig for Babyshambles fans was a bit of a disaster, with Doherty not showing up and being replaced by a fan.

So far, so unsurprising.

The official explanation was more interesting:

Pete had apparently been diagnosed with "exhaustion" after a "punishing promotional schedule" which involved a mag photoshoot.

His spokesman added: "He's still attending a rehab programme, which he had to follow whilst on tour and has to travel hundreds of miles back home after shows. As a result, touring is more arduous for him than normal."

Even the 3AM Girls aren't going to fall for that. Since he's been on his rehab programme for quite a while now, wouldn't he have been aware of this when he signed on for the gig?

Not to mention how it's a problem to play a gig at 10pm at the Millennium Dome in the east of London, but somehow his rehab programme lets him visit Amy Winehouse at four in the morning in the east of London.

Oh, and Mik Wittnall didn't show up, either. Was he also tired out by having his photo taken?

Gordon in the morning

So, what has Gordon got on his mind this morning? There's a long, dull piece about some footballer or other who's involved with Danielle Lloyd, which is notable only for Gordon's finish:

I don’t see the attraction with Danielle Lloyd - she just has NOTHING about her at all.

Although enough to justify several hundred words, lots of photos and a lead story in your column, we notice, Gordo.

Gordon also fills space by ("makes space for") running several pictures from Jordan's calendar, which is a wonderful piece of journalism as it involved, erm, buying a calendar that's been on sale since the first of October and copying the pictures; and reporting that Mel B has worn a fairly tight t-shirt. It gives Gordon the chance to vary his limited vocabulary for females breasts - apparently Mel B has "Eddies":

well, he is a tit

Subtle, Gordon. Very subtle.

Two days? How much viagra is Kanye West on?

Kanye West is sponsored by Kleenex:

“I like porno, I ain’t going to hide the truth.

“I could stay in for a good two days with my stash. Can you love porn and be a good Christian? If you’re a normal person you have needs.”

It's an interesting theological question, although one difficult to answer without knowing what porn it is thatKanye's using - obviously, saucy nuns would be a complete no-no.

We're more worried by his belief that normal people lock themselves away to strum the old acoustic guitar for forty-eight hours at a stretch.

Five years ago today

Amanda Platell attempted to explain Popbitch to News Statesmen readers, and botched it badly;
Popjustice regsitered JustinTimberlake.co.uk (and still haven't given it back.)

Poison in the Beck?

Murky claims surface in Vanity Fair that Beck pulled out a film project, leaving the aspiring producer so bereft they took their own life.

Beck can hardly be held responsible for that - after all, you can't do business on the basis of worrying about how upset people will be if you didn't. What's murky, though, is the distance Beck seems to be putting between himself and the late Theresa Duncan.

The film, Alice Underground, was to be about a rock star kidnapped by schoolgirls who try to help him leave the Church of Scientology. Duncan told friends that Beck was keen on the movie - and on emulating the protagonist by also leaving the cult; and, when the Church started to get worried about the project, that he pulled out.

Rubbish, cries Beck:

"That's ridiculous. Totally false," Beck told the mag about his alleged agreement to work on "Alice."

"Had we been closer and discussed anything as personal as religion, I would have only had positive things to say about Scientology."

[...]

"We never met to discuss the film," Beck said. "I did explain to her I wasn't looking to act right then, and with the album, tour schedule, and a baby on the way, it wouldn't be feasible."

You have to wonder how one person can be sure they met and talked about working together when the other is equally sure they didn't. You'd have thought Beck would be comfortable, never having discussed the film, to talk about it:

A spokesman for the rocker told The Post last night that Vanity Fair's quotes from Beck were accurate.

But the mouthpiece said Beck didn't want to add any additional comments: "That's about as on-the-record as you're going to get from him."

But he isn't.

Nicky Wire doesn't like the Radioheads

Nicky Wire is angry. Angry, angry, angry, with Thom Yorke, who is conspiring to kill music:

"Fair play to Radiohead for doing something different. It's certainly great for publicity but I think it kind of demeans music.

"Music used to be a market, now it's all gone digital. It's worrying and it seems to be the way of the world at the moment. Sales are doing well everywhere else. Cinema is doing well, video games are doing well but music isn’t. The free download phenomenon is ruining the industry."

It's interesting that Wire thinks sales in music are doing poorly compared to films and video games because of "free downloads", rather than the other possibility that perhaps people are happier to pay for video games than music. That maybe - given the choice between having the family round the telly flying off to Saturn with Mario Galaxies on the WII, and the Manics last bloated album, packed with Davroesque impressions of their younger selves, the music will always struggle.

We never had Wire pegged as a company man, but the band have been with Sony a very long time, and clearly he's comfortable with the industry. That's the only explanation for the RIAA-tinged view of In Rainbows as being part of the problem rather than an interesting attempt to find a solution. It's obvious that - in years to come - historians of music aren't going to see an experimental pay-what-you-like download in 2007 as the point where the music industry imploded; that happened years ago.

And since when was "music a market", Wire? Do you really think that in the 70s and 80s there was something organic about pop music, that we would nip down to Woolworths, choose from thousands of albums and haggle a price? If anything, the old pre-digital world was more like a petrol station shop than a market; a limited range of mostly inedible sludge offered at artificially high prices. The digital world allows the people who make the music to deal more-or-less direct with the people who consume it - it's potentially a farmer's market of the music world. It may be a world where large consumer electronic companies cease to subsidise old bands to make disappointing albums simply to ensure the band keeps the lucrative back catalogue with the label, but why would that worry you, Nicky?

Hang about though: actually, it's not Radiohead who are killing music. It's TV:

"I can't bear the X Factor judges and the shit they put out every year. It's just a load of talentless fuckwits that destroy the industry."

Up to a point, you'd have to agree with him. But he's also moaning that nobody buys records - and yet they're buying Leona Lewis in shedloads. Isn't that what he wants? If he fetishises markets so much these days, doesn't the market speak and say 'we sort of like this stuff, and will at least buy it in fairly large quantities...'?

Gedge on the decks

If you happen to be in Brixton, or able to get there, David Gedge is djing tonight at How Does It Feel To Be Loved? at the Canterbury Arms. Six quid in, four if you're a member and, presumably, if you are David Gedge you'll get in for nothing.

Are Blondie, EMI ripping off Peter Leeds?

That's what he believes. He managed Blondie during 1978 & 1979 and, for some reason, has been earning a percentage of the band's take ever since. We're not quite sure why.

It looks like Blondie are a little less than thrilled to be paying a guy who hasn't done a thing for them in nearly three decades, and have decided that instead of calculating his slice of the cake on gross earnings, they're subtracting the payments to producers before coming up with a figure. Leeds insists this is a "renegotiation" of the 1979 contract of pay-off, and is dragging the whole thing to court.

He's taking a risk - if the courts do agree with Blondie's reading of the document and their new interpretation, Leeds could be leaving himself open for a counter-action reclaiming twenty-five odd years of overpayment.