Gordon in the morning: Those who fail to learn from Michael Jackson tribute concerts are doomed to repeat it

There's nothing wrong with the idea of a tribute concert from Amy Winehouse. There's nothing wrong with staging it to raise money for the uh, you know, that charity thing.

But surely people have learned by now that the way to destroy an event is to oversell it before it's organised?

THE Amy Winehouse tribute concert later this year is taking shape.
[...]
Mitch is talking to TV companies about airing the show and is considering making it pay-per-view, so it makes as much cash as possible.

[A source said] "Big artists will be booked from both sides of the Atlantic so people will want to see it. It will be a huge event."

I hope it is a huge event; I hope it does raise loads of money. But surely we can all agree that this sort of trumpeting before anything is signed runs the risk of over-hyping expectations and can end up with what would be a great event looking like a shadow of the early promise. Nobody wants that.

They put the application in at the wrong speed

Yes, a stock 'wrong speed' joke can only hail some news relating to the mighty John Peel. In this case, news that Stowmarket Corn Exchange is to be remade as the John Peel Arts Centre.

You suspect that while he'd probably feel a bit shy and awkward about his name being slapped outside a building, this is exactly the sort of way he'd like to be remembered. Let's hope they have a lot of unexpected sounding noises in there.

Bookmarks - Internet stuff: Tony Wilson

Creative Review have got a sad-but-engrossing feature on the design of Tony Wilson's grave. It is, really, what he would have wanted:

The black granite headstone carries a quote, chosen by Wilson's family, from The Manchester Man, the 1876 novel by Mrs G Linnaeus Banks (aka Isabella Varley Banks), the story of one Jabez Clegg and his life in Victorian Manchester. The quote is set in Rotis.

Something to listen to: Whispering Bob on Roger Scott

You can't actually listen to this yet, as it hasn't happened, but after 11pm tonight you can hear - for the next seven days - Bob Harris featuring a tribute to Roger Scott. Twenty years since he died, which is why Radio 2 are memorialising him.

The Jackson memorial gig is shaping up to be quite, quite special

Jermaine Jackson has been in London today, pushing a wonderful live music event. Oh, yeah, in memory of thingumabob. But mostly the event.

Where to start? First, perhaps, with the news that Chris Brown is hoping to take part:

"Chris Brown is working out some situations but he definitely expressed to us that he wants to be here," Jackson said at a press conference in London.

"It's just up to what he's going through with his court case right now - but he's definitely going to work that out and be here."

Ah, yes, "some situations" - or "he's receiving a light punishment for beating a woman's face in" as you might choose to describe it if you were less generous.

Jackson said that, despite the negative publicity surrounding Brown's court case, he was happy for the singer to take part.

"People make mistakes and he's a wonderful performer and during these times people need support and that's really important," he said.

I'm not even sure - if pressed - Celebrity Big Brother's (and, of course, the celebrity's big brother) Jermaine could explain exactly what he means by that. It sounds like he's saying 'well, whoops-a-daisy, he smashed a woman's face, but who hasn't? Besides, we could all do with a dance to cheer ourselves up."

It also sounds a little like JJ is implying that - somehow - the painkillery death of Michael is of a piece with the credit crisis, the war in Afghanistan, the continued provision of a public platform to Glenn Beck and the many other ailments of a planet. That the death horseman was only interested in Jacko and now his job is done.

And that must be what Jermaine meant - for if by "during these times" he simply means the cancellation of a lucrative fifty-night run at the O2 arena, then surely not even Chris Brown - even if he was a musical genius, and not merely a thuggish label confection - would be able to fill that hole.

In fact, it's as if Jermaine has had that thought anyway. For he knows that the only celebrity with the power to fill the gap left by Michael (assuming Oprah and Martha Stewart can't sort out a cover of I Know Him So Well in time) is... well, Jackson.

Simply because Michael is dead isn't going to stop him turning up at his own memorial. Disappointingly, the current plan is not for him to hang around at the back in an unlikely beard claiming to be called Martin Wellborn, but instead he'll "appear" onstage.

God alone knows. A projector of some sort? Some "previously unseen footage"? All we do know is that this reanimated Jacko will be singing along with Jermaine.

It's what Michael would have wanted. Although not so much he invited Jermaine to duet with him when he was alive.

Channel 4 News was reporting that this misbegotten event is going to take place in Vienna because Michael "loved castles and The Sound Of Music". And not, then, because Jermaine fancied a trip to Austria.

Did Jacko love The Sound Of Music? You could understand the appeal of a story about a family of singing kids where it was the father who got forced to perform because of an overbearing presence, but I'm not sure I've ever heard of him doing Lonely Goatherd as an encore. A quick Google brings up a discussion which suggests Charmain Carr, who played Liesl Von Trapp, did some interior design for him in the past (without a happy ending) but that's hardly a conenction that would persuade most families to hold their gentle farewells in a different continent.

David Gest against the People: It's what Michael would have wanted

You can understand David Gest being upset at the Sunday People saying he was banned from Michael Jackson's memorial:

In a writ filed at the High Court by London law firm Sheridans said the story alleged that despite his claims of a close friendship with Michael Jackson, and although Jackson was best man at his wedding to Liza Minelli in 2002, Gest parasitically clung to an association with the entertainer not based on genuine friendship.

Gest claimed the story was false as he was invited to the memorial service in Los Angeles and Jackson’s mother, Katherine Jackson, had not called him a hanger-on.

The People have already told its remaining readers that the story was wrong:

It said: "On July 5, 2009 we reported that David Gest had been banned from attending Michael Jackson's memorial service by Michael's mother as a "hanger-on" who had not spoken to her son for 10 years. Our article was incorrect.

"In fact Mr Gest had been friends with Michael Jackson for over 40 years, the two had remained close and he had been personally invited to the memorial service by Mrs Jackson.

"We apologise to Mr Gest for our error and any distress or embarrassment it may have caused."

And by "wrong" I mean "made-up". You've got to love that apology which suggests it was an "error", as if they'd spelled his name with a "u".

Still, David is not satisfied, and he's now taking The People to court.

Talking for Tony

Could there be any more apt a memorial for Tony Wilson than non-stop talking?

Steve Coogan, Tim Burgess, Irvine Welsh and - you'd have to hope - others are currently taking part in a round-the-clock talking event that's designed to inspire the next generation of creative people in Manchester.

They've called it The Tony Wilson Experience, though, which is great as it implies that it's going to be some sort of three-piece pub band instead.

Oh, those trees brought you the air that you are breathing

Apparently Joe Strummer loved trees (no, news to me as well) and so Future Forests are planting a memorial forest in his name.