No dough-erty

Let's take a closer look at Pete Doherty's money situation, by reading the same article that Gordon lifted his piece from on the MTV News site.

It's been clear for a while - since, ooh, the publication of that book - that Doherty has started to see his fanbase as a well from which money can be drawn, regardless of how leaky the bucket might be. He's now actually vocalising that, though:

“We’ve got a few concerns at the moment over issues with management, where the money has been going (and) distribution of wealth.”

Bandmate Drew McConnell then asked “Do we?” before the wayward singer continued:

“We need to sit down as a band and talk about the future. What’s happening and why, when and who with. Two years of arseing about, we could actually make money out of this job.”

The appearance of 'distribution of wealth' in that quote might be sending chills through some members of the entourage.

Given what Doherty actually does with his money, you might feel that he's actually better off having other people take it away from him first.

Helsinki, oh lord: It's not exactly a supergroup

Drew McConnell, Albert Hammond Jr and - oh, my - Fionn Regan have been working together on a side-project badged as Helsinki. Drew explains:

"I did four tracks a couple of months back with Albert Hammond, Jr. from The Strokes and Fionn Regan.

"I've had a few labels talking to me about the possibility of releasing it.

"We all needed it, Albert had been on tour with his solo thing and he was a little tired.

"It was good for everyone to get in the studio for a few days and have some beers and make some good music.

"When I play with Helsinki, it's more for fun. Not that Babyshambles isn't fun, but I take it more seriously."

"Not worrying if a label was going to be happy with it or whether an A&R man was gonna check if the chorus came in, in the first 40 seconds."

We wonder if Drew would like to add some sort of disclaimer lest we all get the impression that Doherty's muse actually plays second fiddle in shaping the Babyshambles sound to what the A&R think about the chorus. He doesn't, mind.

Babyshambles hoped for Barat back-up

Drew McConnell has told the NME that the Babyshambles team had hoped Carl Barat would have gone on tour with them. To play guitar on one song:

[H]e and his bandmates wanted Barat to play guitar when they play the Libertines song 'Time For Heroes'.

"I suggested getting Carl," McConnell explained. "But he's not going to be around. I bump into him quite a lot and he's a good lad.

You can see why they might have wanted someone around who can keep a bit of a hand on Doherty, but did they really think offering the chance to grind around the country in a glorified session musician role was an attractive approach?

They also gave him a chance to appear on their record, too. We wonder if the constant demands to make up polite excuses is starting to wear a little on Mr. Barat.

Still making excuses: Babyshambles rally round

Talking to the NME, Drew McConnell knew who to blame for Pete Doherty's "relapse". Not Pete, it turns out:

"We heard they [The Sun] were going to run a picture the day before, but I assumed it was going to be dug up old footage," McConnell said.

"When you've just come out of rehab and trying to stay clean with all your might, then some cunt comes round your house with a bag of stuff and a cameraphone, it must be hard to stop yourself."

Well, yes: after an addiction, you do have to cope with temptation. But Pete had been giving interviews basking in his new-found clean status, and however cruel bringing him into contact with temptation quite so sharply was, as Bragg once said 'a virtue never tested is no virtue at all.'

More to the point, according to The Mirror, (with all the scepticism that implies) Pete has actually been enjoying an armful since he got home from court. Regardless of the presence of "cunts with cameraphones" or not.

The world nearly missed out on the Babyshambles album

Apparently, Stephen Street wasn't going to put up with any of the band's nonsense during the making of their current album, Shatner's Revenge. Ficek and McConnell have been talking to the Evening Echo about the making of the record:

"Did I think it might not ever get done? Yeah. They were difficult times," Ficek is quoted by the Evening Echo as saying. "There were a lot of heart-to-hearts between Stephen and Pete. Each time Stephen was about to quit, they'd sit down and have a chat.

"Stephen wouldn't compromise at all. He was like, 'I'm going to get what I need to make a good album, otherwise I'm not going to do it.'"

Bassist Drew McConnell added: "There were a couple of times when I found myself running down a stairwell after Stephen. I had to drag him back to the canteen to talk."

It's interesting that the band were so desperate to keep the producer on board - in other words, then, this is less a Babyshambles record shaped by Street, more a Stephen Street record performed by Babyshambles.

It's even more interesting that a band taking bookings for an arena tour is having to send the bass player to do interviews in the regional papers to push an album.

Babyshambles apparently communicate by lawyer

Drew McConnell is encouraged by the news that Doherty is "in rehab":

"I was overjoyed at the news. I think what Pete needs is a bit of rest someplace where he's on lemonade.

"Not wearing pyjamas with arrows on them and receiving packages surreptitiously sneaked under the door."

"The last time I saw him we'd just headlined a small tent in Weston Park and we were all in soaring spirits. I haven't seem him since. I hear from my manager and lawyer that he's doing swimmingly."

We'll bet that McConnell is relieved that - on current reports - that lucrative arena tour is looking quite plausible, but isn't it a little odd that he hears about the condition of his supposed mucker via his legal team?

Drew breaks his ass

We've been trying to replicate this accident under laboratory conditions, and are having some trouble: Leaping up to catch "a falling double bass", Drew McConnell of Babyshambles fell and shattered his arse.

It's always dangerous adding strings on the second album, isn't it?

We're hoping nobody called out to Pete "can you get him some ice for the injury?" because the last thing he needed at that point would have been meth.

McConnell won't be able to sit down for two weeks.