Oh well...

Johnny Marr and Mike Joyce both deny the rumor that lit up the internet last week of a Smiths reunion. I can't imagine anyone in their right mind actually believed the rumor in the first place, although there's a little piece of every Smiths fan that holds out hope for the impossible to one day happen. Call it a light that never goes out.

Anyway, it's not happening. Marr says he's got "things to do." Here's the link:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/apr/26/johnny-marr-quashes-smiths-talk

Another Fall Attack

The Fall's Mark E. Smith is notorious for his attacks -- against the press, pop stars, even his own bandmates. And now he has attacked Mumford & Sons. He threw a bottle at the English folk rockers at a recent festival and happily told the story to Uncut.

Here's the link.

Song In My Head

Great tune called "Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings" by Father John Misty.

Father John Misty is the moniker used by Joshua Tillman, the one-time drummer for Fleet Foxes, who's now gone solo.

Not Your Average Beasties Fans

I snapped this picture in Times Square on the walk to work this morning. Either fans of the Beastie Boys are entering their golden years -- which makes me feel really old -- or somewhere there's a women's bowling team that represents a clothing shop owned by a guy name Paul.

Which One is Not Like the Others?

I've been thinking - and blogging - a lot about Kaiser Chiefs and Bloc Party lately, and I was trying to remember some of the other British bands that came along at roughly the same time. Franz Ferdinand is an obvious one, although they broke big here in the states in 2004, one year before Kaiser Chiefs and Block Party.

Later that year, a rather poorly named Scottish band joined them on the U.S. airwaves, and unlike the other three bands, they've largely been forgotten. Dogs Die in Hot Cars had one real hit - "I Love You 'Cause I Have To" - which peaked at #32 on the UK Singles Chart. They never found chart success in this country, although they were mainstays on radio stations like LA's KROQ for a few months. I bought the CD anyway. It had a few moments, but overall was mediocre.

Men at Work... Ripping People Off

You don't know his name, but you can instantly sing his riffs. But were they actually his to begin with? Greg Ham, the flautist/saxophonist for Men at Work, died recently. And the obituary in The New York Times included a lengthy re-telling of the legal conflict that stemmed from Ham's flute part in "Down Under". Apparently, Men at Work were found to have ripped off the flute riff from the classic schoolhouse singalong "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree" and it absolutely devastated the band. Funny, I always heard the connection between "Down Under" and "Kookaburra" and figured it was intentional -- after all, the Men at Work song essentially stereotypes Australians, and what better Australian song to 'borrow' as a riff but "Kookaburra."

Hear the similarity between "Down Under" and "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree" for yourself. And here's a nice report from Sydney 3 News on Australian TV about the dispute..

Song In My Head

The song that made Bloc Party famous... "Banquet".

Back in the mid-2000s, when "I Predict a Riot" broke big, these guys followed quickly behind. And I'm thinking of them today because they've added a second show here in New York at Terminal 5. Plus they play Telecasters.

Song In My Head

"Accept Yourself" by The Smiths.
My two-year-old son swiped my iPod and somehow hit the right buttons to make this one play. Then when I asked him for my iPod back, he said 'no' and hid in his sister's closet. Should I be worried?

Anyway, this is the live version from Manchester's famed Hacienda nightclub from July 6, 1983.

Video Vault Friday -- My Response

"I Predict a Riot" by the Kaiser Chiefs. It doesn't have the same social bite that "Ghost Town" had back in 1981, but this 2004 single shares some of its spirit with the Specials song and put this Leeds band on the map.

Video Vault Friday - HELLO???

It's like a ghost town around here!  So in honor, here are the Specials.