Joe Kavanagh's Music News

While most of the world is acutely aware of Simon Cowell's mean side, reports in the media last week proved that there are more layers to him that the acerbic music critic known for his heartless barbs. Despite being on the record as saying that he is "too selfish" to ever have his own children, the music mogul has nonetheless been the recipient of praise lately for his generosity towards CHASE children's hospice, an English charity dedicated to working with severely ill children, which is entirely dependent on donations in order to operate. Cowell recently described his heartbreak at getting to know some of the children at the hospice only to watch them die shortly afterward, a state of affairs which has provoked him into becoming one of their most outspoken advocates. Talking to the media last week he claimed: "The lack of government support is frustrating - and by becoming patron of Children Hospices UK I hope to bring pressure to bear at the very highest level. And I'm pretty good at persuading people." So you see, even the dark prince of pop has a kind side...

A controversial new movie that is due to debut on UK station, Channel 4, will reportedly show a scene where Gary Glitter is hanged for his pedophilic ways. Titled, The Execution of Gary Glitter, the film imagines a time when pedophilia becomes punishable by death, under new legislation known as the Capital Crimes Against Children Act, and the entire movie is shot in a documentary style. I'm sure there are plenty out there that wouldn't mind if it were an actual documentary, given Glitter's repeated offenses against children, which have seen him serve three years in a Vietnamese prison from 2005-08. Head of documentaries for Channel 4, Hamish Mykura stated: "High-profile crimes against children often prompt calls for the return of the death penalty - this drama confronts the public with what many say they want. Putting a resonant figure like Gary Glitter into a fictional situation helps to engage the viewer as the drama unfolds." No stranger to controversy, Channel 4 also caused something of an uproar when they showed George W Bush being "assassinated" in the similarly styled 2006 'mockumentary' Death of a President...

British legislators appear to be on the brink of creating a solution for dealing with illegal file-sharing, which will undoubtedly serve as a legal template for a raft of other countries across the continent. A bill propositioned by Lord Mandelson (a dead ringer for Bela Lugosi only scarier) proposes that persistent illegal downloaders be issued with two warnings before being cut off entirely from the internet. The plan hopes to reduce illegal file-sharing by 70% by April 2011, upon which time the law will be reviewed once again. By the time that kicks in, you could conceivably have downloaded every album that has ever been made, so it may be too little too late for many labels and artists. This illegal file-sharing problem may be a riddle without an answer anyway because all one would have to do is grab your laptop and go to the nearest Wi-Fi hot spot if you did receive a ban. It's probably easier to police a party at Tom Sizemore's house than get to grips with this issue...

Welsh act, Los Campesinos! have made the decision to continue with their current UK tour, despite the fact that virtually all seven band members have come down with the dreaded H1N1 swine flu. While their moxie may be admirable, it might be outdone by their naiveté because who in their right mind would actually go to a gig by a band where all seven members are coughing and spluttering a potentially fatal virus around the air, in between songs? It's not like they're even playing huge venues with massive ventilation systems. If they wanted to put a positive spin on it, I suppose they could advertise it with the tagline: "Come see Los Campesinos! and get the rest of the week off work... if you're lucky"...

U2 are slated to play a huge outdoor gig in Berlin on November 5 as part of the buildup to the upcoming MTV Europe Awards. The band will play a set beside the famed Brandenburg Gate, almost 20 years to the day since the fall of the Berlin Wall marked the symbolic end of Soviet-style communism. While such an iconic event is no doubt cause for celebration, the Irish act are not best pleased that their latest album, No Line On The Horizon, has been their lowest selling work of the past decade or more, shifting slightly over one million copies. Speaking to the Associated Press regarding their disappointment with their lack of selling-power, Bono blamed the changing times, stating: "We weren't really in that mindset. We felt that the 'album' is almost an extinct species, and we (tried to) create a mood and feeling, and a beginning, middle and an end. And I suppose we've made a work that is a bit challenging for people who have grown up on a diet of pop stars... (We didn't) pull off the pop songs." So you see, it's you the punter's fault for not getting what they were trying to do. It couldn't possibly be down to the fact that the album simply isn't very good when held up against their other works and heaven forbid that the drop in popularity could be down to the fact that the public might be getting a little tired of Bono's act in particular...

Speaking of pop stars with messiah complexes, I read last week that Madonna was visiting the Malawian orphanage where she adopted son David Banda in October of 2006, when one of the inhabitants said to her: "You are our God. Where could we have been without you?" Not to be too cynical but if she was any good as a god, you wouldn't still be sitting in a Malawian orphanage. Just a thought...

Robbie Williams' camp has announced that the singer has pulled out of his appearance at the upcoming MTV Europe awards show, which are due to take place in Berlin on November 9, as a result of "scheduling conflicts". Considering that Robbie Williams is attempting a comeback after a long hiatus, I can't imagine what could be more important in his schedule than the MTV Europe awards show, undoubtedly the biggest musical event on the continent between now and the New Year. It's not like he has any business in the US. Sources close to the singer were quoted in several tabloids last week alluding to the fact that Williams is deeply unhappy at how his comeback is being covered by the media. After the debacle that was his attempt to crack America, he should be happy that the media is covering him at all. It's also not the media's fault that Robbie's recent live appearance on the X Factor (UK's version of American Idol) came off sounding like a drunk Ashlee Simpson at a karaoke night. Robbie was also in the news last week for renewing his feud with Oasis, telling UK tabloid The Sun: "To be honest, I know there's history between us and this isn't very complimentary, but they've been doing a lap of honor for the past 13 years. There's been the occasional gem here and there. The Importance of Being Idle, and well, that's about it. Originally I thought they'd inevitably get back together because they are the band. But reading between the lines, they're both really stubborn so I don't think they will." Noel Gallagher once famously referred to Williams as "the fat dancer from Take That", spurring the Angels singer to respond by calling the Oasis guitarist a "mean spirited dwarf". Gallagher appeared to win the first round by finally claiming that Williams' music sounded like "dog s***", adding wryly, "and I think even Robbie would probably agree with that". Seconds away, round two... Former Rolling Stone Bill Wyman claims that he has decided to kick smoking after indulging in the habit for over 50 years. The 73-year-old, who played bass with the legendary band from 1962-92, told a journalist last week that he has been warned that he is on the brink of developing emphysema...

Speaking of Rolling Stones, Ronnie Wood recently launched his own clothing range in conjunction with fashion company Liberty of London. The line is inspired by Wood's paintings, and will feature both male and female clothing, in addition to a series of bags and travel accessories. Staying on the subject of Ron Wood, the guitarist's soon-to-be ex-wife, Jo Wood, was voted off TV Strictly Come Dancing (UK version of Dancing With The Stars) after a spirited showing that saw her last six weeks in the contest. The 54-year-old maintains that her appearance on the show has done wonders for her self-confidence, and helped her come to terms with her 61-year-old husband deserting her for a 20-year-old cocktail waitress, declaring: "It made me go out and do something for myself rather than for him. It was such a great challenge and I really believe if you challenge yourself in life it makes you stronger." Not if you challenge yourself to do something like jump off the Empire State Building...

Leona Lewis just can't seem to catch a break these days. Two weeks ago, the Bleeding Love singer was viciously attacked at a book signing in London by mentally-ill man, Peter Kowalczyk, who has since been sectioned under the UK's Mental Health Act. Last week Lewis found herself in difficultly once again when she was trapped in an elevator for over 20 minutes while in Holland doing promotional work...

Lewis was not the only singer to endure such difficulties last week, as Amy Winehouse also found herself trapped in an elevator during the Q Awards, just long enough that she was unable to deliver the Inspiration Award to UK ska legends, The Specials, at a ceremony in London's Grovesnor Hotel. It shows how far Winehouse has come in her rehabilitation from drug addiction that people actually believed her excuse this time around because not so long ago that excuse would have involved phrases like "crack-pipe", "hissy fit" and "burly security guards"...

Confusion surrounds the exact location of the will for late Boyzone member, Stephen Gately, after family members gathered last Thursday for its reading only for the will to fail to emerge. Gately's estate is estimated to be worth in the region of $12 million, and a source close to proceedings was quoted in last week's Irish newspapers as saying: "It really is panic stations. They can't locate Stephen's will anywhere. Nobody from the firm has got in touch with him to say they have it. Everything is up in the air now." Another source later maintained that the will is in the "safe hands of London-based solicitors", which would make me extremely nervous if I was one of the family members because show me a law firm that's a safe pair of hands and I'll show you an arm and a leg...

Jarvis Cocker has denied that Pulp will be reforming in order to make an appearance at the 40th anniversary Glastonbury Festival, which is due to take place next year. The charismatic singer, who has carved out a successful solo career claims that comments he made were misconstrued by the media, asserting: "Pulp have no plans to get back together. Someone asked me if I fancied playing at the 40th anniversary of Glastonbury, I said yes, they twisted that into a 'Pulp reform' story. It's not true." In the interest of balance, let's just examine what he actually said then, shall we: "Glastonbury means an awful lot to me, I would love to play there again. We've talked about it, there we go; there'll be a band reunion." How anyone could read that to mean that Pulp were on the brink of reforming is beyond me? Damn pesky media, always jumping to conclusions...