THE CLASH and LED ZEPPELIN: Indian-born Harraj Mann, 23, was held for questioning under the Terrorism Act after playing “London's Calling” and “The Immigrant Song” through the stereo of a taxi he caught to an airport in northern England. In fact, he's the second man detained after a report of listening to “London Calling.” Ironically, The late Joe Strummer was not down with Islamic extremists: “I think you have to grow up and realise that we're facing religious fanatics who would kill everyone in the world who doesn't do what they say. The more time you give them the more bombs they'll get.”
MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOSTS: Carl Wilson notes the re-issue of the David Byrne-Brian Eno classic — like most of the prior reissues — leaves off the track titled “Qu'ran.” Wilson notes the original album had “an equal-opportunity scepticism toward religion that pervades the record, far less blinkered and ethnocentric than, say, the Danish cartoons.” Not that Islamic extremists would care about that.
HEAR 'EM FIRST: VH1 is streaming upcoming albums from Built to Spill and Calexico.
THE PRETENDERS: The recently issued, five-disc Pretenders boxed set, Pirate Radio, brings Chrissie Hynde out to tell Billboard how gay gentrification saved America and to quash a breakup rumor.
SUFJAN STEVENS and ROSIE THOMAS are making an album and having a baby.
THE JAMES GANG is reuniting for an August tour. But no Chicago date.
GENE PITNEY was found dead in his hotel room in Wales Wednesday following a concert that fans acclaimed as one of his best. He was 65. During a long career, Pitney had hits as a singer — “24 Hours from Tulsa,” “(The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance,” and “Half Heaven, Half Heartache.” As a writer, he penned “Hello Mary Lou” for Ricky Nelson and “He's a Rebel” for the Crystals. You can see him sing “I'm Gonna Be Strong” on YouTube and “He's A Rebel” with Darlene Love and Sam Moore at the 2002 Rock Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.
SOUL ASYLUM: Stylus has second thoughts on the 1986 album Made to Be Broken: “Hipsters may love to hate the band, knowing them only from some MTV video about missing children, but in fact Soul Asylum deserves a place in the pantheon of 1980s indie rock. Success may have spared Dave Pirner a life of mindless day jobs, but it ruined his chances at canonization alongside his peers as the unrewarded vanguard cadre of alternative rock—no chapter in Our Band Could Be Your Life for these guys…”
TRIP SHAKESPEARE: Members of this Twin Cities outfit went on to form Semisonic, but the Pate crowd may remember that Trip Shakespeare played their first out-of-town gig at the M-Shop in Ames, IA. Another Form of Relief has a retrospective, with plenty of killing music. Those wanting to avoid illegal downloads can stream 'em from the Hype Machine.
CENTRO-MATIC frontman Will Johnson talks to ChartAttack about the band's evolving sound and devoted fans: “It's not necessary and I'm not worthy of it, but it's good knowing that maybe something that you do reaches somebody in a way that's special to them and sits with them in a personal and important way. To know that is nothing short of intoxicating.” Hear 'em at MySpace. It's kinda Americana, kinda Westerberg, kinda GbV…
PITCHFORK: At So Much Silence, Kevin ponders the Pitchfork Festival lineup and potential conflicts of interest.
PETE DOHERTY-KATE MOSS UPDATE: The troubled singer thoughtfully shoplifted a pair of Burberry scarves for the supposedy sober supermodel's birthday.
TOM-KAT UPDATE: Star magazine claims Cruise commissioned an adult-sized pacifier for Holmes to clench between her teeth as an aid to the hoped-for Scientological “silent birth.” Cruise denies it, natch.
RYAN SEACREST and TERI HATCHER: He says they're dating. She says they're “not attached.” Nevertheless, the two were spotted dining together. American Idol judge Simon Cowell recently told Seacrest, “I’m not the one trying to look like someone out of Desperate Housewives… lose the beard.” Which was a reference to Seacrest's unshaven look, I'm sure.
EMINIEM has filed for a divorce, less than three months after remarrying Kim.
SHARON STONE plans to direct Basic Instinct 3. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY has converted his vegetarian girlfriend Penelope Cruz into a carnivore. The punchline writes itself.
HEATHER LOCKLEAR caught canoodling with comedian David Spade, according to Us Weekly. And yet people are still shocked when I turn up with some beautiful babe on my arm. Women like humor.
NATALIE PORTMAN helped save co-star Jason Bateman's pet Boston Terrier from being hit by a pick-up truck.
JAMES “P.J.” RANSONE, currently on-screen in Inside Man, saved a woman from a brutal rapist Monday night.
OLIVER STONE blasts media groups who “slander” celebrities for their political comments: “We're Hollywood wackos and all that stuff, left-wing… (It's) an easy and facile dismissal. I'm still a citizen, I've served my country as a veteran, I've had many jobs before the film business. I know something of life, having lived to this age.” If it makes him feel better, the reason I think he's a wacko is not because he's from Hollywood, but because his JFK was riddled with errors and outright fabrications designed to advance a wacky conspiracy led by LBJ.
BRADGELINA: Has Pitt walked out after getting kicked to the couch?
GEORGE CLOONEY and BRAD PITT, however, are not on the outs after their casino plan went south, contrary to prior gossip.
JESSICA ALBA has backed off her demand that Playboy magazine yank its March issue after she received a letter of apology from Hugh Hefner. Playboy also made undisclosed donations to two charities Alba supports. No one can stand up to the Alba!
EDU-BLOGGING: The 61st Carnival of Education is online.
IRAQ: Bill Roggio analyzes Zarqawi's demotion from commander of al-Qaeda in Iraq and updates news on mounting pressure on Jaafari to step down as nominee for prime minister. The Iraqi cameraman working for CBS News was acquitted of insurgent activity.
IRAQ IN THE MEDIA: US media coverage of Iraq is too polarized between “good news” and “bad news,” with all sides are missing out on a complete picture, participants in a panel discussion organized by Reuters said on Wednesday. No kidding. Sean at My Election Analysis, who describes himself as “at best cautiously-pessimistic-to-neutral about how things are going” in Iraq was unequivocally shocked by recent good stats, having found the Iraq Index which I regularly consult. BTW, if people in the press agree that the coverage is polarized, what do they intend to do about it?
IRAN: Yesterday, I suggested that Iran's military exercises — however serious — were designed to suggest a threat to the Strait of Hormuz. Now Teheran is saying as much.
MONKEYS are stopped from using cellphones at the London Zoo. They will have to resort to Monk-e-mail.
LOST DOGS: Gidget, a Lhasa apso, comes home after almost five years. Grimaldi, a little white pooch, is not only missing, but wearing a a diamond stud in its left ear.
ROSCO THE BULLDOG isn't lost, but he's trying, having been recaptured after escaping from a kennel, over a seven-foot concrete wall topped with barbed wire.
THE ONE-EYED KITTEN that totally creeps me out is coming to a new museum of oddities in central New York.
A MAGPIE in the West Midlands makes a regular stop for a drink and a cigarette.