I’m not going to add much to the obits flowing in about Michael Jackson. To be honest, I’m kind of dreading the flood of revelations that will inevitably surface about a man who could do nothing like anyone else for better or for worse. His death was obviously unexpected and is strangely an anti-climax to his roller-coaster career. Last word goes to producer Quincy Jones: “He was the consummate entertainer and his contributions and legacy will be felt upon the world forever. I’ve lost my little brother today, and part of my soul has gone with him.”

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This one comes from the U2 site atU2.com, but is interesting nonetheless. Rock bands are rock bands, and they don’t necessarily have to kiss the cloth of other art forms. In fact, it can be embarrassing seeing a performer from one discipline twisting him or herself to accommodate others (think of the singers from Bowie to Madonna that failed to really impact the acting professions). But U2 have nonetheless had a fair few literary moments which this article lists. What’s interesting - and perhaps very indicative of U2’s overall approach to things - is that literary does not necessarily mean lyrical, such as the time they invited Salman Rushdie on stage. The moments don’t necessarily involve aping a novelist’s style. Check the article on atU2.com.

One of my writing partners is featured on the new Amazon France MP3 store. I’ve been writing with Perry Rose for years, and the albums “Celtic Circus” and “Hocus Pocus” can be downloaded as MP3 files from the Amazon MP3 site. “Glasgow” was his latest single, and probably his biggest success.

Strangely, the only track of 2 Unlimited I can find is a karaoke version of Nothing Like The Rain. This is due to the fact that the producers, label and writers/performers are all locked in lawsuits with each other. Sad, but part of the music business, unfortunately.

OK, it’s a bit gimmicky but it could be interesting. US band Of a Revolution has launched a call to co-write a song on Twitter. They are asking people to submit lines that they will choose and collate and chop up into verses and choruses. Said frontman Marc Robege in Billboard magazine: “I do a lot of co-writing, I like to meet up with songwriters in New York City but I guarantee you there are kids out there living in Kansas City who don’t necessarily have the opportunity to get their lyrics out there. So it’s a pretty original idea and a cool way to get together and be inspired by people that keep in touch with us.”

By Kansas City, I presume that he means anywhere outside of a major US city. But you probably get his point. To find out more about the idea visit Of a Revolution. Or head straight to their Twitter page.

Thinking about it, they are going to have to re-write considerably to try and get a coherent song out of random submissions, as they haven’t given a meter (rhythm) or a length of line. Proceeds of the song will go to a charity. Still, it’s a fun idea.

Fancy t-shirts with slogans such as “The boys are back in town” or “Born to be wild”? Well, there’s good news and not-so-good news. British retailer Asda has just unveiled a major range of t-shirts under the George label that feature song titles administered by Universal. The idea (commendable) is that the writers benefit from the proceeds of uses made of their lyrics (which is the exception rather than the rule - certainly on the Internet). In a move which I also find quite cool, they are also offering downloads of the relevant tracks to people that buy the t-shirts.

So what’s not to like about it? I still have a nagging doubt that anyone can stop me making “The boys are back in town” t-shirts, as song titles cannot be copyrighted.

See also A-lyric t-shirts

June 1 is the deadline to apply for what looks like a great workshop. The Kinks frontman and songwriter is tutoring a week-long, residential songwriting course at Arvon Lumb Bank, UK, November 23-28th. This is a practical course for songwriters committed to producing “quality popular music” (it says here). You will write at least one song a day, either on your own or in collaboration with your fellow students. You should be able to accompany yourself on an instrument. Please send a demo of 3 or 4 songs by June 1st (by CD or MP3), with a brief informal CV of your songwriting experience. Priority will be given to those who have not previously attended one of Ray’s courses. There are 16 places available. Course fee £575 (all accommodation, food and tuition). Grants available for those on low incomes. Deadline: June 1st. Full details here.

For as long as I’ve been running A-Lyric.com, I’ve been telling people about the huge demand for lyrics. Song lyrics are regularly in the top 10 search terms, and lyric sites are amongst the most visited on the web. Sony is one of the first majors to come to the obvious conclusion that adding song lyrics will make their sites more interesting. They are in the process of adding lyrics to the sites of artists such as Michael Jackson, Kelly Clarkson and John Legend. The lyrics are supplied by Gracenote, which I have just discovered is a Sony subsidiary.

London will host a songwriting week May 18-22 with a wide range of events, mixing the creative with career help. Speakers and performers include Tom Robinson, Sir Tim Rice and Mike Read, with presentations from associations such as the Musicians’ Union, Basca, the Music Publisher’s Association and others. The events look promising, with subjects such as “writing to an A&R brief”, “composing for advertising and games” and a talk from friend David Stark of SongLink (photo) on the stories behind the songs. What’s more, most events are free but you do have to sign up. For details, visit London Songwriters Week.

“Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” is the name of a musical being developed for Broadway at the moment. Directed by Julie Taymor (”Across the Universe“, “The Lion King”) and written by Taymor and Glen Berger, it will feature words and music by Bono and the Edge. It will be interesting to see how this works out. Will they add all the words? Or will the writer inject some dramatic key points? Writing songs and writing a musical are two different ball games, although I’m sure Bono is up for the challenge.

By the way, if you think you have what it takes, the production is currently holding auditions in the US between now and May. Check the website for details.

Incidentally, how come you write Batman in one word and Spider-Man with a hyphen? Any ideas, let me know.

As I suspected they would, the Eurovision organisers have asked Georgia to either change the lyrics of their entry, “We Don’t Wanna Put In” or choose another song. Georgia has decided to do neither of the above, and actually withdraw from the contest entirely. Quoted in the Georgian Times, Nikoloz Rurua, Georgia’s Minister of Culture, said that that he was ‘absolutely sure that the Eurovision organisers were feeling unprecedented pressure from Moscow, especially as Russia can use serious financial levers for this purpose’. I wouldn’t be so sure.

The irony is that the Russian entry was co-composed by the Georgian songwriter Konstantin Meladze, which has caused a row in Russia.

Georgia looks like it might have to change the lyrics to its Eurovision entry. Stephane and 3G won the Georgian qualifiers with a song called “We Don’t Wanna Put In”. The reference to Russia’s former president Putin is not hard to miss, particularly as the group pronounced it as, “We don’t wanna poot in” during the show. Given the war between Georgia and Russia some months back, this means the track will most likely be reviewed by the Eurovision organisation. The body is very clear in demanding songs avoid any political references or symbols.

Incidentally, the song also bears more than a passing resemblance to The Trammps “Disco Inferno” in the verse.

In 2007, Israel almost fell foul of the no-politics rule with a jokey song that could be construed as referring to Iranian bombs. A Ukrainian drag queen also caused a minor fuss with a song that seemed to say “Russia goodbye” the same year. It eventually went through but sank without trace on the night.

I saw the first reports about Miley Cyrus forgetting the lyrics to a song on the Dec and Ant show in the UK. Not much of a story, really. Forgetting lyrics is almost inevitable when you take a mike in your hand. It’ll happen sooner or later to every singer. But as it was a slow week and the Internet has now become a beast that feeds off itself, Internet sites were quoting loonies on other messageboards about how disgusted and disappointed they were as if this was an actual story worth reporting. Dear people, is it too much to ask to get a life? She fluffed a line, managed to get through the song without falling apart and went on to the next gig. So we can see it on YouTube. Big deal. Otis Redding was notorious for forgetting lines and improvising. Mick Jagger has a prompter.