The singer and guitarist said his jaw was damaged after he fell down a flight of stairs during a drunken night out in 2003 when he was at art college in Glasgow - but he didn’t get it checked out until this year.
He said: “I busted myself up pretty bad. My eye closed over like a beaten boxer and I lost some teeth, which I got replaced.
“Waking up in a hospital bed with only one eye and the worst hangover I ever had is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy.
“Because of my previous night’s behaviour to the nursing staff, the only thing they wanted was rid of me so there were no head X-Rays taken.
“Let me be clear right now, I am not annoyed with the nurses, I am only ashamed of myself.
“A few years after that incident, my jaw started to get sore and has been a source of pain for years.”
‘Chasing Cars’ singer Gary told how he finally got his jaw looked at this year after the pain became unbearable and he had to get it X-rayed in Los Angeles, where he was working on his solo album ‘Tired Portland’.
He added: “It was then that we traced it back to that incident, as it’s the only time I landed on my head from a great height.”
Gary now has to have a “dental appliance” which he will wear for a number of months while receiving acupuncture treatments for the pain.
The High Court in London today (11.03.10) ruled the legendary British psychedelic rock group’s record label are not allowed to sell their individual tracks over the internet and have ordered them to pay £40,000 in court costs.
The judge, Chancellor Sir Andrew Morritt, is still deciding how much the final settlement to the band will be.
The judge upheld a clause in the band’s contract that states their records should not be split up when they were sold, in order to “preserve the artistic integrity of the albums”.
EMI had argued that online sales were separate to physical records, and weren’t covered in the band’s most recent contract, negotiated in 1993.
Speaking earlier this week, Elizabeth Jones QC, defending EMI, said the word “record” in the band’s contract: “Plainly applies to the physical thing - there is nothing to suggest it applies to online distribution”.
The band’s lawyer, Robert Howe QC, disagreed and said that it would be a stange ruling if the band were able to control exactly how their music was sold as a physical product but there was “a free-for-all with no limitation on online distribution”.
The royalties aspect of the case is unlikely to be publicly disclosed as EMI had earlier successfully applied to the court for the royalties aspect to be kept secret for reasons of “commercial confidentiality”.
The British indie-dance group are halfway through recording their second album, and have completed five songs, which they describe as “more focussed” then their self titled debut.
Lead singer Ed Macfarlane told BBC news: “We’ve got about five tracks done already. It’s sounding really good. I can’t wait to start playing it live.
“We’ve been running things through tape and trying new ways of recording things. We’ve been doing more of that, but we’re not doing some sort of concept record where it’s going to be one specific sound or style.”
The group have also been videoing themselves ready for a series of podcasts about the band, but Ed said fans shouldn’t expect to see any debauched behavior from the band, which also includes Jack Savidge
and Edd Gibson.
He added: “I think they represent the realist view. It’s not us hanging out on yachts, drinking with loads of groupies. That just doesn’t happen. Most of it is sat in airports waiting to play a show.
“I think it works for some bands like us. But if you’re Prince you probably don’t want to be filming yourself making breakfast, you want to maintain some kind of mysticism.
“We’re not that sort of band so we can get away with it.”
The ‘Whatcha Say’ hitmaker likes to turn the lights down low and have company so he can create exactly the right atmosphere to record his tracks.
He told BANG showbiz: “I like to have the lights really low. Mood is very important. When I was younger I didn’t really do that but I found that as time went by, I was more comfortable in that environment.
“I light some candles, and I put a drape over the lamp.”
When asked whether this made him a hit with the opposite sex, he added: “Absolutely. A lot of the time I have a woman in the room too. It’s really weird, I feel lonely.”
Jason also spoke about how he feels his songs are “spiritual” and how he needs to be in the right mood in order to write his songs.
He added: “I don’t, you know, carry a pen and paper around everywhere with me. I’m more of a studio guy. I like to be focused when I’m working on material.
“I don’t like to be working on songs all the time because I need to be in a focused environment. Songs are spiritual to me. It’s like a conversation. Although I do come up with concepts for tracks all the time.”
Jason’s self titled debut album is available now.
The frontman – renowned for his wild ways and partying lifestyle - tied the knot in a surprise ceremony surrounded by family and friends, held directly after the christening of the couple’s ten month old daughter, Lulu, at St Charles RC Church in Manchester.
The wedding guests hadn’t been told ahead of the event, and believed they were only attending the christening.
Shaun’s manager, Warren Askew, said: “Congratulations to Shaun and Joanne on their wedding. It was a surprise to everyone after the baptism of Lulu, but was a really lovely day.”
47-year-old Shaun – formerly renowned for his ‘bowl’ haircut and penchant for sportswear – looked dapper for the day in a blue suit, tie and parted hair, with a blue tinted pair of spectacles.
Shaun’s post Happy Mondays band, Black Grape will appear for a special one off show on April 1 in London, and the singer has admitted he will have to use an autocue machine to remember the words.
He said: “I’ve got an autocue so I don’t sing the wrong lyrics at the wrong gigs. “It’s not cheating as everyone uses one. How does someone who has written hundreds of songs remember them all?
“If you’d written The Godfather you wouldn’t be able to read it to somebody without the book.”
The soul singer will reissue her album ‘Stronger With Each Tear’ including the two tracks – originally by the English hard rock group - which she recorded with blink 182 drummer Travis Barker, ‘American Idol’ judge Randy Jackson and guitar legend Steve Vai.
She told MTV News: “I did Led Zeppelin’s ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and ‘Whole Lotta Love’ — it’s crazy. I am a Led Zeppelin fan. I’m not going to say I’ve been to their concerts, but I’ve listened to their music since I was a child, and it’s always moved me, especially ‘Stairway to Heaven’, and ‘Whole Lotta Love’ is just fun.”
She also said she has recorded another song for the release, which she describes as a “club record” called ‘I Can’t Wait’, which will also be included on the album.
‘Stronger With Each Tear’ will be released in Europe on Monday (15.03.10).
The animated band’s bassist, Murdoc Niccals, said with the group’s third album their work “feels complete” and it could be the last time the collaborative project comes together.
Murdoc - who is a cartoon mouthpiece for project masterminds, former Blur Frontman Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett – said: “I think it’d be very hard to top this one at the moment. It feels complete… today.”
He, however, added: “But every album I enter is made as if it’s my first and very last.”
‘Plastic Beach’ sees collaborations from artists including Lou Reed, Snoop Dogg, Bobby Womack and former clash guitarist Mick Jones and rap group De La Soul alongside Damon and others.
Murdoc also said that if he is discontinued he’d like his ashes to be fired into space, or inhaled by Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.
Murdoc added: “If I ever do die, if I do get a choice I want my ashes ground up with charcoal and sulphur, shoved into a barrel, and then exploded out into the nocturnal sky, among the stars from whence I came. Either that or I’d get Keith Richards to snort them.”
Keith famously hinted in an interview that he had mixed his own father’s ashes with cocaine and snorted them, a claim he has since denied.
The rapper – real name Earl Simmons – was taken into custody in Arizona, US, yesterday (09.03.10) and charged with five counts of probation violation.
Sherrif Joe Arpaio confirmed the arrest and said the star – who was jailed in 2009 on charges of drug possession, animal cruelty and theft, stemming from various arrests in 2008 - is now in a Phoenix jail where he is isolated from other inmates.
He added: “We would hope that he is finally sent to prison. We’ve arrested him five times already. How many times do you have to violate the law?”
The details of the ‘Who We Be’ rapper’s arrest are unclear but it has been reported it is related to drug addiction.
DMX’s lawyer Gary Jenkins said: “He’s been battling addiction for some time and he’s in need of treatment.”
After the star’s release in May 2009 he was sentenced to 18 months probation for verbally threatening a guard during his stint in prison.
Meanwhile, DMX’s wife, Tashera Simmons, is planning to release a tell-all book about her life with the artist, called ‘Strength of a Woman’.
A representative said: “She will be talking about her experience with her family and trying to hold them together through the DMX journey. Her story is a stellar, heart wrecking, powerful, firsthand account of survival and family strength in a chaotic life and the fame that came with that life.”
The ‘Whatcha Say’ singer was introduced to the British boy band – consisting of Aston Merrygold, Marvin Humes, Jonathan ‘JB’ Gill and Oritse Williams – on a recent trip to London and was so impressed with their “catchy” sound, he has agreed to pen some tracks for their next LP.
He told BANG Showbiz: “I went to a JLS concert and it was pretty cool. I got to meet them – nice guys.
“They wanna collaborate on some songwriting for their next project. So I’m going to write some tunes for them, absolutely. I’m looking forward to it.”
Discussing what he likes about the boys’ music – which includes the hit singles ‘Beat Again’, ‘Everybody in Love’ and ‘One Shot’ – he added: “I think it’s really smooth. It’s pretty catchy. It’s easy to listen to.”
Jason has agreed to help JLS break the US charts too but thinks he would need to alter their pop sound slightly when they cross the pond.
He said: “American taste is a little different. I think I would like to explore a few things with them. Just get into the studio and just kind of switch it up a bit.”
The 26-year-old pop star was awarded the prestigious Knight in the Order of Arts title for services to music a few months ago, but has so far kept quiet about the accolade because he has lost the medal he was given.
Mika – who joins a host of other illustrious names to receive the accolade, including Kylie Minogue and George Clooney - said: “I’m a knight, but nobody knows about it. About a month ago, I was one of the youngest people to ever be made a chevalier in France. It goes after my name, Mika chevalier des arts.
“I was given a medal with a tiny little green ribbon, but the first night I wore it, I lost it.
“I lost it outside my home. I spent 45 minutes by the underground station looking for it, literally on my hands and knees. My sister bumped into me and asked what I was doing and I had to say, ‘Looking for my knighthood.’ She thought I was crazy.”
The ‘We Are Golden’ singer also revealed he has been enjoying chart success as a songwriter, but has used a string of false identities when working with other people.
He told the Daily Star newspaper: “I’ve written a lot of songs under pseudonyms, mostly girls’ names.
“Alice, for example, has written many hits in different countries.
“I did one song for Jovanotti. He’s Italy’s biggest pop star and plays stadiums over there. He had a very big hit with my song.”
