“How Do You Sleep,” written by John Lennon about Paul McCartney:

So Sgt. Pepper took you by surprise
You better see right through that mother’s eyes
Those freaks was right when they said you was dead
The one mistake you made was in your head
Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, how do you sleep at night?

You live with straights who tell you you was king
Jump when your momma tell you anything
The only thing you done was yesterday
And since you’re gone you’re just another day
Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, how do you sleep at night?

A pretty face may last a year or two
But pretty soon they’ll see what you can do
The sound you make is muzak to my ears
You must have learned something in all those years
Ah, how do you sleep?
Ah, how do you sleep at night?

LMAO! I love em.

Gotta love comments from people like Anton Newcombe and Mark Everett who have done absolutely nothing worthwhile making comments about people like John Lennon and Eric Clapton. I’m not going to pretend that Lennon was perfect, he freely admitted he hit women, but who the hell is Mark Everett to make a comment? Newcombe’s comment on Clapton is complete slander.

Oh, and Re: Lennon’s How Do You Sleep, remember Paul started that with “Too Many People” and “Dear Boy.” Of course, being Paul, he was nowhere as direct as Lennon was.

And What abou Oasis on Blur???

Shame on you Pat D, just because someone hasn’t done anything worthwhile (in your eyes), they’re not allowed to comment on the actions of someone who you accept hit women? Gotta love comments from people like Pat D who have done absolutely nothing of worth making comments about people like Anton Newcombe…yada yada.

Well, thanks for missing the point and launching into a personal attack. My point is that who in the hell is Mark Everett to make comments about John Lennon. It’s none of his business and his comment makes no sense either by calling Lennon a “hippie.” It was just a stupid, worthless comment about something the guy has just read about in books. He doesn’t know anything.

Nick Cave is totally right about the Red Hot Shitty Peppers

@Pat D …and my point was, if that’s your stance, who the hell are you to make comments about how worthwhile Mark Everett is. Nothing personal, in fact I personally welcome points of view and opinions like yours. Just seems a little off to have a go at Mark Everett for criticising Lennon for hitting women, that’s all. His opinion is every bit as valid as yours, whether you or I agree or not!

Most of these are hilarious but the Eric Clapton one was terrible – how can someone even say that about someone who lost a child.

How did you possibly narrow this list down to 30? There’s so much subjectivity and bad blood in music, I’m sure this article could have been 5 times as long. P.S. Wayne Coyne is my hero.

at the risk of sounding like a total dolt can someone explain the richey edwards insult (#20)?

meh EVERYONE is entitled to their opinion, esp on things like music as a musican you put your heart and soul into your work and people do with it what they want.Everyone has this right to judge you, thats what makes it great. Some people will hate it, some people will love it, some will pretend to hate it out of jealousy. I personally think a lot of these comments were out of jealousy; musicans themselfs more often than not are complet and total assholes. Coming for a girl who has dated many musicans and is one herself lol

“Most of these are hilarious but the Eric Clapton one was terrible – how can someone even say that about someone who lost a child.”

To be fair, Eric Clapton is terrible too. Awful, insipid, soft rock for old ladies.

And before anyone rides my ass for that statement, yes, he is a technically proficient guitarist, however he is an absolutey miserable songwriter.
As a caveat, I am also not referring to his early works with Cream or Derek & The Dominos or whatever.

“at the risk of sounding like a total dolt can someone explain the richey edwards insult (#20)?”

The bassist/vocalist of the Levellers is called Jeremy. Maybe Richey Edwards takes offense to that name. Maybe Jeremy was ultimately responsible for his disappearance.
New theoery: The Levellers killed Richey Edwards. Discuss.

Richey Edwards was such a waste of space. He apparently resented the fact that Slowdive were actual musicians that could play instruments, write melodies, chord progressions, etc. I suppose if you were famous for cutting yourself (while a journalist is present, natch), miming onstage, writing bad poetry and ultimately disappearing of the face of the Earth, you probably would resent proper musicians, too.

Yeah, Slowdive gets ythe last laugh because they are amazing musicians. Richey Edwards makes contrived, simple garbage.

I personally like Mogwai on Blur. It wasn’t a verbal insult but back in the day they made merch that simply said “Blur is shit”

that mark e smith comment was pretty great. Mumford and sons are catchy, not legitimate…there’s a difference.

[...] [...]

What about Pat Metheney on Kenny G? “He, in one move, through his unbelievably pretentious and calloused musical decision to embark on this most cynical of musical paths, shit all over the graves of all the musicians past and present who have risked their lives by going out there on the road for years and years developing their own music inspired by the standards of grace that Louis Armstrong brought to every single note he played over an amazing lifetime as a musician.”

It just gets better: http://www.jazzoasis.com/methenyonkennyg.htm

I’m no fan of Clapton, but anyone that makes a comment like that about someone who’s lost a child should go spend a good solid year or two fucking themselves.

Do you really need 6 pages for a list of 30 quotes? Websites like this really piss me off.

Courtney Love: “Nine Inch Nails?, should be three inch nails!”.

This is hilarious…

this has got to be one of the best. Pat Metheny on Kenny G:

http://www.jazzoasis.com/methenyonkennyg.htm

Hilarious….well all really bar Anton Newcombe!

http://12monthsevendays.wordpress.com

Ray Chill – I believe the idea is that Jeremy is considered to be a really bourgeois name. Like in the Housemartins tune: ‘Jeremy, fun, fun, fun / Fifi, fun, fun, fun’.

#19 – Like Cobain has any room to talk about being talentless.

Lesane Parish Crooks (aka Tupac) was such a lovely man, wasn’t he? Why do the hipsters pick the most lowlife scum to idolize (Kurt Cobain, Marshall Mathers, Brian Warner, William S. Burroughs and so on)? It’s worse with Crooks though, they make him out to be like Martin Luther King or something. I seriously don’t get it. And by the way, there’s a difference between being catty about somebody’s hair or something, and pointing out serious character flaws in people that are idolized by the masses, but shouldn’t be (Bono, Geldof, etc) and wouldn’t be if people would bother to do a little research. Good on people that have the courage to do that.

Folks, you never really know if someone said something. Anton Newcombe DID say that quote, but I was there, with him at that particular interview (with a douche from Entertainment Weekly), but it was back when Anton was still drinking (heavily) and we were all sitting around drinking vodka tonics. The problem with printed words is you can’t hear tone of voice, especially if it’s not in full context of the conversation. What I’m trying to say is, that Anton was clearly JOKING about his Clapton quote. Now clearly this was a pretty bad joke and in poor taste, but when we were hanging with the guy he was acting like our bro and we were all just joking around. Anton’s judgement of this guys intention was clearly off, as, when he said the statement he really, honestly didn’t think it would end up in print. Again, it was back when Anton was still drinking. Lots.
I know, I know- it’s still a terrible thing to say, but how many times have you been joking around with friends and made a REALLY rude or politically-incorrect joke?? You don’t expect the entire world to hear that joke. As soon as he said it I shook my head, and feared the worst. Yup, the dickhead reporter, who was hanging out ALL day with us drinking printed this quote in his article as if Anton was serious and said it as if he really meant it. To Anton, it didn’t seem like an interview- only another party that he was getting drunk at.
That interview was probably 5 or 6 years ago now, and I thought it might’ve sunk into the oblivion of the past (no such luck with internet and sharing of links). So now it rears it’s ugly head here again.
The difference between Anton’s quote and all the other quotes up there is that Anton is probably the only one who really didn’t mean what he said. Believe me he was extremely sorry and embarrassed and regretful when it came out in Entertainment Weekly. FYI- Anton has been sober for over 2 1/2 years now.
Just a little insight from someone who was there…

I feel sorry for Anton, a few promoters i know who have put his band on said he’s one of the nicest guys you’ll meet. He just seems to have a very few choice moments that make him easily portrayed as a villain (if you’ve ever seen DiG! you’ll know what i mean)…

“Did you understand the music, Yoko, or was it all in vain?” Roger Waters

I remember that Nick Lowe said that fans of Christopher Cross all look like him.

Thanks Mr Rob. For mine, that quote kind of speaks for itself – it seems pretty obvious to me that *no-one* would say that in all seriousness, not even Anton Newcombe. This is essentially a light-hearted feature, and the quotes here are presented accordingly – it certainly wasn’t designed to elicit the level of hatred that seems to have been visited on Anton here as a result. For what it’s worth, I interviewed him a few years back and he was lovely – one of the smartest and most interesting interviewees you’d ever hope for.

Hi… I am not a musician per se… well not in the vernacular of most… but I’ve oddly been educated in it. I cannot help but compare too many of the3 current efforts (I find it hard to call it music) to much of today’s “classic” or even “popular” (?) work.

Has Wayne Coyne and his generation ever bothered to listen to Beethoven’s 5th Symphony? Well it had significance for writers a ways back who created popular songs from the melodies there. :)

Of course many here will not like Beethoven. Listen to Handel, then. Mozart. Lizt. O, and my favorite, Richard Wagner. Wagner was hated by “classic” musicians and critics and denigrated. Has anyone ever realized that name-calling signifies jealously, inborn feelings of inferiority? It is sad. Name-calling describes the hater, not the hated.

It is based on the digital medium which, for me, erases the vocal or instrumental pricelessness, the unique character of the artist, especially the singers who are decent, almost great vocalists, and also destroys their voices with the popular screaming (listen to Bette Midler… ok, she is a bit passe, but not to a significant target audience). Listen to her early work, and listen to her now. Huge difference. And she cannot base it on age. Too many vocalists older than she have been stars. But then, they didn’t scream.

The new popular singers are worse. The screaming meemees. And yet, they have talent! It breaks my heart when a superb writer who does, indeed, carry a tune well (better than some today LOL), writes great music and marvelous lyrics… and, sigh, sings with a rather tinny voice. Still, I would druther listen to him sing than, sorry about that, Wayne Coyne.

And OOOOO the poster who mentioned Kenny G… that is an AWESOME musician. I love listening to him.

But, screaming, sorry, doesn’t sound attractive to me. Good modernists like Kenny G don’t need it.

Finally, the bang bang bang of… surely those are not drums? … which originally were geared to subtle, never overweening background throbs to set marvelous, and, yep, difficult rhythms.

Bash me if you want… I love music. I love what it is, what it means, how it is the one evidence I truly believe that reminds us we are, I hope, a civilization. Civilized. Quality interaction between people who can achieve beyond the basics of survival. Bang bang bang seems awfully retrogressive to me. (lol cut it out & forget the contemporary metaphor!)

“knowitall” makes a valid point. Don’t put her down. sigh I expect to be put down… I will put on my handy dandy midaeval helmut and peer at you with eyes slitted to avoid your blinding brilliance.

The Levellers are supposed to be staunch working class anti-capitalist types – and Jeremy is considered a very middle to upper class name.

@ Second Sight – You’re either trolling, or you’re serious. Whatever, I’ll bite.

Stop spewing such turgid logorrhea. You are not the first, nor will you be the last to recognize the names “Beethoven” or “Liszt”.

Also, you may want to actually read Pat Matheny’s critique of Kenny G. It’s well-written, direct, and accurate.

You probably wouldn’t enjoy it.

There is no need for the [sic] next to the word “pompousness” in the #30 quote by Wayne Coyne. Many would use “pomposity,” but “pompousness” is an acceptable noun form also. Mr. Hawking, have you picked up a dictionary lately? Visit: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pompous

What, no LCD Soundsystem on Black Eyed Peas?

“That black eyed peas dirty dancing thing is worse than raping a cat. What is wrong with people? Do they hate ears?”

… history is a long time, Mr. Hawking. Recommended reading:

http://books.wwnorton.com/books/978-0-393-32009-1/

http://books.google.com/books/about/Lexicon_of_musical_invective.html?id=JjW66BVA-j0C

[...] Harshest musician-on-musician insults EVER Leave a comment » submitted by flavorpill [link] [697 comments] brought to you by [...]

Got to disagree with Wayne Coyne on one point, Arcade Fire don’t have good tunes.

Haha, what about the Eminem on Insane Clown Posse comments? He practically ripped them a new one.

Of all the musicians mentioned, The Red Hot Chili Peppers are the most loathsome. To call them ” garbage ” is giving them too much credit. Right on Mr. Cave!!!

I once read a good one by Cedric from The Mars Volta talking about the guys from At The Drive In who went on to form Sparta, when talking about their musical differences he said “they are incapable of playing what we play, and we wouldn’t want to play what they play”

Second Sight, I’m assuming also that you’re a troll, but on the tiny chance that you’re genuine: fret not. If you pause in your frantic generalizations, you’ll probably find that the general music-loving crowd will be familiar with big name classical composers such as Beethoven and Mozart and overplayed pieces like Beethoven’s 5th, no matter how old they are. In fact, I’m pretty sure anyone who has had a basic education will be. Classical music is not hated and avoided by the youth of today, and the constant assumption that it is (not exclusive to you, just a trap you have either fallen into or are playing up to, either way) drives me insane.

P.S. Not all, but a substantial amount of the criticism and name-calling that gets directed at Wagner is not in relation to his music but because he was a strong anti-Semite.

you clowns really missed the boat here. back in ’77, elvis costello (aka declan mcmanus) called ray charles “a blind ni–er.” i know, i was england at the time following a clash / richard hell tour. and when i interviewed mcmanus a week or so later, i opened up with the question “why’d you say that”? he took a swing at me….very drunk, his roundhouse missed by a mile. end of interview, end of story…..except to say this. fuck off, declan…..no matter how many years have pissed since this intolerable slur, it will always define your sorry ass in my eyes, and those of many others. how could you bozos @ flavorpill have missed this?

Ray Charles forgave him, and offered to meet with him afterwards, which Costello apparently declined out of embarrassment

Really…..who gives a FUCK about any of these nit-wits. Music is just music. Some good some bad or not so good. It has been said time after time….”opinions are like assholes, everyone has one and most stink”

What about TISM? Too many insults to mention! Take “Morrison Hostel” for instance, one big tirade against Jim Morrison’s ego: “By Christ you’ve got a long long way, On a schoolboy’s talent with words -One crappy bit of symbolism
And you’re adored by a army of turds.” or “I support the fact you’re dead.”, “An army of brainless, arty youth”, “He’s made self-pity legitimate;” etc. but they also have a go at RObert Smith and Morrissey: “And up your arse to all your fans;
Up your arse to your tortured, artistic hell;
And while we’re fucking at it,
Up your arse to Morrissey as well;

Up your arse to Robert Smith;
Up your arse to Albert Camus;
All those “I’m suffering for my arty” types,
Jimbo, I blame them all on you.”
But of course the musician on musician insult extended to themsleves in “TISM are shit”et al.

[...] O link já tá circulando faz algum tempo, mas: a arte do insulto na música pop, em 30 cápsulas sem preço. [...]

You said “of all time”. It is NOT. Maybe in the last 10-15 years. Old jazz musicians and the classicists had a lot of zingers too.

Clapton’s kid fell out a window when the babysitter left the room for an instant–Clapton was not there, did not push, dangle or drop him.

Yoko Ono reports several instances of being battered, even kicked, by john Lennon. No sure about Cyn, Wife #1. I love the artist Caravaggio’s work, but he was a murderer. That bad part does not go away. Not even for a St. Beatle.

@grubbanax: a huge resounding YES to TISM! I always liked “The Penis is Mightier Than the Sword” best: “Christ himself on the cross/ Said to the bloke who banged in the nails/ Mate, things can’t be all that bad/ When Derryn Hinch goes to jail”. :) :) :)

These guys seem to know what the deal is. Wow.

http://www.real-privacy.au.tc

wow i love the eric clapton comment. why is he sso famous and legendary? His greatest hits compilation is garbage, let alone his standard albums. i’ve never understood why he was famous.

Excellent list! The only one I can think of that isn’t on here is Pavement on Smashing Pumpkins in “Range Life”:
Out on tour with the Smashing Pumpkins
Nature kids, they don’t have no function
I don’t understand what they mean
And I could really give a fuck

If you’re going to add a rap diss track, picking ‘Hit ‘em up’ is not really a good choice. The Jay-Z vs. Nas feud contains much better stuff. Jay-Z went over the line with the condom thing (worse than “I fucked your bitch” when you really didn’t) and Nas wrote the arguably best diss track of all time with Ether.

Anton Newcombe’s is more famous for that unforgivable comment than for the Brian Jonestown Massacre. The price of envy.

[...] courtesy of flavorwire: [...]

Where are the sources? For example, I seriously doubt that Kathleen Hanna made that lame comment about Courtney Love and I cannot find a single source for it in the Google search I just did. In fact, I just found Love herself describing the incident in a blog a couple days after the assault with no mention of this i.v.-baby comment. Sounds like a quote that some tabloid invented to make a boring story about inane jealousy, candy throwing and a sucker punch more interesting. Also, I imagine that some of these quotes probably have a context that they have been removed from. And another obvious issue – were they being serious or joking? An interview is a conversation and you would actually have to hear the quote. Some of these sound like sarcasm even in written form.

That incident supposedly took place at the first show of the 1995 Lollapalooza, which ended with Courtney physically attacking Kathleen, and which she ultimately received an assault charge and probation for.

It’s not quite an insult, but when Paul McCartney wanted to leave Apple Records in the early 70′s, George Harrison said to him “You’ll stay on the f*cking label. Hare krishna.” Just one of the great tidbits from You Never Give Me Your Money by Peter Doggett.

dr. doctor jones, since you seem to have all the answers for all the points raised here, and since i was on the receiving end of an ill-advised and misguided roundhouse, and ray charles the unwitting victim of malicious bigotry……does asking for forgiveness make it okay in the first place? doesn’t costello saying it BEFORE begging for forgiveness

dear dr. jones: does the fact that he apologized make it any less offensive? does it not fit the criteria for this post regardless? cheers, mutt

dear dr. jones: does the fact that he apologized make it any less offensive? does it not fit the criteria for this post regardless? cheers, mutt

I happen to think Anton Newcombe is a genius. A flawed genius, to be sure, but still. And that line about Clapton is a black humor, Truly Tasteless Joke classic! Who HASN’T said such terrible things?

[...] Mean Musicians: Why can’t artists just play nice? See the 30 harshest musician-on-musician insults. (Flavorwire) [...]

Rachel from Slowdive got the last laugh about the Manics when she told a journalist she’d seen the band buying flowers for Mother’s Day. ‘They all love their mums’. Not cutting in itself, but a funny contrast to their tough, uncompromising 4REAL image.

haha, since when do so called “hipsters” like marilyn manson (bryan) and emenim? pretty much they wear their horn rimmed glasses in homage to the guy from Korn, and they wear short shorts and ride bikes because of Fred Durst… right?

ps: super douche move to make fun of people for liking certain musicians and people, but then proving that you’re into them by knowing their real names (marshal mathers, brian warner)

wasn’t Wagner Hitler’s favorite composer… and wasn’t his music used by hitler and/or the Nazis? or is that just people “hating” on Wagner because they are jealous?

[...] The 30 Harshest Musician-on-Musician Insults in History – via flavorwire.com – the hands are out of gloves, Morrisey. [...]

@ Pat D – yeah, God forbid anyone should speak ill of the “great” Eric Clapton, who made a viciously racist speech from the stage in 1976 that he has never denounced. I doubt that you could even name what band Anton Newcombe is from without Googling the answer. He’s right, Clapton is just about as overrated as a musician gets. If he is “God”, then Ingmar Bergman was right, God is a spider. Step on him.

Lily Allen is a fashion designer and “alt” pop singer and calls someone else a dumb bitch? Jesus, I need another drink

Who is this puke Anton? He goes into a recording studio to attempt to make music with the help of his “friends” drugs; then has the audacity to say something as nasty as he did referring to Clapton’s child. LOW CLASS BARF – 3 words to embody this newcombe character!!!

Pat Metheny about Kenny G (regarding an album where Kenny played along with a recording by Louis Armstrong):

“But when Kenny G decided that it was appropriate for him to defile the music of the man who is probably the greatest jazz musician that has ever lived by spewing his lame-ass, jive, pseudo bluesy, out-of-tune, noodling, wimped out, fucked up playing all over one of the great Louis’s tracks (even one of his lesser ones), he did something that I would not have imagined possible. He, in one move, through his unbelievably pretentious and calloused musical decision to embark on this most cynical of musical paths, shit all over the graves of all the musicians past and present who have risked their lives by going out there on the road for years and years developing their own music inspired by the standards of grace that Louis Armstrong brought to every single note he played over an amazing lifetime as a musician. By disrespecting Louis, his legacy and by default, everyone who has ever tried to do something positive with improvised music and what it can be, Kenny G has created a new low point in modern culture – something that we all should be totally embarrassed about – and afraid of. We ignore this, “let it slide”, at our own peril.”

I really wish I knew what kind of encounter Wayne had to say that about Arcade Fire. I happen to know 1st hand that they are one of the most down to earth musicians I have ever met.

@jaybone…what planet do you live on where it’s okay to make jokes about someone’s dead child???

Larry: “a funny contrast to their tough, uncompromising 4REAL image.”

ummm, no. their image wasn’t “tough [and] uncomprising”: that’s just your misunderstanding. the thing with Richey was that he was massively sensitivem which isn’t actually at odds with loving his mum at all. so as a riposte, that’s crap. much like Slowdive, coincidentally.

I freakin HATE the Red Hot Chili Peppers! The only song that got “famous” was that California song whatever its called, and it sucks. Not one other song has been on the radio. Though I don’t listen to the radio anymore because it’s all crap now.

Jerry wasn’t around in the “Under The Bridge” decade apparently…

@tomasz – EXACTLY. I like you more with every comment :)

@Mutt
I wasn’t saying him apologizing makes it ok or any less offensive.
I was sort of implying that since he apologized immediately afterwards, and claimed to only have said it because he was drunk and trying to make the people he was talking to go away, I’m not sure it merits being on this list.

[...] Flavorwire: A compilation of the 30 harshest musician-on-musician insults in history. Zing! Burn! [...]

[...] People love to fight. [...]

@ mutt- Elvis said what he said in an admittedly foolhardy pisstake on Bonnie and Delaney Bramlett,who were being incredibly obnoxious.
He was using sarcasm, which wasnt understood by Bonnie Bramlett.
And he was immediately contrite when he realized his stupid joke was completely misunderstood- and, he took responsibility for it himself- he didn’t blame those who were offended- he blamed himself for being stupid.
Trust me, Elvis is far less racist than Bonnie Bramlett, who was in fact being over fawning, patronizing and solicitous of African Americans.
I also interviewed him shortly after the incident, and managed to get him to talk about it, both on the record and off, without having him try to punch me.
Maybe you just weren’t a good interviewer back then.

Second Sight writes just like the editorialist for the Onion. Funny stuff! Wagner was a notorious bore, insecure and insensitive to other people. He would insist they sit and listen to him perform his music solo for hours, and if they weren’t raptuous in their praise, he would throw them out of his house and life. There were many reasons to not like him even if you loved his music. Some people should not go out into public drunk or on drugs. It can cause a chemical change in them, and their personalities transform. Once a friend, a great guitarist and a really decent human being said to me, “Jimi Hendrix was just a nigger who died!” He said it so savagely I kept my mouth shut but it ate at me, and I asked him about it a couple days later. Unfortuantely, he was drunk again. “I thought we were talking about Chuck Berry!” He’s been sober for 20 years, I’ve never heard him say anything like that again, but if he was famous, like he deserves to be, those things would follow him to his grave. Obscurity has it’s benefits. Hipsterism come in all stripes, they can call themselves trekkies or trekkers or whatever they want, it’s still rock and roll bullshit to me. Any way, slick how you dodged my point there. I’m not certain Clapton was even on the same continent when it happened. Clerence Clemons said a lot of really tasteless things in his autobiography. I was a little surprised, he comes off as an utter jerk. He said them sober and deliberately, he could have scratched them out before publication. what was he thinking? now it’s his testiment. Rock is an upside down world where cruel is kind and bad is good.

Miles Davis calling Steve Miller a “sorry motherf***er?”

@tomasz: Saying another band is worse than Hitler isn’t really showing much of your ‘sensitive’ side, though, is it? I mean, sensitivity is not what really came through in interviews with MSP around that time either – more like an urge to destroy the musical landscape around them. And no, it doesn’t really count as a riposte, which is why I called it a contrast. For someone to say something like that about a band (and probably mean it, on some level) and then for the target to respond by saying, in effect, ‘Actually I know that the person who said that is rather nice’ (sensitive, if you prefer), is pretty even-handed. And your entirely irrelevant opinion of Slowdive doesn’t change anything about that.

The most memorable for me growing up was Boy George taking Prince to town calling him “a dwarf who’s been dipped in a bucket of pubic hair.” Brutal

[...] 30 Harshest Musician-on-Musician Insults in History [...]

well…i agree lennon was a hypocrite, talked a lot about ‘peace’and imagine a world with no possessions even though he owned mansions and cars and diamonds bigger than your head….he also ignored his 1st born…yea, what about love there lennon? i love his music but they should all just play and shut-up….at least mccartney appears to be a great father and he loved his first wife linda……ERIC CLAPTON hasn’t done anything worth listening to since yardbirds, cream, blind faith and finally derek and the dominoes (1970). it’s been 41 years of crap!!!…….red hot chilli pepers are one of the WORST bands EVER!!! amazing…..courtney love….biggest piece of CRAP!!!
thank god for ROCK-N-ROLL baby….i wish they would just rok and shut-the-F-up baby!!!

@Phil – did Boy George really truly say that?! Wow – that’s totally going in our readers’ round-up of these if we end up doing one

Anton Newcombe molests puppies. That’s the only explanation for his mentally retarded comment.

So, what I have gathered from most of these posts is this….If YOU don’t like somebody’s music, THEY have no talent.

That is some deep and meaningful stuff right there!!

Christina is just mad GaGa became more important to music and had more success than Christina will ever have. Even Britney Spears shits all over Christina’s lousy career.

I like these comments because they only hold personal truths yet most of you treat them like fucking gospel.

They are all human and are allowed to make offhand comments. It actually makes me glad that these “pin-ups” can be fuck-ups as well.

The Gallagher bros. should at least have 5 entries in there, given their record of slagging off musicians including each other. I don’t even understand the Zorro on Donuts comment but I found it hilarious.

Really, Kurt said that about GnR? Didn’t know that.

Nick Cave: “I’m forever near a stereo saying, ‘What the fuck is this garbage?’ And the answer is always the Red Hot Chili Peppers.”
—
Baaahahaha, nice – A gorgeous young lady I’ve been chatting with linked me here… she was being kinda adorable and remembered my obsession with Nick Cave.

Hahaha – I don’t even mind the Red Hot Chili Peppers… As far as top 40 lowest-common-denominator pop/rock goes, there’s far worse. But that quote was fucking awesome. Nick Cave is fucking brilliant. Anyone who hasn’t heard his 80′s post-punk band The Birthday Party, really really should – You’re missing out on one of the most ahead of it’s time, creative and emotionally cathartic bands of the era, right up there with Joy Division, Suicide and Einstürzende Neubauten. Sorry for the rant, I’m high as fuck.

“One can have great concern for the people of Ethiopia, but it’s another thing to inflict daily torture on the people of England” – Mozza.

How could you possibly – POSSIBLY (!) – print Elton John’s Keith insult and LEAVE OUT Keith’s rebuttal???! Here, please, let me do it for you:
“”His writing is limited to songs for dead blondes.”
- there you go. You can thank me later.

[...] 29 weitere Zitate voller Neid und Missgunst bei Flavorwire. [...]

He’s [Frank Zappa] probably the single most untalented person I’ve heard in my life. He’s two-bit, pretentious, academic, and he can’t play rock ‘n’ roll, because he’s a loser. And that’s why he dresses up funny. He’s not happy with himself and I think he’s right.
Lou Reed

Wasn’t the David Lee Roth comment actually spoken by Gene Simmons? I’m basing this on EC’s guest appearance on NPR’s “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me,” where the host asked EC “Gene Simmons once said about you that ‘Music journalists like Elvis Costello because music journalists look like Elvis Costello.’” EC’s response was, “Have you seen Gene Simmons lately?”

These are hilarious, especially the Nick Cave quote. I remember the lead singer of Filter (and former guitarist of Nine Inch Nails) was talking s**t about Trent Reznor and Reznor’s response was something like “Well, if you were in Filter, what would you talk about?”

Since when has Boy George been a relevant musician? Last I knew, he was picking up trash in NYC?

“I get really tired of their pompousness [sic]… ”

Why the tendentious use of “[sic]“? Maybe Coyne selected exactly the right word for what he meant to say, and maybe Weekend Vampire are indeed pompous in their behavior.

It’s a list of opinions, not a grammar contest.

[...] 12. Mark “E” Everett on The Beatles “John Lennon sings about peace because he’s a woman-beat… [...]

[...] from a very good recent article over at Flavorwire entitled “The 30 Harshest Musician-on-Musician Insults in History” Tweet This entry was posted in Overrated, Rants, Uncategorized, Why are they famous? and tagged [...]

@jsturg
God forbid that the article writer thought that the word was “pomposity” in real life, and made what amounts to a fucking typo? Jesus christ, and you speak about grammar contests.

what wayne coyne said is kind of true, arcade fire does come off as a wee bit pompous even though they make some of the best music in the world.

Morrissey on Madonna – “So now we’re lead to believe that Mad-Donna gives a shit about Global warming!? I found this surprising, because given half the chance she’d wear that little black boy she bought – However, However, She will only wear him for a day and then he’s gone – Silly Woman!”

Morrissey on Elton John – “What a prat – He feels a great need at every oppurtunity when before a camera crew to tell the world about his awful boring life – If i had someone elses hair like he does, I would take say such nonsense things on radio rather than to be filmed to the world with a dead cat on my head – But Fortunately, I am NOT Elton boring John”

Morrissey on Robert Smith (The Cure) – “The only Cure he needs is a good barber”

“He (Rob Smith) has done NOTHING with the name SMITH other than destroy it – I made it great however, but not for Edward Scissorhands on Dead Meat”

Morrissey on Michael Buble – “Puffed up James Dean off his face on Empty Vessels”

Omegasaurus – I fear your own pomposity has just let you down. Way to make a dick of yourself on a public forum.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pomposity

You missed some memorable Mike Patton rips.

Rich people complaining about richer more popular people. It’s high school all over again.

#21 does a good job of illustrating why Freddie Mercury will always be a million times cooler than Paul Weller.

It’s not like there is any doubt that doing something difficult and unlikely (fusing highbrow historical culture and rock while demeaning neither of them, for a popular audience) is a hell of a lot harder than making a pointless, vaguely homophobic jab at a guy that took huge personal and creative risks (unlike some people).

If Weller wasn’t so busy trying to pose as working class British he might realize that working class people don’t need to stay in their box. They can like whatever the fuck they want just like everybody else. And in the 70s that included guys in dresses and leather, when they were rocking to an extent the Jam could only dream of.

I only counted 29.Tupac was,and still is no musician.

How come no one takes issue with the phrase “in history”? How about, “in popular music of America and the UK in the last 30 years”? Thousands of years of music in thousands of cultures around the world, and we get “in history”.

Anyone interested in growing out of bashing the RHCP should check out the Lexicon Of Musical Invective. At least it’s a start!

@Pat D: I’m sure there were many other similarly-minded, wanky comments that followed yours, but tbh I got tired of reading them and thus have opted to respond solely to you: Stop publicly broadcasting how spectacularly retarded you are and shut up.

Weller, Morrissey (for the most part) and Newcome were particularly spot-on.

And only hipster scum-college boys listen to Arcade Fire while fapping alone in their room for hours and contemplating cutting another testicle off to be able to wear even tighter jeans. “good songs”.. smh

Lou Reed did himself no credit by saying something so stupid and uninformed. Perhaps he was in the middle of showing high self-esteem by injecting himself with heroin while he was saying this.

Pat Metheny has a nerve going on about Kenny G when he made such an arse of himself trying to play like Derek Bailey for a week and a half before going back to his usual tedious drivel.

[...] As promised last week, here’s a good article about musician on musician insults. Good stuff…http://flavorwire.com/200333/the-30-harshest-musician-on-musician-insults-in-history [...]

Dave Grohl’s comment was so perfectly placed.

#1 memorable zinger would be Keith Moon saying this new band forming after the Yardbirds would “go down like a lead balloon” And we all now how Led Zeppelin turned out.

Number 21 just goes to show how much of a twat Paul Weller is. Let’s face it Paul, you’re a decrepit old fool with the hair of an un-groomed orangutan, who’s biggest songs have either been dull loops or ripoffs. Give up and disappear you worthless cunt!

xtina- i’m not too big a fan of you, or gaga,[as performer] per se. but i get,that gaga has a lot less affectation about her, than you do. i’m a latin cat,and i wish i could say beter re your image. but that’s the point,you seem to have, the “latina disease”, of being overly preocupied, with image, looks and style. you, xtina,don’t have an iota of the introspection and wit, that gaga has. xtina, you’ve got great chops,but you are boring,as a person. gaga,is interesting,and talented. xtina,is infatuated with image,being pretty,and having social aplomb….stereotypical, latina, vacuous, shallow nothingness…too many, have been there, and done that….tired…

So Kurt talked all that about GNR and then cowered like a little b#tch when Axl confronted him at VMA’s… Axl and Slash have way more talent than that headless twat.

the comment, about clapton throwing the baby, was just so beyond human dignity. curse, on the prick’s house, that said that.

Carlos, I’d disagree, Lady GaGa is just a Madonna clone that uses sexual deviance in songs to make up for a lack of decent lyrical content. I can see exactly where Christina was coming from as i’ve seen pictures of GaGa and sworn blind it was actually Marilyn Manson (the fame monster cover for example)

But image aside, I know who’s voice I’d prefer to listen to and that is where the true talent lies. Christina wins that battle any day.

Hilarious that Boy George can call Madonna vile. This is coming from a former junkie who was convicted of chaining a rent boy to a radiator and beating the crap out of him.

“sexual deviance”, darren? what are you,the all american taliban,now? or, some prudish posting, conservative, hung up dork? you make some valid pts, about the voice,but they are distinct, from the one’s i was making, in my previous post.

Hey great article. I have a question, even though you have great info how can you be sure about all of this?

“I used to be cruel to my woman, and physically—any woman. I was a hitter. I couldn’t express myself and I hit. I fought men and I hit women. That is why I am always on about peace.” — John Lennon (quoted in the Wikipedia article about him, and attributed to his final Playboy magazine interview)

E is blunt to a fault, but he’s not gratuitous on such comments as far as I’m aware.

I appreciate the juxtaposition of entries 24 and 23. Awesome. Love these lists, thanks for making them!

tweetchozikamodillybooj: I’m sure you’re long gone from this site but I’d love to hear all the Mike Patton disses you’ve got.

It’s amazing how after Tupac and Biggie were murdered, all of a sudden they were Best friends and all was forgotten, Diddy/Puffy whatever the F@ck his name is nowadays, even wrote a song, the one that catapulted him into stardom…He was the only one to benefit from their tragic deaths!!!

i don’t know if i would rather have a prostate exam by a gorilla…or have a tooth drilled without novacaine than be forced to liste to the red hot chili peppers…….

If were all really honest with ourselves, guns n roses really sucks tho. kurt wasnt the best guitarist or singer ever but nirvana made some kick ass music.

[...] epic compilation of musician-on-musician insults aside, many of rock’s most famous rivalries have been nothing more than publicity stunts. For [...]

Fight nice,girls, Your BOTH pretty.

Funny how even the Clapton defenders start off their comments by stating their distaste for him. Me, I’ll put on Blues Breakers from ’66 and drink some whiskey and be glad the old bugger is still around. Even if it’s mainly old ladies who like his music now, I don’t give a shit; he can still outplay virtually anyone out there, with the possible exception of Jeff Beck. I’ll invite some of those old ladies over and have a good time.

ummmm, i love clapton’s music and that was an ignorant and twisted comment about him. i don’t even think it should have ever been repeated and published on here. as for lennon; well he was great and him singing about peace was great. he sung about peace in the “world” in times of war and chaos. thank god he didn’t sing about peace and nonviolence on a personal level because then he would b a hypocrit. and hippies are not full of shit- that is a generalized comment that is just stupid. those”hippies” got shit done we have never bn able to accomplish since, like the people coming together in masses to get changes made.!!!

These were all varying degrees of entertaining except Anton Newcombe’s completely classless comment (in a group of many other classless comments that’s saying something). No matter the context it was ridiculous stupid and I don’t even like Clapton’s music. I imagine Newcombe’s a real pleasure to be around, lol. I can say if he made that comment about a child I lost in front of me he’d go home without his teeth.

they all should named “KIRBY” BECAUSE THEY ALL SUCK!!!! EXCEPT G-N-R THEY JUST KICK YOUR ASS!!!!!!

….. why 6 pages?

But Pat, how do you really feel about Kenny G? lol.
He clearly is not a fan.

So, what you’re saying is, all that arms-around-each-other and showin’-the-love during “We Are The World” was just a bunch of hype and bullshit, huh?

I KNEW they were a bunch of fuckin’ fakes! I KNEW it!

Not exactly politically correct, were they?

M.I.A. on Lady Gaga:

“Oprah Winfrey made this huge speech praising Lady Gaga about how she is helping Americans to be the best of themselves. There’s millions of other Americans who represent that for me. Is it about numbers? About how much you’re selling? Is it truly about the journey? Because Lady Gaga’s journey isn’t that difficult: to go from the f—ing Upper East Side to a f—ing performing arts school and onto a stage at the museum of f—ing wherever. That journey’s about four miles.”

LOL

You should hear what Hull musicians have to say about each other!!

Diamanda Galas on Mike Patton is better than anything Patton has ever said. Of course, given the chance, he would claim it as his quote, and put out 15 albums saying it in a less authentic fashion.

“God, there’s this shithead out there, Mike Patton. He imitates me. He imitates everybody. That motherfucker short fuckin’ midget, he was at all my shows in the ‘90s. He wrote in Wire magazine that I don’t improvise. I just laughed.”

Thank you, Anton Newcombe, for your contributions. BJM has made some of the most listenable and enjoyable music I have come across.

While I appreciate Eric Clapton’s place in the canon of rock ‘n’ roll and enjoy his music, Anton, I listen to your music much more often than that of Mr. Clapton. Also, big thanks to Mr. Rob and every other person who did their part to bring BJM’s music to life.

Warmest Regards,

Steamboat

a lot are funny but some are just ridiculous, especially the eric clapton one. what the fuck.

Isn’t David Lee Roth burning on music journalists?

Fredie Meercury’s “Ballet” was a kidding retort to a drunk Sid Viscious of the Sex Pistols asking him if he was trying to bring ballet to the masses. Freddie replied “Ah, Mr. Ferocious, I’m trying my best…”. Weller is an underacheiving idiot who speaks without knowing what he’s talking about.

lol @ idiots here trying to defend their favorite band.

Do stfu.

I think Anton’s statement was said in jest and he plays the part. I agree it was inappropriate, but as someone who met Anton back when BJM was still in San Francisco, I think Dig and the media perception of him are dramatized for effect. The 2nd time I met Anton was at a concert where he was passing out flyers for another concert. It was a bill that his band was NOT on. My band was on that bill. When I asked about the show, he remarked it was for this crappy band, then showed me it was mine. Obviously he was joking around and the rest of the night, he handed out flyers trying to get people to come to our show. In a music scene where support for other bands was pretty much zero, I was surprised to see him out there being so supportive. Nice guy in person who jokes around and gets caught being a dick on occasion….just like the rest of us.

[...] [...]

Just Love these! Thank You! Now we can see everyone’s underwear, they’re yellow in the front, and brown in the back! Johnboy

Mark Oliver Everett wins hands down. No disrespect on Tupac, but he called the obvious shot, and everyone already knew that animosity. E, on the other hand, is referencing some little discussed dirt of legendary caliber. It doesn’t stop with John either, he could’ve been much harsher if he wanted to, with all the Beatles. Cheers for boldness alone. Long live the kid! God save the drop-out… Oh yeah, and Dad says ‘lo. Also, to take off your shades once in a while. Not for your benefit, necessarily, but all the others. You’re only depriving whole worlds a beautiful set of eyes. Nothing like mine.

Gotta love Cobain’s dig at the talent of Guns and Roses. I suppose that’s why Slash is revered by the “who’s who” of guitardom as one of the most inspired and creative individuals to pick up a guitar since Jimi Hendrix, and Cobain is revered by shotgun enthusiasts as one hell of a marksman.

[...] Read more blatantly and mercilessly harsh insults from the mouth of musicians directed at other musi…. [...]

Lily Allen always talking not mince words. I prefer those sweet words…

I agree with TL and james, why the hell did it take six pages to display 30 quotes? Oh, because the pain in the ass created for the user to click thru multiple pages is not as important as the ability to display more ads or inflate your “click rate” or whatever.

Please if you insist on chunking the content across several pages at least provide an option for the user to “view as one page”. Thanks!

Who the fuck is Anton Newcombe, and why should I care? Fifteen minutes from now, more people will still know who Clapton is.

The comment by Anton Newcombe was utterly despicable. What a horrible person he must be, full of hate to comment that way on a personal tragedy.

Lily Allen slamming another singer? ANY other singer? Seriously? With her cute little hiccupy Cockney fallback? She needs go back into the street with her basket of flowers and wait for Professor Higgins.

[...] Flavorwire lists the top 30 Harshest Musician-on-Musician Insults in History and quotes some major heavies such as Kurt Cobain, Elton John, Tupac and Christina Aguilera. [...]

[...] The 30 Harshest Musician-on-Musician Insults in History Category: Surprise | Tags: celebs, inspiration, insults, lol, music, musicians /* [...]

[...] Flavorwire » The 30 Harshest Musician-on-Musician Insults in History [...]

Who is Anton Newcombe, and why do we care?

Saying that Clapton killed his son is slander. Nothing less. Does Newcomb live in reality at all? His statement is so far from reality, he seems to be in an alternate universe.

Everybody has the right to their own opinions, but they do not have the right to make up their own facts.

The fact is that Clapton’s son died by accident. A horrible accident. And Clapton wasn’t even there. Newcombe is an idiot.

I was just looking for this info for some time. After six hours of continuous Googleing, at last I got it in your web site. I wonder what is the lack of Google strategy that do not rank this type of informative sites in top of the list. Normally the top websites are full of garbage.

“I love Roxy Music, but Bryan Ferry’s a bit of a cunt, isn’t he?” – Sid Viscous
“I consider him (Slash) a cancer and better avoided.” – Axl Rose

“I never went to fucking university. I don’t know what a paint brush is, I never went to art school” – Noel Gallagher
…”I did. It taught me to respect other artists.” – Thom Yorke (in response)

And what about Roger Waters? He had some real stingers:

“It was very, very hard work organizing that Wall concert but everyone was fabulous to work with – Bryan Adams, Van Morrison, Cyndi Lauper, bloody brilliant. All brilliant. Except for Sinead O’Connor… She doesn’t understand anything. She’s just a silly little girl. You can’t just lie in the corner and shave your bloody head and stick it up your arse and occasionally pull it out to go (_”brogue”_) ‘Oh, I tink this is wrong and dat is wrong’ and burst into tears.”

“Andrew Lloyd Webber sickens me. He’s in your face all the time and what he does is nonsense. It has no value. It is shallow, derivative rubbish, all of it, and it makes me very gloomy. Actually, I’ve never been to one of his shows but having put that slightly savage joke on the record, I thought I’d better listen to some Andrew Lloyd Webber and I was staying in a rented house in America this summer and the people who owned the house had a whole bunch of his rubbish so I thought I’d listen to Phantom Of The Opera and I put the record on and I was slightly apprehensive. I thought, Christ, I hope this isn’t good – or even mediocre. I was not disappointed. Phantom Of The Opera is absolutely fucking horrible from start to finish.”

“Yeah, the beginning of that bloody Phantom song is from Echoes. *DAAAA-da-da-da-da-da*. I couldn’t believe it when I heard it. It’s the same time signature—-it’s 12/8—-and it’s the same structure and it’s the same notes and it’s the same everything. Bastard. It probably is actionable. It really is! But I think that life’s too long to bother with suing Andrew fucking Lloyd Webber.”

What about the classic Oasis on blur: “I wish they would catch Aids and die”?

[...] this fantastic list of quotes of musicians opinions of each other. There is nothing more pleasing than the public [...]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_the_Wagons

This is an awesome list. I can’t believe some of them (or maybe I can?).

Your survey of artist insults stretches back to the 16th century. Your compendium of famous musical insults goes all the way back to what? 1980? There is lots of great music before then, and guess what? It isn’t even rock ‘n roll! And the men and women who created it came up with far better insults than these.

For the record, the comment that Aguilera made about Gaga was about whether she was ripping off her style and made shortly after Gaga released her first album. Apparently, her stylist had seen Gaga and thought that Aquilera could pull off the look, though apparently she didn’t anticipate how famous Gaga would become.