Paul McCartney

The Best Musician Appearances on ‘The Colbert Report’

Iggy and the Stooges were in cracking form on The Colbert Report last night, making them the latest in a long line of bands who’ve appeared as guests on Stephen Colbert’s long-running satirical chat show. Of all the late-night hosts on TV, Colbert seems to get the most amusing interviews and performances out of musicians; here are a selection of The Colbert Report‘s very best musical moments. You’re more than welcome. … Read More

The Morning's Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

1. Over a year later, a new inquest is being held into Amy Winehouse’s death because the assistant deputy coroner who oversaw the original examination lacked proper qualifications. [via ArtsBeat]

2. Odd Future has been accused of brutally attacking a 17-year-old fan who hopped on stage during a show in San Antonio. According to TMZ, the teen “suffered lacerations on his head, scratches, and burns to his body,” as well as two seizures, and now plans to sue the group. … Read More

The Best and Worst of Last Night's 'SNL' With Martin Short

Last night, Saturday Night Live aired their final episode of the year, the traditional Christmas episode, hosted by legendary but not particularly relevant comedian Martin Short, with Paul McCartney as musical guest. The show started with a haunting and restrained tribute to the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and then dove right into all their usual shenanigans. To us, this episode seemed very sparse — maybe it was all the Christmas spirit (or Christmas spirits), but it seemed as though they barely cobbled six proper sketches together. All the same, there were some high moments, and as always, some low ones. Watch the best and worst bits of the show after the jump, and let us know if you agree with our choices in the comments. … Read More

The Best and Worst Bond Themes of All Time

There are plenty of reasons to be excited about Skyfall, the newest installment in the venerable James Bond movie franchise (fifty years and counting): Daniel Craig is back as Bond, Javier Bardem as the new Bond villain, Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes bringing it all together with wit and grace. But our first indication that this one might be something special came a few weeks back, when we got a listen to Adele’s moody, smoky theme song for the film. It’s got a big, brassy sound that immediately recalls Shirley Bassey, who became the signature voice of the Bond movie theme songs (and while she only did three of them, that’s two more than anyone else), and digging up Bassey’s tunes sent us down a YouTube rabbit hole of Bond themes. As you might expect, over the course of fifty years there have been some timeless, immortal songs; there have been others that, to put it charitably, haven’t aged quite so well. After the jump, we’ve picked our five best, four worst, and one in between of the Bond themes thus far. Some controversies may erupt, so by all means, throw in your two cents in the comments. … Read More

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

1. Just about all live entertainment in New York City was canceled last night, but Jimmy Fallon and David Letterman both braved the storm to tape their shows without audiences. Watch their monologues — and Letterman’s interview with Denzel Washington, who obviously can’t be deterred by even the foulest of weather — at … Read More

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

1. It’s official: Penguin and Random House, two of the biggest book publishers in the industry, have confirmed that they’re planning to merge in response to “the challenges arising from the growth of e-books and the rise of Internet retailers like Amazon.” If approved by courts, the deal would give the combined companies a whopping… Read More

A Guide to Pop Culture’s Biggest Hoaxes

This week, 177 years ago, a series of articles were published in the New York Sun that reported on the discovery of life on the Moon, attributed to well-know astronomer Sir John Herschel. Stories about unicorns, strange humanoids, and entire civilizations described a strange, new world — and newspaper sales skyrocketed. What was intended as a satire — believed to be crafted by a Cambridge-educated reporter — became one of the earliest hoaxes in history, the truth not revealed until weeks later. Since then, and thanks to that lovely invention called the Internet, we’ve become far more jaded and skeptical when it comes to outlandish claims in media. Still, there have been many elaborate hoaxes over time that duped us for fun, profit, and sometimes accidentally. We shared several of pop culture’s biggest hoaxes past the break. … Read More

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

1. Duly noted: If you turn off Bruce Springsteen’s mic during a big show in London — particularly if it’s just as Sir Paul McCartney is about to join him on stage for a duet — he will, quite understandably, make serious fun of you when he plays the following evening in Dublin. [via … Read More

What’s On at Flavorpill: The Links That Made the Rounds in Our Office

Today at Flavorpill, we watched 135 space shuttles launch at the same moment. We wanted to eat this full-length evening gown homage to Alexander McQueen fashioned out of 50,000 gummy bears. We wished we could be best friends with Rachel Dratch, even after witnessing her try to French kiss… Read More

The Morning’s Top 5 Pop Culture Stories

1. Danny Boyle’s 86-track playlist for the upcoming Olympic opening ceremony in London has leaked, and it doesn’t feature anything from Sir Paul McCartney or Sir Elton John, but notably does include “God Save the Queen” by the Sex Pistols! [via Stereogum]

2. Curious as to what former Sonic Youth frontman Thurston Moore’s… Read More