IN: Inspiral Carpets are an English alternative rock band, formed in 1983 in Oldham, Greater Manchester. The band's most successful lineup featured frontman Tom Hingley, drummer Craig Gill, guitarist Graham Lambert, bassist Martyn Walsh and keyboardist Clint Boon. Formed by guitarist Graham Lambert and singer Stephen Holt, the latter of which departed the band prior to the band signing with Mute Records, the band's sound was characterised by the use of organ playing and distorted guitars. The band both preceded and was a part of the late 1980s and early 1990s Madchester movement.

Craig Douglas Gill (5 December 1971 - 20 November 2016) was a British musician.  Gill was born in Salford, but grew up in Chadderton. He was the drummer of the Oldham based indie band Inspiral Carpets. After the band's initial split Gill ran a record stall at Affleck's Palace. He has also worked as a club DJ.  He also ran musical tours of the Manchester area, explaining landmarks relating to the Madchester scene and Manchester's musical heritage. He co-wrote the book, The Manchester Musical History Tour.  On 20 November 2016, Gill died at the age of 44, with an announcement being made by the band via social media on the 22nd. Gill's funeral service was held on 5 December 2016 at Oldham Crematorium, on what would have been his 45th birthday. It was hosted by local DJ Mike Sweeney. A follow up event was held at Salford Lads' Club, to help celebrate his life. Both events were attended by music industry luminaries and friends of Gill's, which included the remaining members of the band and also other notable artists, such as Oasis singer Liam Gallagher, Stone Roses bassist Mani and Happy Mondays singer Rowetta. Craig Gill's death was said to be a result of tinnitus which had caused 20 years of insomnia and anxiety which resulted in him taking his own life.  Immediately after his death, friends of Gill began a social media campaign to help get the Inspiral Carpets 1994 UK hit "Saturn 5" to number one at Christmas in 2016. This was noted by the Official UK Chart Company in their 'Contenders of The Year' article. Ultimately, the song charted at number 48.

Did anything happen to Craig Gill?

OUT: On 20 November 2016, Gill died at the age of 44,


IN: Steven Norman Carlton (born December 22, 1944), nicknamed "Lefty", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1965 to 1988 for six different teams in his career, but it is his time with the Philadelphia Phillies where he received his greatest acclaim as a professional and won four Cy Young Awards. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994. Carlton has the second-most lifetime strikeouts of any left-handed pitcher (4th overall), and the second-most lifetime wins of any left-handed pitcher (11th overall).

Carlton slumped in 1973, losing 20 games. The media's questioning of his unusual training techniques led to an acrimonious relationship between them and Carlton. In 1976, upon the advice of his lawyer Edward L. Wolf, decided to sever all ties with the media, and refused to answer press questions for the rest of his career with the Phillies. This reached a point where, in 1981, while the Mexican rookie Fernando Valenzuela was achieving stardom with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a reporter remarked, "The two best pitchers in the National League don't speak English: Fernando Valenzuela and Steve Carlton."  Media charges of bigotry and anti-Semitism  In 1994 he agreed to an interview with writer Pat Jordan at his home in Durango, Colorado. The result was the story "Thin Mountain Air" in the April 1994 issue of Philadelphia magazine. This article was noted by the New York Times as being the source of numerous claims about Steve Carlton's political and social beliefs: "According to Pat Jordan, the writer of the article, Carlton alternately said that the world is ruled or controlled by the Russian and United States Governments, which 'fill the air with low-frequency sound waves,' the Elders of Zion, British intelligence agencies, '12 Jewish bankers meeting in Switzerland' and 'a committee of 300 which meets at a roundtable in Rome.' Not only that, but Carlton also charges, according to Jordan, that President Clinton has 'a black son' he won't acknowledge and that the AIDS virus was created at a secret Maryland biological warfare laboratory to get rid of gays and blacks.'" This same New York Times article notes that teammate Tim McCarver defended Carlton against charges of being a bigot and an anti-Semite, though he acknowledged "If he's guilty of anything, it's believing some of the material he reads. Does he become confused with his reading about radical things? Yes. I've told him that. Does that translate into him being anti-Semitic? No."

What was his relationship like with the media?

OUT: The media's questioning of his unusual training techniques led to an acrimonious relationship between them and Carlton.


IN: Nicholas Edward Cave  (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional film actor, best known as the frontman of the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Cave's music is generally characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety of influences, and lyrical obsessions with death, religion, love and violence. Born and raised in rural Victoria, Cave studied art before turning to music in the 1970s. As frontman of the Boys Next Door (later renamed the Birthday Party), he became a central figure in Melbourne's burgeoning post-punk scene.

In 1973, Cave met Mick Harvey (guitar), Phill Calvert (drums), John Cochivera (guitar), Brett Purcell (bass), and Chris Coyne (saxophone); fellow students at Caulfield Grammar. They founded a band with Cave as singer. Their repertoire consisted of proto-punk cover versions of songs by Lou Reed, David Bowie, Alice Cooper, Roxy Music and Alex Harvey, among others. Later, the line-up slimmed down to four members including Cave's friend Tracy Pew on bass. In 1977, after leaving school, they adopted the name The Boys Next Door and began playing predominantly original material. Guitarist and songwriter Rowland S. Howard joined the band in 1978.  They were a leader of Melbourne's post-punk scene in the late 1970s, playing hundreds of live shows in Australia before changing their name to the Birthday Party in 1980 and moving to London, then West Berlin. Cave's Australian girlfriend and muse Anita Lane accompanied them to London. The band were notorious for their provocative live performances which featured Cave shrieking, bellowing and throwing himself about the stage, backed up by harsh pounding rock music laced with guitar feedback. Cave utilised Old Testament imagery with lyrics about sin, debauchery and damnation. Cave's droll sense of humour and penchant for parody is evident in many of the band's songs, including "Nick the Stripper" and "King Ink". "Release the Bats", one of the band's most famous songs, was intended as an over-the-top "piss-take" on gothic rock, and a "direct attack" on the "stock gothic associations that less informed critics were wont to make". Ironically, it became highly influential on the genre, giving rise to a new generation of bands.  After establishing a cult following in Europe and Australia, the Birthday Party disbanded in 1984. Howard and Cave found it difficult to continue working together and both were rather worn down from alcohol and drug use.

How popular was Nick Cave and his band in Melbourne?

OUT:
They were a leader of Melbourne's post-punk scene in the late 1970s,