Radiohead Rake in Praise From Bono, Release "From the Basement"

Bono has called Radiohead's pay-what-you-want experiment for In Rainbows "courageous and imaginative in trying to figure out some new relationship with their audience," the U2 frontman says in a letter to be printed in the NME. The comments are in stark contrast to those made recently by U2's manager Paul McGuinness, who said that Radiohead's experiment "backfired." "[Radiohead are] a sacred talent, and we feel blessed to be around at the same time," Bono said. Despite Bono's praises, U2 will not follow a similar path as In Rainbows when they release their new album. In other Radiohead news, the band's From the Basement performance that aired on VH1 in May is now available on iTunes. The "video album" was recorded in producer Nigel Godrich's basement and features performances of the songs from In Rainbows.

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Song Stories

“(We're Not) The Jet Set”

George Jones and Tammy Wynette | 1973

George Jones and Tammy Wynette were still married when they recorded the tongue-in-cheek "(We're Not) The Jet Set." The lyrics, written by Nashville songwriter Bobby Braddock, who also penned Wynette's "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" and Jones' "He Stopped Loving Her Today," make fun of the good life by declaring, "We're not the Jet Set/We're the old Chevrolet set." Braddock recalled that while writing the song, he needed the name of a city that evened out the rhyme he had with "Riviera" and "Missourah." “I got out a Rand McNally atlas," he said. "In the first part are the maps. The last part is an alphabetical listing of cities. I wanted a rustic, small-time sound. I went to the listing for Missouri. And I found 'Festus.' I loved the sound of it."

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