Ongoing History of New Music: "60 Mind-Blowing Facts About Music in 40 or so Minutes (2025 Edition)"

Host: Alan Cross
Release Date: December 17, 2025
Podcast: Ongoing History of New Music

Overview

In this annual “data dump” episode, legendary Canadian music journalist Alan Cross shares 60 wild, weird, and wonderful facts about music, musicians, pop culture, and the music industry, culled from a year’s worth of research and random discoveries. The facts span genres, decades, and geographies—ranging from rock folklore to recent technological oddities—and are delivered in Alan’s signature blend of wit, curiosity, and encyclopedic knowledge. This 2025 edition marks the 11th year of Alan’s 60-facts tradition.

Key Segments & Notable Facts

1. The Origins of Weird Theme Songs and Nonsense Lyrics

[02:14 – 04:51]

• WKRP in Cincinnati Closing Theme: Composed by Jim Ellis, consists of gibberish "as a statement on how many rock songs featured lyrics that no one can hear."
• Pseudo-English Songs: Italian singer Adriano Celentano released “Prisencolinensinainciusol” in 1972—lyrics were deliberate gibberish sounding vaguely like English, to demonstrate Europeans’ appetite for American-sounding music, even without meaningful lyrics.

2. Musicians’ Unexpected Side Hustles and Backgrounds

[04:51 – 06:50]

• Guns N’ Roses’ Duff McKagan: Got a finance degree, became a licensed financial planner, and made early investments in Microsoft, Starbucks, and a struggling startup called Amazon.
• U2’s “Live Aid” No-Show: The Edge (U2) was supposed to join Bono for “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” in 1984 but was hospitalized for a kidney infection.

3. Pop Culture Crossovers

[06:51 – 08:01]

• Frasier & TV Music: “Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs” is a veiled reference to Frasier’s callers’ eccentricities.
• Devo’s “Uncontrollable Urge” became the theme for MTV’s “Ridiculousness,” netting Mark Mothersbaugh reported $1M/year in licensing until the show’s 2025 cancellation.

4. Bizarre Music-Related News

[08:12 – 11:18]

• Osama bin Laden: Was a fan of Avril Lavigne and the B-52s, according to files found in his compound.
• Wireless Headphones: Originate from NASA’s Mercury program.
• Heavy Metal Degrees: Summa College in Eindhoven, Netherlands offers degrees in heavy metal performance.
• Oldest Debut Album: Saxophonist Marshall Allen released his debut at age 100.
• Brian Adams Fatberg: A Perth concert in February 2025 was canceled due to a sewer fatberg threatening to back up venue toilets.

“You are never too old to follow your dreams. In 2025, saxophonist Marshall Allen announced his debut album. He was 100 years old.” — Alan Cross [10:55]

5. Eccentric Habits of Musicians

[11:31 – 14:27]

• Duck Radio: Six ducks in a garden operate an online radio by pecking a sensor, rebroadcasting a random station.
• George Harrison's Boardroom Doll: When he lost patience at Beatles meetings, he’d pull the cord on an Austin Powers doll to say: “Why must I be surrounded by frickin idiots?”
• Happy Mondays’ Bez: Became a public supporter of urban beekeeping.

6. Tech, Gear & Money in Music

[14:57 – 19:54]

• Amazon’s Atlantic Cable: Laying one supporting streaming 12.5 million HD movies at once.
• Roland TR808 Drum Machine: Became iconic due to “defective” transistors that added distinctive noise.
• The Police’s "Synchronicity": 36 different album cover versions exist.
• Bryan Cranston: Joined Songwriters Guild to get royalties for humming/whistling in Malcolm in the Middle; used the payments to throw crew parties.
• First High-Powered Bass Amps: Created by the Kingsmen (“Louie Louie”) bassist after frustrations with his own amp.
• Madonna’s Maverick Label: She personally greenlit signing Deftones.

“We tend not to think of Madonna as a fan of post-rock, yet she is the reason we have the Deftones today.” — Alan Cross [18:57]

7. Unexpected Connections and Pop Trivia

[19:54 – 23:43]

• Sesame Street’s Jazzy Numbers: Sung by Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane.
• Mission Impossible Theme: Based on the Morse code for “M.I.”
• Barilla Pasta’s Playlists: Match cooking time to music playlists.
• ABBA’s Glam Outfits: Tax-deductible only if they couldn't be worn daily—hence their ’70s fashion choices.
• Pumpkin Spice Latte Origin: Tori Amos may have invented the concept in Seattle in 1995, predating Starbucks’ 2003 launch.

“Is Tori Amos the inventor of pumpkin spice latte? I, for one, choose to believe it.” — Alan Cross [23:37]

8. Music Psychology, Laws, & Randomness

[23:43 – 26:25]

• Playlist Burnout: Emotional burnout from endless choices; Alan suggests active, attentive listening and scheduled silence to reset music appreciation.
• Illegal Number: A hexadecimal key once used to decode DVDs, banned under the DMCA.
• WWII Sound Torture: Soviet guards used tango music to torment German POWs.

9. Absurd Requests, Political Missteps, and Infamous Incidents

[26:31 – 28:09]

• Morrissey's Tour Demands: No one on his tour crew is allowed to wear shorts, anywhere, any climate.
• Monaco’s Police vs. Military Orchestra: 82 officers on staff but 85 musicians in its orchestra.
• Ed Sullivan’s Record Label: Released multiple albums under his name; now collectors’ items.
• Lemmy Busted a $2M Recording Console: Slammed a cheeseburger into the mixing board during a studio fight—required a technician to clean out the mess.

10. Cemeteries, Lawsuits, & Unlikely Metalheads

[28:09 – 36:00]

• Père Lachaise Cemetery: In 2025, new burial spots offered by lottery, possibly next to Jim Morrison.
• Fab Morvan (Milli Vanilli): Returned to the Grammys 35 years later for Best Audiobook, narrating the real story of Milli Vanilli.
• Adolph Sax Survived Assassination Attempts: Invented the saxophone in 1842, angered rival instrument makers.
• Prime Minister Metalhead: Japan’s new PM, Sene Takachi, played drums in a metal band, is a big Sabbath and Deep Purple fan.

11. Bizarre Productions & Musical Feats

[36:00 – 39:27]

• Spinal Tap’s 11-pack: New merch includes Liquid Death canned water sold in 11-packs (“one more than ten”).
• Oasis’ Record Beer Sales: Fans drank 250,000 pints during three Wembley shows—far outpacing Coldplay and Taylor Swift crowds.

12. Outlandish and Surreal Music Events

[39:27 – 41:41]

• Tiny Vinyl: Releasing 4-inch singles from major bands.
• My Chemical Romance Demonic “Transformation”: Viral TikTok claims Gerard Way morphed into a demon mid-show—Alan’s response: “I thought the Internet was supposed to make us smarter. I was apparently misinformed.” [40:18]

Notable Quotes

• On Playlist Burnout:
  “Music stops giving you that hit of dopamine, but you keep listening because you’re afraid of silence. … If you find yourself in that situation, stop what you’re doing and just listen to the music. No multitasking.” — Alan Cross [23:43]

• On Strange Music Lawsuits:
  "She accused the founder of her management company of ripping her off to the tune of, and I'm serious about this, $4.5 quadrillion. ... And oddly, this case never made it to court." — Alan Cross [32:34]

• On Internet Conspiracies:
  “I thought the Internet was supposed to make us smarter. I was apparently misinformed.” — Alan Cross [40:18]

Structure & Flow

• Alan delivers facts in a rapid, entertaining succession, connecting them with witty asides and segues.
• The episode is interspersed with playful music drops, e.g., snippets of Sesame Street and musical examples.
• Each fact stands almost alone, but the cumulative effect creates a whirlwind tour through the eccentric corners of music history.

Summary Table of Notable Facts and Segments

| # | Highlighted Fact | Timestamp | Notable Moment/Quote | |---|------------------|-----------|----------------------| | 1 | WKRP gibberish end song | 02:15 | “He just vocalized a whole bunch of gibberish.” | | 5 | The Edge misses Band Aid | 06:30 | “He was in the hospital with a kidney infection.” | | 8 | Osama liked Avril Lavigne | 08:14 | “Pictures of Avril were found on some of his hard drives.” | | 11 | 100-year-old debut album | 10:55 | “You still have time.” | | 18 | George Harrison’s Austin Powers doll | 12:24 | “Why must I be surrounded by frickin idiots?” | | 27 | Madonna gives us Deftones | 18:57 | “So thank you, Madge. Madonna gave us the Deftones.” | | 29 | Grace Slick on Sesame Street | 19:28 | “You’ll never guess who the singer is…” | | 34 | ABBA’s tax-dodge outfits | 22:57 | “Had to be so crazy and unusual…” | | 35 | Tori Amos invented PSL? | 23:20 | “You all have your Starbucks things. Well, I have one that tastes like pumpkin pie.” | | 36 | Playlist Burnout | 23:43 | “Too much music dulls the reward system in your brain.” | | 44 | Lemmy’s cheeseburger incident | 28:50 | “He slammed the cheeseburger into the mixing desk.” | | 48 | Fab Morvan returns to Grammys | 31:32 | “35 years later, Fabb was nominated for a Grammy…” | | 52 | Japan’s new PM’s metal chops | 33:07 | “She played drums in a metal band at university…” | | 54 | Oasis sets beer record at Wembley | 36:55 | “Those fans consumed 250,000 pints or 4,500 kegs of beer…” | | 60 | My Chemical Romance demon TikTok | 39:27 | “I thought the Internet was supposed to make us smarter. I was apparently misinformed.” |

Final Thoughts

Alan Cross’s 2025 data dump is a whirlwind ride across absurd, informative, and flat-out peculiar corners of the music world—proving that fact is often stranger than fiction in rock, pop, and beyond.

If you crave musical arcana, surprising connections, and behind-the-scenes tales—served with deadpan wit and genuine affection for music’s oddities—this episode is a must-listen.