His many fans will no doubt wonder at the absence of anything by Wayne County from the list of Top 50 American punk albums we've compiled as part of this month's cover story on the Ramones. After all, Wayne – who by 1980 was Jayne County, following the necessary surgery – was with his band Queen Elizabeth part of the same Max's Kansas City, Mercer Arts Center and Club 82 scene that nurtured the early New York Dolls.
Courtney Love and REM's Michael Stipe have collaborated on a track for Johnny Depp's forthcoming album of sea shanties – listen to it below.
The track, titled 'Rio Grande', will appear on the pirate-themed album 'Son of Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs and Chanteys', which is set for release on February 18. The album is being put together by Johnny Depp, director Gore Verbinski and producer Hal Willner and follows their similar 2006 effort, 'Rogue's Gallery'.
The story of Tom Waits’ early life and the making of his stunning debut album, Closing Time, is examined in the new issue of Uncut, out on January 31.
15 great tracks by artists who influenced Waits or were inspired by him, including Captain Beefheart, Beirut, Howlin' Wolf, Harry Partch, Johnny Dowd, Frank Sinatra and The Low Anthem
