Fun Fact: In the 1980s, Van Halen had a specific clause in their tour rider, which stated that there must not be any brown-colored M&Ms allowed backstage at any of their concerts or the promoter will have to forfeit their payout.

Seems like an outrageous or at least a frivolous demand, yet there was an excellent reason why they asked for such an over the top demand. As a matter of fact it was quite an ingenious safety measure for them...

Check out this five (or so) minute video clip of Diamond Dave explaining the so-called rumor...

https://vimeo.com/36615187

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documen...dary-mms-rider

The band I toured with, which had somewhat operatic scenic and lighting demands and thus a pretty complex rider for the early '80s, followed this lead and put in our rider that our dressing room had to be provided with 2 quart containers of Dannon blueberry yogurt. The point, as was said in the video, was that we would know as soon as we hit the dressing room if the promoter had read our rider or not and if we were in for a long day of hassles over the technical aspects of getting the show up. We had the same issues with loading docks, doors, power, rigging etc etc in our show (at a much smaller scale than Van Halen, but we were playing in much smaller halls that were even less updated), so it turned out to have been a good move. Do tours still do this?

It makes sense. People don't read stuff.

For 4 and a half years I mixed and tech-produced a weekly live-streaming show. I sent every artist a four-paragraph "Here's the Deal" email. In the middle of Paragraph Three, it said "Read this completely and put the word 'Snickers' in your reply, and you'll be entitled to your choice of a frozen Snickers bar or a brand new one dollar bill." I never had to pay off once.

That's a good one!

Diamond Dave’s book is hilarious. M&M story addressed. Every studio should have a copy, and it will be stolen so get a case.

I understand that DLR nor anyone else in the band came up with this idea by themselves. It was their longtime production manager, Patrick Whitley that did!

I personally don't get it, but some people just can't help themselves when it comes to stealing credit.

I have a sordid history in Advertising, where careers are made by doing exactly that -- if you were in the building when the idea got thunk up, then for all practical purposes you thunk it up yourself.

I have had associates, tell my stories as if they were their stories...

One time, many years ago, this well known NY studio owner was on the phone with me; we were just chatting about different stuff that has happened to us over the years when he started to tell me about my Hiram Bullock story as if it was his story. He forgot that I told him that experience a few months earlier. That same amazing story was told by others that needed to make it their own.

And, that was not the first or last time people stole my experiences, techniques or credits.

It is what it is, I'm afraid.

I have an ex-boss who has posted online in at least a couple places about how he came to write a multi-award-winning radio promo for The Simpsons. In the telling, he gets almost all of the details right. One key detail he gets wrong is in saying he wrote it. I suppose I could fill him in on the other inaccuracies, but I don't think I will.

Yeah, ex-bosses have a tendency to do all sorts of dastardly things.

If I ever write a book, there shall be a capture with stories similar to what you have described and beyond.

I feel your pain!

It's merely pain (and a little amusement, maybe) up to the point where they start telling people that you're the one that's the liar. Then it becomes something called "trade libel." Lawyers love being on the plaintiff's side because it can be a fat payday coupled with righteous comeuppance. And righteous comeuppance in the lawyer business is so rare.

I've got a lawyer friend who's been ragging on me for a while now because I don't wanna have this guy wind up living in a refrigerator box under a bridge.

I did a session with Bob Babbitt 15 years ago or so and there was much conversation between takes among the session dudes about how a very famous and will not be named west coast A list session bass player was claiming credit for work that Bob had done. Much head shaking was done till the convo moved on to some really funny stories from Ray Charles sessions.

measured by some current-day, way-over-the-top, copy-paste riders one gets from mostly unknown bands (one gets the impression elvis, jim morrison and michael jackson together are to rise from the grave!), no brown m&m's seems like a humble request (besides the hidden and very reasonable message)!

iggy pop used to send a hilarious rider; the leningrad cowboys too...

I have seen some amazing tech riders that were thoughtfully done. I have also seen groups ask for the impossible. It seems like the bigger the act the more reasonable the rider. The nicest one was from an unknown band. It simply said in BIG LETTERS. Give us the best you have and we will be grateful for your help. The worst one was 21 pages long and specified what toilet paper for the rest room and wanted a cook skilled in BBQ for the bands supper. It was friggen ridiculous. This group was playing a 200 seat college club. Unbelievable.

Stealing credit from Babbitt? For what?

Stealing seems pretty robust, claiming in print (book or article or maybe internet) was what was alleged. My memory is a bit sketchy, but I think they were talking about 70's Motown sessions after the move to LA.

From what I heard (and briefly experienced) about Motown in LA a bit later on, they were in the habit of cutting songs they deemed worthy with different rhythm sections and in various keys, and having the various artists in their stable take a whack at singing them. The confusion may have come from that.

By that time, though, Babbitt had been in New York for quite a while.