1999-
January 1999-Adore ended up as #13 on the CNN's Global Top 30 albums for 1998. The Pumpkins were
nominated for one Grammy, Best Alternative Performance for Adore. Billy Corgan was also nominated
as a songwriter for Hole's Celebrity Skin, in the Best Rock Song category for the title track. At the
start of the month, Adore re-entered the Billboard Top 200, at #199, it rose to #175 the next week
but then dropped off the charts again. "Tonight, Tonight" was voted #87 on the top 100 singles of all
time by Q Magazine. On the 15th, Rolling Stone brought news of the rumoured possible rehiring of
former drummer, Jimmy Chamberlin. That rumour would turn out to be true.
February 1999-Pumpkins were rumoured to have talked to Hollywood agent Michael Ovitz, and his firm
about managing the band. On the 15th, LA Times reported that Jimmy had rejoined the band and was
in the studio with them in Chicago recording the Pumpkins fifth album which would later be named
Machina/The Machines of God. At this time, there was no official confirmation by the band or Virgin
Records, ie no press release. Rumours were flying about a possible D'arcy solo project. On the 23rd, at
LA's House of Blues, Billy won the Unpretentious Award at the Lippert Awards. Apparently, the award
was for driving himself to the House of Blues instead of going in a limo or something. Billy presented at
the Grammies on February 24th with Shirley Manson of Garbage. The band lost out to Beastie Boys for
Best Alternative Performance. Billy Corgan scored some "atmospheric" music for the movie, "Stigmata".
The band also returned to the studio to record music for their followup to Adore, and other upcoming
soundtracks,etc. Butch Vig spoke out about the upcoming Pumpkins album, saying that the band was
band was ready to come back with a "big bang". The Pumpkins were reported to be on the possible
lineup for the Jubilee 2000 campaign concert, that would occur on June 19th, 1999 in Cologne, Germany.
March 1999-On the 3rd, Princeton Music Professor, Peter Jeffrey began suing the Pumpkins for damaged
hearing that was allegedly the result of the band's January 1997 concert in New Haven, Connecticut. He
was apparently wearing ear plugs at the time, and only was in attendance for 20 minutes to look for his
son. He also was suing the ear plug company, as well as The Frogs, and Fountains of Wayne. Jeffrey
Jeffrey later appeared on the Today show. On the 8th, James and co-Scratchie founder/Fountains of
Wayne/Ivy leader, Adam Schlesinger opened Stratosphere Sound, a new recording studio in New York.
Fulflej was scheduled as the first band to record there. On the 25th, new club tour dates for SP were
released. The club tour would start the following month, on the 10th at St. Andrew's in Detroit, Michigan
and end on the 24th at the Roxy in LA. There were some rumoured dates as well. Also on the 25th, Billy
as well. Also on the 25th, Billy played with his father, William Corgan Sr. at the First Waltz benefit for
The Neon Street Program for Homeless Youth, in Chicago. They played two songs, "Muddy Waters", and
and "If I had Possession". Billy made a remark that seems to hint even more at Jimmy's return, "I'll put it
to you this way: Kenny Aronoff is no longer drumming with us, and we're playing a show in two weeks."
According to a Billboard issue in this month, Gish had been certified platinum by the RIAA.
April 1999-"The Arising" club tour, marking the official return of drummer, Jimmy Chamberlin took place.
The band played a mixture of new songs never heard before, old favorites, and the rarely played "La
Dolly Vita". It is overheard, that D'arcy threatened to quit the band during their Pittsburgh show on the
17th.
May 1999-It was announced on the Official Smashing Pumpkins Website that there would be an Adore
documentary, set for release in the fall. During the Adore tour, Billy talked about a possible documentary
in interviews.
June 1999-On the 15th, Billy and James participated in an official chat with some of the fans.
Unfortunately the chat only lasted five minutes due to techinical difficulties. The "Stigmata" soundtrack's
release is pushed back to mid to late August. In early June, there D'arcy had reportedly Jason Weinberg's
Untitled Entertainment to manage her for a possible acting career.
July 1999-In early June, we learn that yet untitled fifth album is 60% finished and the songs for the album
album have been narrowed down to 21 songs-including 11 from "The Arising" tour. It was planned to be
released in late fall 1999, and was declared by the band not to be a return to their older styles.
August 1999- The new album is said to be delayed to a February release date. We learn Adore has sold
over 3 million copies worldwide. "Stigmata" soundtrack is released on the 24th featuring a score composed
and performed by Billy Corgan and Adore touring keyboardist Mike Garson. Also, it includes "Identify",
which was written by Billy Corgan and sung by Natalie Imbruglia. Also, this month Billy contributed short
stories accompanied by girlfriend, Yelena Yemchuk's photos to T-here magazine's first issue. Billy said to
first fans that the new Pumpkins album would be named Chicago 21, but is unclear whether he was really
serious about the title. Billy told LAUNCH magazine that he was glad when all was said and done that the
band didn't play Woodstock this year, saying that the festival didn't seem to have "a lot of integrity". In
the same interview on the 16th, he said drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, had been back for "10 or 11 months",
meaning that he had been back with the band since fall 1998.
September 1999-Rumors of D'arcy quitting the band are spread, including one alleged insider said that
James "has been doing all the bass parts", also Billy had allegedly told people at a Cheap Trick after
concertparty that D'arcy had left the band. The rumors were neither confirmed or denied until on
September 9th,the Smashing Pumpkins Internet Fan Club confirmed D'arcy's leaving. Also, they said that
D'arcy quitting was unrelated to the return of Jimmy Chamberlin, and that the Pumpkins will continue as a
band. The Pumpkins' new album is delayed to February 15th, 2000.
October 1999- Melissa Auf Der Maur quits Hole to pursue "solo projects", and is rumored to take over
the bassist position for the Pumpkins next tour. On the 10th, the Pumpkins sign with Osbourne
Management, run by Sharon Osbourne-wife of Ozzy. The band is looking for a publicist, and the new
album is reported as "nearly complete". On the 30 and 31st, Billy and James (Jimmy appeared on some
songs) played sets at The Bridge School Benefit- the shows were broadcasted over the net.
November 1999-Melissa Auf Der Maur confirmed as the Pumpkins new touring bassist. It is revealed
that the Pumpkins fifth installement will be called Machina- The Machines of God, and various
track listings are shuffled about the net. But the same songs seem to be on each one, including
many songs from The Arising club tour: "Stand Inside Your Love", "The Imploding Voice (AKA Virex)",
"Blue Skies Bring Tears", "With Every Light", "Glass and the Ghost Children", and "Wound". For the full
track listing, click here. The release date was pushed back to Feb. 29th, 2000 in North America, and
the 28th everywhere else. Two secret listening parties were held: one with fans including Eric Agnew
(formerly of Luna and Smashing Pumpkins Fan Collaborative webmaster), and one for industry insiders
at The Whiskey Bar in New York City.
December 1999-Former bassist, D'arcy becomes an actor by starring in an upcoming film with Mickey
Rourke, Peaces of Ronnie. A webmaster's note: "Although it's nice to see D'arcy is getting some acting
jobs, anything with Mickey Rourke in it lately has not been very successful. Can you say direct to
video?" D'arcy stated in an interview with Launch that her departure from the Pumpkins was "long
overdue". "The Everlasting Gaze", "Stand Inside Your Love", "Raindrops and Sunshowers", and "The
Imploding Voice" were played on the radio. "The Everlasting Gaze" was said to be the first radio single
but "Stand Inside Your Love" would be the first video for the new album. The promo for The
Smashing Pumpkins Greatest Hits 1991-1998 was released. It included many of their hits as well as
"Eye", "Drown", "Mayonaise" (acoustic- rumoured to be the Mashed Potatoes version), and "Pug". The
Greatest Hits were said on the radio to be set for release sometime in January. They kicked off their
world tour in support of the new album with a pair of shows in Chicago on the 20th and 21st.They
were the mystery band that performed for Miller Genuine Draft's Blind Date concert in Dublin, Ireland
on the 30th.
2000-
January 2000-Pumpkins start their first European leg of their tour in support of Machina-The Machines
of God on the 7th in Stockholm, Sweden. Early in the month, Sharon Osbourne quits as manager of
the band, saying that she was "...quitting for medical reasons, Billy Corgan was making me sick!".
Rumors of the band splitting up after the Machina tour are spread including a report by Dotmusic
that Richard of Filter had confirmed this. These rumors were later denied by The Smashing Pumpkins
Internet Fan Club, and various other fan sources. "The Everlasting Gaze" was now stated as the
new single and video despite the fact that the "Stand Inside Your Love" was almost completed.
Late in the month, HMV.com reveals that with pre-orders of Machina, buyers will receive a 5 song
promo including "Hope" (1993 instrumental outtake), "Blissed and Gone" (studio version), "Apathy's
Last Kiss", "Eye", and "Mayonaise" (acoustic version). On the 30th, the Pumpkins performed on a
special Super Bowl edition of "Politically Incorrect", they played "The Everlasting Gaze" and "Stand
Inside Your Love". Also, Billy was a panelist on the show. The Smashing Pumpkins Internet Fan Club
also revealed some U.S. record store appearances the band would be making in February.
February 2000-Further Resume The Pose signings and performances are announced an take place.
The first concert is performed in Lawerence, KS on the 1st -the day after the first signing (which
was there as well). Not all signings that would follow were accompanied by performances though.
"The Everlasting Gaze" premiers on MTV's 120 Minutes on February 6th. It premiered on Muchmusic
a week earlier. On the 14th, D'arcy is sentenced to attend four drug-abuse prevention classes ,
rather than facing a trial for possession of crack cocaine. The judge said that she had till May 14th
to complete the classes. On the 17th, there was a live webcast of the Pumpkins concert at Spin
Street Records. Do to injuring his eye, Jimmy Chamberlin couldn't perform during SP's show in Calboro,
NC on February 19th. The show ended up being an acoustic set. Billy Corgan proclaimed that the
band free agents, due to the fact that they had fulfilled there contract with VirginRecords America.
On the 21st, the "Stand Inside Your Love" single was released with the b-side, "Speed Kills".The
Pumpkins filed a lawsuit against their former manager, Sharon Osborne on the 23rd. The band
was seeking the repayment of the $150,000 advance they gave her. The new album, Machina/The
Machines of God was released on the 24th in New Zealand and Australia, the 28th in UK, and the
29th in North America. The Japanese version included a slightly rearranged tracklisting and the bonus
track, "Speed Kills".
March 2000-Machina debuts on Billboard at #3 (but fall down the charts extensively after that) and
reaches a peak position of #2 on the CNN World Charts. The band also announces it's first set of
dates for the Sacred and Profane Tour. During a live performance on the 9th, MTV.com premiered
the first every interactive music video-"The Crying Tree of Mercury", directed by Billy Corgan. The
Resume The Pose Tour ends in Toronto on March 12th with a signing at the HMV Superstore; this
was followed by a performance at The Guvernment, which included Billy's first ever live cover of
"Limelight" by Rush. On March 17th, Billy Corgan turned 33 and Mellissa Auf der Maur turned 28. James
Iha turned 32 on the 26th.
April 2000-On April 7th, Dana Giacchetto was scheduled to appear in a Manhattan court to face
security fraud charges that could land him 10 years in jail. D'arcy and James were some of the victims
of this fraud by the former fund manager. The Smashing Pumpkins and Foo Fighters were announced
to have joined Our Lady Peaces' Summersault Festival. The first performance for the Sacred and
Profane Tour took place in Kansas City, KS at Memorial Hall. Despite lagging record sales, Billy Corgan
said that he is isn't disappointed with how the album is doing during interviews. He said that he is
the band "still has a pulse".(which he said during an indepth interview published in the Chicago Sun
Times-a must read :) ) The vinyl release of Machina after many changes to release date, is pushed
back again to May 16. Machina was certified gold (selling 500,000 copies) by the RIAA on April 18,
2000 according to Billboard.com in the United States. On the 26th, they performed "I of the
Mourning" on the Late Show with David Letterman. During an interview published on Mtv.com, Billy
said that the next single will be most likely be "I of the Mourning" but that he's not sure if they will
make a video for it. He also stated that they were "pretty sure" they would make a video for what
would be most likely the next single after that, "Try,Try,Try".
May 2000-This is one of the most important months in the history of the band, because it marked
the beginning of the end. A plate showing the face of Billy Corgan was featured in the Nine Inch
Nails, video- "Starfuckers, Inc." along with other music stars. Ex-Pumpkin D'arcy had been reported
as continuing to attend her drug rehab classes, and also spending time with actor, Mickey Rourke.
She had reportedly been seen shopping with Rourke, and had took up his hobby of plastic surgery.
"Try, Try, Try" will be the next video, and will be released as a cd single in the UK. A new official
site for the Pumpkins was released by online company, Atomic Pop. Billy made another appearance
on ABC's "Politically Incorrect". Jimmy Chamberlin will be featured on the cover of "Modern Drummer"
for the August issue. D'arcy finished her rehab this month, and the drug charges were dropped
against her. In an interview with KROQ, Billy announced the demise of the band by the end of the
year, on the 23rd. Jonathan Morrill declared a lawsuit against Billy Corgan for allegedly stealing a
video documentary of Billy's former band, The Marked, and then using it for the Pumpkins' video,
Vieuphoria. Morrill also made the claim that he was uncredited on it. Possibilities of a final farewell
US tour had been hinted at by Billy Corgan as well this month. Near the end of the month, it was
reported that Billy was co-writing a song with Lisa Marie Presley for her debut album.
June 2000-During this month, more European tour dates for the fall were revealed. Songs from the
tapes, "Friends and Enemies of Modern Music" (which included outtakes from the Machina recording
sessions, live excerpts from the 10/31/98 concert as well as some Adore demos) and "Billy's Gravity
Demos" (which included many instrumentals and songs from the recording of MCIS,some being full
versions of Pastichio Medley songs) surfaced onto the net. These tapes were leaked by Billy Corgan
himself to some select people in the Smashing Pumpkins online community. Ron Roesing, a former
bandmate of Billy Corgan from their band, The Marked, revealed what he says was the real early
Smashing Pumpkins history. Around the 27th, Billy filed a lawsuit against Roesing, because of the
supposed release of Hopefulness and Oh So Finite Happiness, a charity double-disc. A short Machina
appeared on the net and eventually on the official SP website this month. The Pumpkins toured all
around Japan throughout June. The vinyl for Machina was finally received by CDNOW.
July 2000-At the start of the month, Billy revealed in one of his "Chards of Glass" on the official site,
that the "Try, Try, Try" video had been recently in London and Stockholm. The video's director was
Jonas Akerlund,who directed the video for "The Everlasting Gaze". On the 4th, the band performed
in Seoul, Korea for the first and last time ever. It was announced that Billy among others would be
contributing to the first solo album by Tony Lommi, formerly of Black Sabbath. A webcast of the
May 23rd show in Los Angeles was broadcast by Virgin Jamcast on July 13th. May 23rd, 2000 being
the day that Billy Corgan announced that the band would be breaking up at the end of the year.
While the Pumpkins went back into the studio to recording material left over from Machina, more of
the songs from "Friends and Enemies...." and "Billy's Gravity Demos" surfaced onto the internet. VH1
nominated "Stand Inside Your Love" for the Most Visionary Video for the upcoming VH1 Fashion Awards.
The videos up for the award are able to be voted for online on the Vh1 website. Smashing Pumpkins
Radio opened for the first time on the official SP website in July. In one of Billy's "Chards of Glass"
in the middle of the month, revealed that 10-14 songs were in some sort of shape from the recording
sessions by July 17th. The last UK date ever was announced to be on November 4th, 2000 in London
at Wembley Arena. Billy was stopped from performing the USA National Anthem before a set of ECW
wrestling matches in Peoria by Lou E. Dangerously and the Network. It was reported on MTV news to
air on the 28th. On the 31st, it was reported that the suit originally filed against Ron Roesing, formerly
of the Marked and original Pumpkin drummer, hasn't gone beyond legal threats.
August 2000-It was reported on the 1st that the single for "Try, Try, Try" would be released through
Hut Recordings on September 11th. A remake of "Cherub Rock" will be used as the entrance music
for ECW wrestler, Psicosis. As well a new song will be used as C.W. Anderson's entrance music. Billy's
appearance aired on TNN this month. In a few interviews this month, James Iha seemed to be saying
that he will quit to music after the band will break up saying that "there must be more to life than
rock 'n roll". More uncertainty about what the band will release, and when and what will happen after
the band breaks up. After the Pumpkins are finished, Melissa Auf Der Maur is reportedly going to work
on solo work both in photography and music. On the 6th, a Chicago Tribune article reported that
Billy Corgan had put up his Victorian home in Chicago up for sale. He's hoping that the buyer will
respect the house's original design, and take care of it like he did. He had bought the house back
during the Siamese Dream era. From August 4th to 16th, the Pumpkins performed for the Canadian
touring festival, Summersault 2000, founded by the Toronto band, Our Lady Peace. Highlights of the
tour included James Iha and Melissa Auf Der Maur dueting on the Human League's "Don't You Want Me",
and renditons of "Drown" and "Mayonaise". "Try, Try, Try" video was premiered on MTV Europe in the
middle of the month, and the uncut version was released to the public on smashingpumpkins.com on
the 17th. Because of the video's graphic content, it didn't find heavy rotation during the day on
North America's stations. On the 24th, the Pumpkins recorded an episode of VH1's Storytellers with
lucky fans winning tickets to the show. The setlist recorded was as follows: "Glass and the Ghost
Children", "Today", "Snail", "Stand Inside Your Love", "To Sheila", "Thirty-Three", "Blue Skies Bring
Tears", "Try, Try, Try", "Tale of Dusty and Pistol Pete", "1979", "Raindrops + Sunshowers", "With Every
Light", "Let Me Give the World to You", "Glass and the Ghost Children" (2nd take), and "Stand Inside
Your Love" (2nd take).
September 2000-Early in the month, it was said that Tommy Iommi of Black Sabbath's upcoming solo
album will be released on October 10th including a song featuring Billy Corgan called "Black Oblivion"
which evolved from a song called "Firewall". The album also features Adore touring drummer, Kenny
Aronoff. Also on September 7th, the mp3s of the bands new album "Machina 2/TheFriends and Enemies
of Modern Music", including alternate versions of Machina songs like "Blue Skies Bring Tears", "Heavy
MetalMachine", "Try, Try, Try" among other fan favorites like "Let Me Give the World to You", "Real
Love", "Dross", and "Cash Car Star". It made available 25 new songs and only 25 were produced by
Constantinople Records on vinyl only. Indeed a controversial release, going over the heads of
Virgin, and made to be bootlegged by fans worldwide. The actual limited release was sent by courier
to the selected 25 people from the online SP community, radio, etc on the 5th.
October 2000-On the 17th, Tony Iommi's solo album, Iommi, was released. The album featured the song,
"Black Oblivion", which included Billy Corgan on vocal, bass, and guitar. Pumpkins ex-touring drummer,
Kenny Aronoff also played on the song. The band won 'most visionary video' at the Vh1 Fashion Awards
for their video, "Stand Inside Your LOve" on the 20th. By the end of the month, there were also rumours
spreading the Billy, Jimmy, and Mike Garson would be forming a gothic band after the break up the
Pumpkins. This rumour would later turn out to be false.
November 2000-The Pumpkins performed on Vh1 Storytellers on the 4th. Then on the 18th, SP performed
for the first time on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. It also marked the bands live performance on TV.
Finally,they performed their 2nd to last show ever at the United Center in Chicago on the 29th. It was
also the last arena performance of their career. The 3 1/2 hourset included highlights such as "Starla" and
"For Martha" (which featured Billy's father, William Corgan Sr. on guitar). Mike Garson and Chris Holmes and
performed with SP as well. On the day of the concert, Billy Corgan premiered the last song they ever
recorded together, called "Untitled" on Q101. The UC show was also broadcast live on Q101.
December 2000-The month began with a blast, The Smashing Pumpkins final concert ever at the legendary
Metro nightclub in Chicago on the 2nd. The concert lasted 4 1/2 hours and included special guests, Rick
Nielsen (Cheap Trick), ex-touring drummer Matt Walker, Dennis and Jimmy Flemion of the Frogs, Chicago
singer-Linda Rowberry, and once again, Billy Corgan Sr. on "For Martha". Comprising of 3 Acts, the show
included many highlights in addition to the songs played at the United Center, ending with an extended
jam of "Silverfuck". The concert also featured, the Jonas Akerlund short film, 'Try', which Billy recorded
instrumentals for. The film included footage used for the "Try,Try,Try" video, as well as more footage
recorded at that time. Fans at the show were given cd copies of the Pumpkins first show from October
8th,1988, which was released through Constantinople Records. Later on in the month, Billy told SonicNet
that all the Pumpkins' albums would be re-released in the next few years and would include previously
unreleased bonus tracks. The month ended with Fox Chicago showing a Pumpkins' retrospective called
"Full Circle" on New Year's Eve. The documentary included an indepth interview with Billy prior to the
band's final show and a glimpse at SP's first concert at Metro in 1988. Full Circle also included interviews
with Metro club owner-Joe Shanahan, Nina Gordon (formerly of Veruca Salt), Rick Nielsen (Cheap Trick),
Norm Weiner (WXRT), James Vanaosdol (of Q101 at the time), and rock critics, Greg Kot (Chicago
Tribune), Jim Derogatis (Chicago Sun-Times) and Michael Harris (Illinois Entertainer).
