Shaun Ryder explained he originally wanted to ‘put the boot into Putin’ (Picture: Getty)
Shaun Ryder got so paranoid about being poisoned by Vladimir Putin he changed lyrics about Russia’s leader.
The Happy Mondays frontman, 60, wrote lines poking fun at Putin in tunes for his new group, Mantra of the Cosmos, which also features Zak Starkey, 57, from The Who and Oasis bassist Andy Bell, 52, and Happy Mondays’ Bez, 59.
Shaun said that even though he started off wanting to ‘put the boot into Putin’ with his new tracks, he toned down the words after he started to get scared they could make him a target for assassination.
According to the Daily Star, he said in Uncut’s new issue: ‘It started off worse than that, but we thought, “Let’s give this band a chance before we all get poisoned”.’
Dad-of-six Shaun added that instead of going down the political route, he started doing fun rhymes such as matching ‘laughing gas’ with ‘working class’.
He said of his chaotic songwriting technique: ‘We just press record and I get to throw a s***load of ideas down.’
Shaun toned down the words after he started to get scared they could make him a target for assassination (Picture: Getty)
Shaun said: ‘Let’s give this band a chance before we all get poisoned’ (Picture: AP)
It comes after Shaun horrified fans during an episode of Celebrity Gogglebox last month.
Among the news lines, animal documentaries and an incredibly steamy Columbian drama on Netflix, the celebs sat back to watch The Yorkshire Vet.
One worried pet owner had brought their elderly mouse in for surgery as it got an infection in their eye, and the vet operated to remove it.
Leading to Shaun telling a childhood story that would make even the most stoic among us cringe.
He revealed that when he was a little boy, his grandfather had a glass eye, which he would pop out with his fingers as a party trick.
Shaun, young as he was at the time, decided he wanted to do the same – and made his mother watch as he literally, genuinely, dug around and popped out his eye.
He recalled candidly: ‘It was on me cheek.’
Delightful.
Metro.co.uk has reached out to Shaun’s reps for comment.
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Wise choice.
