Careless Talk Costs Lives was a stylish music magazine conjured up and realised by Everett True and photographer Steve Gullick. It was born on September 10th 2001 and lived out its preordained bi-monthly two-year lifecycle to the day.
It was dedicated to covering “The Music We Like”, and set a new standard in music journalism. It was written with passion and wit by reputable journalists from the popular music press – and several dozen others not so reputable – and was illustrated and photographed by some of the most talented artists around, without the restrictions of large corporate publishing machines.

The music covered ranged from lesser-known genii like Daniel Johnston and Scout Niblett, through the visceral Detroit rock of The Dirtbombs and Detroit Cobras, and the Riot Grrrl fervour of The Gossip and Erase Errata, to experimental dronal cacophonic maelstroms like Acid Mothers Temple and Godspeed! You Black Emperor as well as more well-known types like Nick Cave, Yoko Ono and Mogwai. One important element of the magazine was that it provided something of an outlet for the many women who make music and tend to get ignored by the alpha male-driven popular press. Hell, it even covered jazz and free music.

The Careless Talk Costs Lives show here on totallyradio provided an audio soundtrack to this great magazine as Everett and Jon Slade played the music they liked and kept the audience entertained between songs with their sometime hilarious banter. The shows are all archived on these pages for your pleasure.

Careless Talk stopped in November 2003, having reached Issue 12. The king is dead, long live the king, for Plan B is here – a new magazine, a new format but the song (and editor) remains the same.