Kylie Minogue received one of the highest cultural awards possible from the government of France, Chevalier
dans L'ordre des Arts et Lettres, on Monday in recognition of her "contribution to the enrichment of French
culture." Previous recipients of the award have been Bob Dylan and Ella Fitzgerald.
Annie Lennox will be honored with the British Red Cross' Services to Humanity Award in London on June 12th in recognition
of her "significant humanitarian role she has played throughout her career."
George Strait's Troubadour fell 2 spots to #8 on the Billboard 200 album chart. R.E.M.'s Accelerate dropped 8 places
to #17. Alan Jackson's Good Time dropped 7 places to #26. Based on first day sales, Madonna's Hard Candy is expected
to debut at #1 on the chart next week.
Madonna's "4 Minutes" featuring Justin Timberlake climbed 2 spots to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles
chart. George Strait's "I Saw God Today" fell 4 places to #37.
Madonna's Hard Candy debuted at the top of the U.K. Albums chart. Rick Astley's Ultimate Collection debuted at
#17.
Madonna's "4 Minutes" featuring Justin Timberlake sits atop the U.K. Singles chart.
The Cure have announced that they will release four singles (with B- sides), one each month, starting May 13th
with "The Only One" leading up to the September 13th release of their new currently untitled studio album
via Suretone/Geffen Records. The second single is expected to be "Freakshow" on June 13th.
UB40 have announced that Robin and Ali Campbell's brother Duncan Campbell will join the group along with Maxi Priest
to collaborate on future live shows and recording projects. Their next album, Twentyfourseven, will be released
in the U.K. on June 16th and feature their final recordings with former member and lead singer Ali Campbell.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds will release their Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! book on June 23rd. The 46-page hardback four-inch
square book is composed of handwritten lyrics and notes by Cave, photos, illustrations, an interview and a 3-inch
single of the title track.
Nine Inch Nails have announced that they will be offering their new studio album, The Slip, as a free download
at their official site. Fans will only need to submit their email address. A version of the album will be released
on CD and vinyl in July with more details to come. They will also offer premium seats to their fans and bypass
scalpers and brokers for their upcoming summer tour at their NIN.com Web site. Fans will need to become registered
users of the site to acquire pre-sale tickets.
The publicist for Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora has refuted rumors that he would replace Poison frontman Bret
Michaels in the next season of VH1's Rock Of Love.
Donnie Vie has been working on a new Enuff Z'nuff album, Lost In Vegas. He has also started a new project entitled
L.A. Smogg and has auditioned for a rock band that had recently lost their singer.
King's X frontman Doug Pinnick has recorded a guest appearance on a new track, "Runnin' Like A Dog,"
by Black Sugar Transmission.
According to Tom Scholz' interview with Billboard.com, he wants to finish recording their new studio album after
their summer tour with hopes to release it early next year. The album is expected to include several new songs
as well as a few reworked songs that appeared on 2002's Corporate America. A new version of the group's Greatest
Hits heads to stores this summer to coincide with the tour.
The Offspring have released "Hammerhead" as the first single from their new studio album, Rise And Fall,
Rage And Grace, as a free digital download at their official Web site to fans providing their email address. The
new Bob Rock-produced album is due out on June 17th.
Prince is expected to publish a multimedia book, 21 Nights, documenting last year's 21-night run of performances
at London's O2 Arena.
The Wedding Present have posted samples of new songs from their forthcoming studio album, El Rey, on their MySpace
page. The group release the new album in the U.S. and Canada on May 20th via Manifesto Records (and the rest of
the world on May 26th via Vibrant Records.)
The first single to be released by the recently reunited New Kids On The Block will be "Summertime" when
it is made available as a digital download at a variety of music services on May 13th.
Keep your ears open when you see the new Dr. Pepper commercial (where a talking can interrupts a Psychology 101
class.) The voice of the can is Flavor Flav and the singing voice on the commercial (after he takes a sip) is provided
by Terry Ilous.
Glen Campbell will release a new CD entitled Meet Glen Campbell on Aug. 19th that will feature remakes of songs
by U2, Tom Petty, The Velvet Underground, The Foo Fighters and Green Day.
Metallica's MissionMetallica.com site will go live on May 12th allowing fans to experience their new studio album
before it's done.
Spiritualized will release their new studio album, Songs In A&E, on May 26th. The album was originally expected
out two months earlier but Jason Spaceman was ill after the recording and wound up spending a couple weeks in intensive
care.
Brendan O'Brien had just finished work in the studio with AC/DC before re-teaming with Pearl Jam to work on songs
for their 9th studio album.
Despite working on their 40th anniversary tour this summer, Yes frontman Jon Anderson has been in talks with former
guitarist/co- producer Trevor Rabin on reuniting the 1983 incarnation of the band (which yielded the triple platinum
album 90125, 1987's Big Generator and 1994's Talk.) Meanwhile, four new 'opus-styled' songs by Yes are being prepared
for live performances.
Riot guitarist Mark Reale has started writing material with all the members from their 1988 line-up (vocalist Tony
Moore, bassist Don Van Staven and drummer Bobby Jarzombek) for a new album due out in late fall.
Tina Turner fans can tune in to the May 8th episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show to catch the singer. She is expected
to announce her break from retirement in her first tour in 8 years with tickets going on sale on May 12th. Reports
have claimed that her performance at the Grammy Awards earlier this year inspired her to return.
Former Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan has plans to head into a Seattle recording studio with his band Loaded
in early June to work on their new album due out later this year.
D.O.A. are working with Bob Rock on their thirteenth full-length album, Northern Avenger, to be released, this
August, in time for their 30th anniversary.
Trey Anastasio's Original Boardwalk Style will be released via his own Rubber Jungle Records on June 10th.
Randy Newman will release his first new studio album in nearly a decade, Harps And Angels, on Apr. 5th via Nonesuch.
The first single from the disc, "A Few Words In Defense Of My Country," was released last year via iTunes.
Fatboy Slim (a.k.a. Norman Cook) has opened a Japanese restaurant named Okinami in central Brighton, England. He
has gone into partnership with the owner of Okinami (which was named one of the top 5 sushi restaurants in Britain
in 1997) with plans to relocate it to the new venue.
Tesla will release their new DVD, Tesla! Comin' Atcha Live! 2008, in June. The footage was filmed during their
concert in Minnesota this year.
Former Ultravox frontman Midge Ure has been working on a collection of covers, entitled Ten, to be released later
this year.
In April, Candlemass went into the studio and recorded their new EP, Lucifer Rising, which will be released in
September via Nuclear Blast. The album has two new songs (the title track and "The White God") as well
as some live tracks from their last tour. A new studio album is expected by the band next spring as well as a few
re- releases.
Glenn Tilbrook of Squeeze has been hard at work in the studio with material for his third solo album. Meanwhile,
Squeeze are planning to continue their tour this summer and re-release some of their albums.
The Waterboys have released a special collection of unissued and rare music, Kiss The Wind, as a download album
(at http://www.townsend- records.co.uk/sites/waterboys/ ). The 16 individual tracks making up the album can be
purchased at the site and sampled.
According to Masters Of Reality's Chris Goss, their summer tour has been postponed as he has been enjoying his
work in the studio on their new album, believing it to be their "best work to date."
A new Stryper 25th anniversary book is in the works with plans for release later this year. The Stryper.com site
is asking for fan submissions.