Rock News: Music's high and low notes

JOHNNY CASH TRIBUTE ALBUM

Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Steve Earle and Dwight Yoakam are the latest artists to sign on to an upcoming Johnny Cash tribute album being produced by Cash's former sideman and son-in-law Marty Stuart. The as-yet untitled project -- in honor of the music legend's upcoming 70th birthday -- will be released May 28 through Sony Nashville, a publicist for the label tells Billboard.com.

Dylan will cover "Train of Love" while Springsteen will run through "Give My Love to Rose" -- both originally appearing on Cash's 1962 album "All Aboard the Blue Train."

Stuart's official Web site said a number of tracks have already been laid down -- including Emmylou Harris, Sheryl Crow, and Mary Chapin Carpenter on "Flesh & Blood," Dwight Yoakam doing "Understand Your Man," Travis Tritt's version of "I Walk the Line," Steve Earle performing "Hardin Wouldn't Run," Keb' Mo' on "Folsom Prison Blues," and Little Richard's interpretation of "Get Rhythm."

BACKSTREET BOYS

Backstreet Boy Nick Carter has made a deal with prosecutors and won't be doing any jail time for a barroom altercation last month.

The singer was arrested Jan. 2 for allegedly disobeying a police officer's orders to leave a Tampa nightclub following a fight inside. E! Online reports that on Friday, Carter, 22, agreed to enter a pretrial intervention program that, if he behaves himself, will keep him out of jail and have his record wiped clean.

"He is a first-time offender, and we treated him just like anyone else," Assistant State Attorney Pam Bondi told the St. Petersburg Times newspaper.

In a statement issued following his arrest, Carter insisted the cops had been out to get him.

NO DOUBT

No Doubt drummer Adrian Young missed the band's televised performances on CBS's "Friday Night Super Bowl Bash" last Friday and Fox's pre-game show "The Tailgate Party" on Sunday.

And MTV News reports he also won't be on hand when No Doubt tapes the music network's "Mardi Gras 2002" Tuesday for airing on Feb. 16.

Instead, A Perfect Circle drummer Josh Freese will be filling in.

The reason -- Young will be at home with his wife, Nina, awaiting the birth of the couple's first child, according to an Interscope Records spokesman. He's expected to rejoin his bandmates when they kick off their North American tour March 14 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

U2's BONO

Bono says he'll visit Africa with Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill in March. And he said O'Neill is "going to come back with more than a souvenir spear."

The U2 lead singer -- who has championed debt forgiveness initiatives for the poorest nations in the world -- joined O'Neill Saturday in a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in New York.

O'Neill said that throwing money at developing nations will not solve global poverty and subsequently blamed international assistance agencies for burdening poor nations with unsustainable debt loads.

Following the panel discussion, Bono told reporters, "The secretary's position reflects a certain feeling in the U.S., a certain distrust of aid." People involved in the debate have to be aware of this and should work to promote awareness, he said.

The singer also announced that he'll broaden his activism to include more equitable access to global markets for African nations.

MTV ASIA AWARDS

MTV Asia for the first time recognized Asian artists on a pan-regional basis at Saturday night's MTV Asia Awards.

The awards -- following in the footsteps of the MTV Video Music Awards and Europe Music Awards -- recognized leading artists in 10 countries across Asia as selected by 13 million Asian viewers, along with six international music categories, a fashion award and film category award. Each category had five nominees.

The ceremony -- hosted by Mandy Moore and Ronan Keating -- was taped in front of a live audience in Singapore, and will be aired to more than 130 million homes across the region. Portions of the three-hour program will be carried on MTV channels worldwide.

In the international category, Britney Spears and Ricky Martin were voted Favorite Female and Male Artists, while Westlife, which performed live, took the award for Favorite Pop Act, and Bon Jovi, for Favorite Rock Act. Linkin Park was the favorite breakthrough artist.

Other performances included a duet between Moore and Regine Velasquez, winner of the Favorite Artist for the Philippines; R&B/pop artist Pink, who entered the arena on a roaring motorcycle; rockers P.O.D.; Latin sensation Enrique Iglesias; and Japanese superstar Ayumi Hamazaki.

(Thanks to UPI's Sonia Kolesnikov in Singapore)

STEVE CALDWELL DIES

Steve Caldwell, an original member of the Swingin' Medallions, has died in Atlanta of pancreatic cancer at age 55.

Caldwell sang and played saxophone with the band between 1963 and 1969, performing on the 1966 hit "Double Shot (of My Baby's Love)." After the group wound down, Caldwell moved to Atlanta to run a relative's temporary employment agency. He later shifted into software design.

(Thanks to UPI's Mike Cooper in Atlanta)