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Rock News: Music's high and low notes

By PENNY NELSON BARTHOLOMEW, United Press International
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PAUL MCCARTNEY

Paul McCartney remembered his former band mate, George Harrison, by performing the classic Beatles tune "Yesterday" at a tribute concert in the Fab Four's hometown of Liverpool, England.

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McCartney took to the stage at the end of Sunday night's show and dedicated his a cappella version of the hit to the man he called "my baby brother," CNN.com reports.

"I thought I should just come on and say how much George would have loved this," McCartney told the crowd at the Empire Theatre.

McCartney altered the lyrics slightly in Harrison's memory, singing: "Why he had to go, he would not say."

The concert -- which benefited cancer charities -- was held on the anniversary of the birth of Harrison. The former Beatle, who died of cancer on Nov. 29, would've been 59.

Gerry and the Pacemakers and other Liverpool musicians also performed.

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The Beatles Story Museum in Liverpool unveiled a tribute wall to Harrison Monday and is planning a "fitting and more permanent form of tribute."


R. KELLY

R. Kelly's lawyer has said there is no tape showing his client having sex with an underage girl. But MTV News reports footage allegedly showing just that has surfaced on the streets of New York and on a number of Web sites.

The females on the tape making the rounds are unidentified, but the content of the footage in terms of setting and activities matches what's been described as the nearly 27-minute tape currently under investigation by Chicago police.

Other footage also supposedly shows the R&B singer in compromising positions, with one Web site claiming to have 10 hours of material and boasting of access to still more.

A spokesman for one of the sites offering the footage for free said the decision to post the material was for "journalistic purposes, to prove that the tapes do exist."

But representatives for a sex site charging $2.99 per download claim they're offering it to prove that it's not R. Kelly. "It's a fake tape," insisted Dennis Johnson of DH Industries. "I just put it up there to show that it's not him."

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LIMP BIZKIT

Limp Bizkit's nationwide search for a new guitarist has ended, and the band has invited several of those people it met during the process back to Los Angeles, Billboard.com reports.

"We are so excited to bring several of the people we jammed with on the tour back to L.A. to see what could possibly become of it," says frontman Fred Durst on the group's Web site. The singer -- a vice president at Interscope Records and the head of the Flawless imprint -- also said he plans to sign two or three bands whose demos he heard through the talent search.


FARMCLUB.COM

A live version of the Limp Bizkit song "N 2 Gether Now" with rapper Method Man can be found on the "Live and Unreleased from Farmclub.com" album, which hits stores Tuesday. It's one of 16 tracks performed by up-and-coming artists and the hottest bands on the USA Network TV show that aired from 2000-2001.

The CD also features a reunion of N.W.A. -- Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and MC Ren -- joined by Snoop Dogg on of Dre's hit "Nuthin' But A 'G' Thang," as well as performances by Eminem of "The Real Slim Shady" and Eminem proteges D12 of "*hit on You," Nelly's national television debut with the title track to "Country Grammar," and soon-to-be superstars Staind with "Mudshovel."

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GRAMMY AWARDS

VH1 is teaming up again with CBS-TV and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences for "CBS & VH1 Grammy Countdown," a special 90-minute Grammy Awards pre-show that'll air on VH1 Wednesday (6:30-8 p.m. ET) just before the ceremonies begin at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

All or some portions of the show will be simulcast on a majority of CBS owned stations.

"CBS & VH1 Grammy Countdown" will be hosted by Mike O'Malley and feature CBS-TV music correspondent Rebecca Rankin and VH1 personality Aamer Haleem. It'll include highlights of Grammy rehearsals as well as the exciting red-carpet arrivals and interviews, and predications of who's going home happy and who is going to be disappointed.

In addition, an hour-long "VH1 Grammy Post-Show" will air live immediately after the Grammys, only on VH1, featuring interviews and party coverage.


MICHAEL JACKSON

Michael Jackson and his "30th Anniversary Celebration" won two trophies at the 33rd annual NAACP Image Awards Saturday night in Los Angeles. Jackson won for outstanding performance in a variety series/special for his CBS TV special, while the show won for outstanding variety series/special.

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