Rock News: Musics high and low notes

'THE CONCERT FOR NEW YORK CITY'

Madison Square Garden will be the place to be Saturday evening as Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Billy Joel, The Who and the Backstreet Boys take the stage for "The Concert for New York City."

The five-hour-long show --- which will air live on VH1 (beginning at 7 p.m. ET) -- is a one-night-only fundraising event to benefit the Robin Hood Relief Fund supporting victims of the Sept. 11th attack and to honor the heroic rescue workers.

Other artists scheduled to perform include Bon Jovi, Bono and his U2 bandmate the Edge, David Bowie, Elton John, Destiny's Child, Janet Jackson (live via satellite), James Taylor, John Mellencamp, Macy Gray, Goo Goo Dolls, Melissa Etheridge, Marc Anthony and Five For Fighting.

Other celebrities slated to appear include Harrison Ford, Selma Hayek, Will Farrell, Jim Carrey, Meg Ryan, Michael J. Fox, Susan Sarandon, David Spade, Julia Stiles, Denis Leary, John Cusack, Adam Sandler, Jimmy Fallon, Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe.

Paul Shaffer of "The Late Show with David Letterman" will serve as musical director.

Five thousand members of the New York Fire, Police and Rescue crews and their families will be in attendance as guests of honor.

(Web site: vh1.com)

GRAMMYS IN L.A. AGAIN

For the third consecutive year, the Grammy Awards will be held at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

Recording Academy President/CEO Michael Greene announced Thursday that the awards will be televised live on CBS on Feb. 27, 2002.

Greene made the announcement at a news conference attended by Los Angeles Mayor Jim Hahn, CBS president/CEO Leslie Moonves and recording artists Mary J. Blige, Dave Koz and Tyrese. He also announced a new long-term deal with CBS to telecast the show.

KEVIN SPACEY: ACTOR AND SINGER?

Could Kevin Spacey some day place a Grammy next to the two Oscars in his trophy case?

Eight-time Grammy-winning producer Phil Ramone told gossip columnist Mitchell Fink he's been wanting to make an album with Spacey since even before the star of "American Beauty" and the new movie "K-PAX" stunned the audience by singing "Mind Games" on the John Lennon tribute show at Radio City Music Hall earlier this month.

Ramone said he heard Spacey sing "Bridge Over Troubled Water" on Sept. 10 during a warm-up for the Latin Grammy Awards.

"Kevin is Julliard-trained, and he can definitely sing," said Ramone. "For now, we're just talking."

Ramone won album of the year Grammys for producing Paul Simon's "Still Crazy After All These Years" (1975) and Billy Joel's "52nd Street" (1979). He won the Grammy for record of the year for Joel's "Just the Way You Are" in 1978.

(The above two items thanks to UPI Hollywood Reporter Pat Nason)

MICK JAGGER

"Goddess In The Doorway," Mick Jagger's first solo album in 8 years, is slated to hit stores Nov. 20.

The CD marks the Virgin Records label debut for the Rolling Stones frontman as a solo artist and his first such outing since 1993's "Wandering Spirit." Guest artists on the 12-track collection include Lenny Kravitz, Bono, Rob Thomas, Pete Townshend and Joe Perry, among others.

The first single, "God Gave Me Everything," was co-written and produced with Kravitz.

"These are all very personal songs, kept true to my original vision," said Jagger. "Sometimes these things take on a life of their own, which can be great too, but this is an intimate collection of songs that I could sing to you across the kitchen table."

MADONNA

On the eve of the release of her much anticipated "GHV2: Greatest Hits, Volume 2," Madonna will be honored by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) with its Diamond Award -- denoting sales of more than l0 million units -- for her first greatest hits package, "The Immaculate Collection."

"Collection" covered the first phase of the pop diva's career, from l982's "Holiday" to l990's "Justify My Love." To date, it has sold more than 22 million copies worldwide.

Meanwhile, "GHV2" (on the Warner Bros./Maverick Records label) covers Madonna's creative output from 1991 through this year, and includes such songs as "Erotica," "Secret," "Take A Bow," "Frozen," "Ray Of Light," and "Music." It's due in stores Nov. 13 and will be complemented by the simultaneous release of a DVD/VHS recording of the "Drowned World Tour," made during her performance in her hometown of Detroit. "Drowned World Tour" first aired on HBO in August.

(Web site: wbr.com)

YOU'VE GOT BRITNEY

Britney Spears and America Online have teamed up to promote the teen pop star, her live performances and her music.

It means AOL members and fans will be offered unique ways to interact with the star, including exclusive access to her music and videos, online chats, contests, ticket specials, and more.

As part of the agreement, AOL members have the only chance to purchase tickets for Spears' fall tour before they are available to the general public. As previously announced, the singer will donate $1 of every ticket sold through the AOL service to the children of the New York City firefighters and police officers lost in the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center.

AOL will also run special promotions during the tour. Spears will also provide AOL with exclusive behind-the-scenes footage and photographs as the road trip moves across America, as well as personal tour diaries written for fans.

AOL software will be included on every domestic copy of Spears' upcoming CD, "Britney," and her official Web site (britneyspears.com) will include information on the AOL service and the ability to download AOL software.

ANTHRAX (THE BAND)

Visitors to anthrax.com can find information about the deadly bacteria -- but not because the Web site was set up for health reasons. It's the home page of the veteran heavy metal band Anthrax, which says it won't change its name after using it for nearly two decades.

"People ask me how I feel about this," writes singer Scott Ian on the site. "It sucks. I'm scared. Confused. Stressed. I'm sad that we live in a world where humans would do this to each other. When I learned about anthrax 20 years ago there was never any thought or talk about bio-warfare. ... I just wish this would go away. I would feel the same even if my band weren't called Anthrax."

The site offers facts about the disease, links to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and news reports about the current outbreaks. There's also an official news release titled "ANTHRAX (the band) vs. ANTHRAX (the disease)."

(Thanks to UPI's Joe Warminsky in Washington)