Rock News Two: The week in pop music

MARIAH CAREY

Mariah Carey and EMI/Virgin Records have parted ways, after weeks of speculation.

In a joint statement issued Wednesday, the pop diva and the record company described the split as "amicable." To get out of its multi-album, multi-million-dollar contract with Carey, Virgin agreed to pay her $28 million. In addition, she gets to keep the $21 million paid to her when the deal was signed in April 2001.

Said Carey: "This is the right decision for me. I look forward to the many new and exciting opportunities, which have now been presented to me. I wish Virgin well."

Alain Levy, new chairman & CEO of EMI Recorded Music, said: "We have decided that this is the most prudent course of action for EMI. We wish Mariah the best."

Carey joined Virgin after leaving Columbia Records, her label of 10 years, where she sold 140 million albums and singles worldwide and had a No.1 single every year for the last decade. Based on that past performance, Virgin inked the singer to a deal that would've paid her $81.6 million for four albums.

Carey's first release for Virgin was "Glitter," the soundtrack to the film of the same name in which Carey made her movie debut. But before the record could be released, Carey suffered an "emotional and physical breakdown" -- causing the album and film releases to be delayed. The CD, while it did go double platinum, still sold far below expectations and the movie tanked.

C-MURDER

First-degree murder charges have been filed against rapper C-Murder.

MTV News reports that the rapper, whose real name is Corey Miller, is being held on $1 million bail, according to a spokesperson for the Jefferson Correctional Facility in Gretna, La. Police are not releasing any further details at this time.

This is the second time in less than six months that C-Murder has been in hot water. Last August, he was charged with attempted murder and released on $100,000 bail.

C-Murder is the younger brother of Percy "Master P" Miller.

THE GRAMMYS

U2 and Alicia Keys are the first performers confirmed for the 44th Grammy Awards, which will be handed out Feb. 27 in ceremonies airing live on CBS.

Janet Jackson, Diana Krall, and Britney Spears are the first confirmed presenters, according to Billboard.com. As was previously reported, comedian Jon Stewart will host the Grammys for the second year in a row.

U2 leads the field with eight nominations, including album of the year and best rock album for "All That You Can't Leave Behind." Keys earned six nominations, including best new artist and four separate nods for her No. 1 hit "Fallin'."

BARRY MANILOW

Barry Manilow has been added to the line-up of entertainers at Super Bowl XXXVI in New Orleans on Feb. 3. He's scheduled to perform his song "Let Freedom Ring" as part of the Pregame

Show at the Louisiana Superdome, which will be broadcast on the Fox television network.

(Thanks to UPI's Mike Cooper in Atlanta)

OASIS

Oasis will perform in concert one day before the band's London show for the Teenage Cancer Trust.

Music Goes On News reports the concert is scheduled for Feb. 5 at the Coliseum in Watford, England. It's the first time the brothers Gallagher have played Watford. Tickets go on sale this Thursday.

The benefit show follows on Feb. 6 at the Royal Albert Hall in the British capital.

URBAN AID 2

Musician and record label CEO Russell Simmons says Jay-Z, R. Kelly and P. Diddy will take part in his latest venture -- Life Beat's Urban Aid 2 benefit show.

The concert is scheduled for April 9 at New York's Beacon Theater, according to MTV News, and will be broadcast live on BET. The event will help raise funds and awareness for HIV prevention initiatives among young people.

The first Urban Aid was held in 1995 and featured Notorious B.I.G. and the Wu-Tang Clan.

'N SYNC

'N Sync is planning a North American tour this spring in support of the group's 2001 album "Celebrity." Billboard.com reports the full itinerary has not yet been unveiled but dates are so far confirmed for nine shows, beginning March 3 at the Rose Garden in Portland, Ore.

Confirmed tour dates:

March 3 -- Portland, Ore. (Rose Garden)

March 4 -- Tacoma, Wash. (Tacoma Dome)

March 6 -- Oakland, Calif. (Oakland Arena)

March 7 -- Sacramento, Calif. (Arco Arena)

March 8 -- San Jose, Calif. (Compaq Center)

March 10 -- San Diego (Sports Arena)

March 11 -- Anaheim, Calif. (Arrowhead Pond)

March 15 -- Las Vegas (MGM Grand)

April 1 -- Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills)

Before taking to the road, 'N Sync will perform Feb. 23 as part of the Hallmark Olympic Celebration concert series at Salt Lake City's Olympic Medals Plaza, The next day, the group will appear at the closing ceremonies of the 2002 Winter Olympics.

On Feb. 27, the boys will perform their song "Girlfriend" with a "surprise guest" on the 44th annual Grammy Awards. "Celebrity" is nominated for best pop album, while "Gone" is up for best pop vocal performance.

SANTANA

Santana is taking to the road March 21 for a spring U.S. tour before heading to Europe for a few months of dates in May and June. Allstar.com reports the American trek will include nine dates through April 2, while the European tour runs from May 15 in Denmark through June 16 in Italy. Meanwhile, Carlos Santana has been hard at work on his next album, which is due sometime this year.

Santana U.S. tour dates:

March 21 -- Tampa, Ice Palace

March 22 -- West Palm Beach, Fla., Mars Music Amphitheatre

March 23 -- Orlando, TD Waterhouse Centre

March 25 -- Atlanta, Philips Arena

March 27 -- Greenville, S.C., Bi-Lo Centre

March 29 -- Morrisville, N.C., Entertainment and Sports Arena

March 30 -- Charlotte, N.C., Charlotte Coliseum

April 1 -- Washington, D.C., MCI Center

April 2 -- Hampton, Va., Hampton Coliseum

European tour dates:

May 16 -- Copenhagen, Denmark, Parken Stadium

May 17 -- Nurburgring, Germany, Rock Am Ring Festival

May 18 -- Nuremberg, Germany, Rock Im Park Festival

May 20 -- Arnhem, the Netherlands, Gelredome

May 21 -- Paris, Palais Omnisports

May 24 -- Essen, Germany, George Meiches Stadium

May 26 -- Hannover, Germany, Niedersachsenstadion

May 28 -- Berlin, Germany, Waldbuhne

May 31 -- Leipzig, Germany, Festweise

June 2 -- Zurich, Switzerland, Letzigrund Stadium

June 4 -- Budapest, Hungary, Kissstadion

June 5 -- Vienna, Austria, Schloss Schonbrunn

June 9 -- London, Crystal Palace

June 12 -- Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Monte De Gozo

June 13 -- Madrid, Spain, Palacio Vista Alegre

June 14 -- Barcelona, Spain, Palau Sant Jordi

June 16 -- Italy

DONNY OSMOND

Donny Osmond is taking to the road. He'll kick off a short tour April 10 in Red Bank, N.J., in support of his new album "This Is The Moment," The CD was released last February and debuted just behind Destiny's Child on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. It debuted in the Top 10 on the U.K.'s album charts when it was released there in April.

Tour dates:

4/10 -- Red Bank, NJ; Count Basie Theatre

4/11 -- Buffalo, NY; Center for the Performing Arts

4/12 -- Verona, NY; Turning Stone Casino

4/13 -- Lowell, MA; Lowell Memorial Auditorium

4/18 -- Mt. Pleasant, MI; Soaring Eagle Casino

4/19 -- Wisconsin Dells, WI; Crystal Grand Music Theatre

4/20 -- Normal, IL; Braden Auditorium

4/24 -- Youngstown, OH; Powers Auditorium

4/25 -- Ontario; Casino Rama Entertainment Center

4/26 -- Cleveland, OH; Allen Theatre

4/27 -- Chicago, IL; Chicago Theatre

5/9 -- Lancaster, PA; American Music Theatre

5/10-11 -- Atlantic City; The Tropicana

JANET JACKSON

Claiming that international touring and performing were taking a physical toll on her, Janet Jackson has told the TV show "Extra" that she is going to suspend touring, at least for a while.

The 35-year-old singer says when she wraps up her current "All For You" tour next month, she will take a long-awaited vacation. Jackson says she understands that her fans want to see her and she just can't let her entire crew go with little notice, so she's trying to make the transition to a more sedate life work for everyone involved. She reports that she's been reading several movie scripts submitted to her and would like to go back to acting. But, she adds, it will be a while before she gets back on the boards again.

BRITNEY SPEARS, JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE

It would seem out of character for Britney Spears to get married, but that's the word from People magazine. It reports she will tie the knot with long-time beau Justin Timberlake of the Backstreet Boys at a time yet to be announced.

Spears made the announcement to the assembled media at an international music and film festival in France. She and Timberlake are both 20.

For months, each has been adamant about the fact that they were not engaged and had no plans of marrying. Part of the subterfuge might have been an attempt on the part of Spears to be able to retain her sultry, bedroom-eyed, single status. Being single allows her to move in ways that hubby Timberlake might not like ... a kind of modern-day version of husband and wife Jack Benny and Mary Livingston just "being friends" so Jack could flirt on their show, or Roy and Dale -- until late in the run of their series -- living separate on-the-air lives.

Spears and Timberlake met on the set of the new "Mickey Mouse Club" show when they were both 11.

GEORGE HARRISON

It's been a long time since former Beatle George Harrison rocketed to the top of the international charts with the song "My Sweet Lord." Now, according to the people who track record sales around the world, some 31 years after its original release, the song is again on British pop charts. The reason, of course, is a renewed interest in the singer/songwriter in the wake of his death last November.

The song, first released in 1971, was re-released recently by Harrison's widow, Olivia, through a special arrangement with EMI. When the song was played on radio stations and heard in documentary retrospectives at the time of Harrison's death, the haunting, repetitive creation of the enigmatic Harrison was discovered by a whole new generation of music lovers. One proviso that Olivia Harrison put on the re-release of the record is that profits go to a charity formed by her late husband in 1973, the Material World Charitable Foundation.

(The above three items thanks to UPI Feature Reporter Dennis Daily)

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

A New York-based performing arts group has turned songs from Bruce Springsteen into a rock opera titled "Drive All Night."

E! Online reports The Culture Project is expected to preview a rough demo of the two-hour production for The Boss himself in March. If Springsteen gives the thumbs-up, "Drive All Night" could be stage-bound.

"We just thought this would work well," said artistic director Darrell Larson, who thought up the idea about four years ago with partner Stephanie Kerley-Schwartz. "It would be a real addition to music in theater, and his work would particularly lend itself to this treatment."

The "demo version" of the rock opera features snippets from some 29 Springsteen songs in each act, as it tells the story of a working-class guy named Eddie. The show includes well-known Springsteen favorites like "Thunder Road" and "Atlantic City," as well as obscure tunes like "Protection," a Springsteen-penned song that Donna Summer recorded.

Larson -- who directed a 1995 concert version of "The Wizard of Oz," starring Jewel, Jackson Browne, Natalie Cole, Nathan Lane and Roger Daltrey -- first began talking with Springsteen's camp when longtime Bruce producer-engineer Chuck Plotkin worked on Larson's "Wizard of Oz" CD.

"What we're doing here is a demo version, and we're hoping it will be clear enough in how good it is that it will move forward," Larson said. "Then we'll do a fully staged version, try it out in Springsteen country and bring it into New York."

DIDO

Dido has begun work on the follow-up to her 1999 album "No Angel." But she says she probably won't devote her full attention to the project until April.

"I'm still promoting ('No Angel'), unbelievably," the British singer told Billboard.com by phone. "... And I've started writing the next album, because I really do just want to, ya know, get on with it. I've got so many songs and ideas, I want to get them down now."

Since rapper Eminem included a sample of the "No Angel" track "Thank You" on his "The Marshall Mathers LP," Dido -- whose real name is Florian Cloud De Bounevialle Armstrong -- has toured the United States extensively, during which she has previewed such new songs as "Do You a Little Time," "See the Sun," and "Don't Leave Home."

"It's been really good for me to actually sort of try out songs on the spot," she said, adding, with a laugh, that she will not be "sampling Eminem on my record."

MORE NEW ALBUM NEWS

-- MCA Records is releasing a new version of Mary J. Blige's latest album, "No More Drama" -- complete with a new album cover, a pair of new remixes and two new bonus tracks. It hits stores Jan. 29. The new version includes a fresh mix of the single "No More Drama" featuring P. Diddy, as well as a remix of "Dance For Me" featuring a guest appearance by Common. There're also two previously unreleased tracks: "Rainy Dayz," featuring Ja Rule; and the ballad "He Think I Don't Know." The original version of the CD was released last fall and has since gone platinum. Blige is up for two Grammys for Best Vocal Performance and Best Album in the R&B category. Her tour is set to begin Feb. 5.

-- Foo Fighters guitarist Chris Shiflett appears on a new version of Sugarcult's "Bouncing Off the Walls," which will be the first single from the soundtrack for the first National Lampoon motion picture in seven years. Sum 41, Jimmy Eats World and American Hi-Fi also contribute music to the soundtrack, reports SonicNet.com. "Bouncing Off the Walls" will hit radio and video outlets Feb. 5. The album is due out March 26, and the movie opens nationwide April 5.

-- Metallica hasn't gone rap-metal but the band is releasing a song with rapper Ja Rule. "We Did It Again" will come out May 14 on "Ghetto Stories," a hip-hop compilation by Ruff Ryders producer Swizz Beatz, reports MTV News. The Metallica track will be the only mega-rock tune on the album, which will also feature Ronald Isley, Shyne and others. The song features Ja Rule rapping over two 12-bar verses. The rest of the song is instrumental and does not feature James Hetfield, who was in rehab when the mix was recorded last August.

-- Midnight Oil will release their first U.S. album in more than four years next month. The band previewed tracks from "Capricornia," their 14th album, during a recent 6-week mini-tour of

the United States.

-- The Dexy's Midnight Runner's album that included the 1982's No.1 single "Come On Eileen" is being reissued. "Too-Rye-Ay" (on the Mercury/UME label) has been digitally remastered from the original tapes and includes deluxe booklet and new liner notes. It hits stores Feb. 5. The revamped "Too-Rye-Ay" adds five bonus tracks: "Dubious" ("Come On Eileen" b-side), "TSOP" ("Jackie Wilson Said" b-side), "Reminisce Part One" ("The Celtic Soul Brothers" remix b-side) and a pair of non-album singles, "Show Me" and "Let's Get This Straight (From The Start)." The new packaging also features a commentary by Dexy's Billy Adams.

-- Canadian rockers Great Big Sea has a new album coming out Feb. 26. "Sea of No Cares" (on the Rounder/Zoë label) follows the band's U.S. debut -- 1998's "Rant and Roar" (on Sire Records). Currently, American audiences can hear several Great Big Sea tunes in "The Shipping News," a film set in Newfoundland and starring two-time Oscar winner Kevin Spacey. The band is planning a North American tour, to begin Feb. 28.

-- Jimmy Buffett's 33rd album, "Far Side of the World," is due to hit stores March 19 (on his Mailboat label). The singer tells RollingStone.com he didn't seek perfection when he recorded the album live in Long Island, N.Y. "I tend to be one who goes for the magic," he said. "I live in the real world on the road, where you can hit flat notes and audiences are pretty forgiving. You don't have to beat a song to death." The CD was inspired by Buffett's recent trip across Africa, piloting his private plane from Morocco to Tanzania to South Africa.

NINE INCH NAILS

Nine Inch Nails did its first in-store promotion last Tuesday at the Virgin Megastore in New York's Times Square. The band was promoting the release of "nine inch nails, live and all that could have been" on CD, DVD and VHS -- which was recorded during the 1999/2000 tour in support of "The Fragile" album.

The normally reclusive rockers took part in a 15-minute interview and then signed autographs for fans.

SLAYER

Slayer is looking for a new drummer.

MTV News reports that unlike Limp Bizkit -- which is going from one music store to another, auditioning guitarists to replace Wes Borland -- Slayer is relying on videotapes and snail mail to find someone to sit behind the drum kit. The band was forced to search for a new drummer after Paul Bostaph's chronic elbow injury forced him into early retirement. Bostaph had been with Slayer since 1994's "Divine Intervention" album.

Slayer's original drummer, Dave Lombardo, has rejoined the band temporarily to finish the current tour, which wraps up Feb. 23 in Detroit.

Drummers interested in auditioning for Slayer should send a résumé and a VHS video of themselves playing along with the following songs: "Disciple," "God Send Death," "Stain of Mind," "Angel of Death," "Postmortem/Raining Blood," "South of Heaven," "War Ensemble" and "Seasons in the Abyss." Auditions will be held Feb. 1 in Peoria, Ill.; Feb. 7 in Dallas; and Feb 13 in San Francisco.

Slayer was recently nominated for a Best Metal Performance Grammy for the song "Disciple" from the album "God Hates Us All," which hit stores last September.

PEGGY LEE DIES

Singer/songwriter Peggy Lee -- whose career covered six decades, more than 650 songs and some 60 record albums -- has died. She was 81.

Family members said Lee had a heart attack on Monday and died at her home in Bel Air, Calif.

Lee was nominated for 12 Grammy Awards and won twice for "Is That All There Is" in 1969. She was probably best known for her song "Fever." Her other hits included "It's a Good Day," "What More Can a Woman Do?" and "Lover."

While Lee appeared in a handful of films, she's better know for writing the lyrics and performing the soundtrack voices for such movies as Disney's "Lady and the Tramp." Lee sang several songs and provided the voices for four characters in "Tramp," and when Disney released the hit movie on videocassette, she sued for breach of contract, claiming the studio sold the cassettes without her permission under terms of a 1952 contract. A jury awarded her several million dollars.