Juno Awards fever in Saskatchewan

SASKATOON (CP) - Ever since the Juno Awards decided to take the show on the road a few years back, musicians have applauded the idea.

Blue Rodeo singer Jim Cuddy has said holding the music gala in a different city each year is "the best thing the Junos ever did." And Daniel Victor, whose band Neverending White Lights is up for new artist of the year, can't wait for this weekend's party in Saskatoon.

"They don't have a lot going on in their city like Toronto and Vancouver and Montreal," said Victor, who's based in Windsor, Ont. "(They) really appreciate the music because it's one of the only things going on."

While Saskatoon residents may quibble with Victor's rather blunt assessment of the city's attractions, they seem ready to pull out all the stops this weekend.

As Juno festivities kicked off Thursday, a local park featured three different stages representing country, classic rock and modern rock. At another venue, an aboriginal music showcase was planned.

Local musicians will play in restaurants and furniture stores, clothing boutiques and coffee shops on the weekend.

And then of course, there are the official Juno events: the Juno Cup hockey game on Friday night in Prince Albert, Sask., a "fan fare" on Saturday afternoon with artist interviews and prizes, an awards gala on Saturday night and the main televised awards bash on Sunday night.

Among the thousands expected to descend on the city this weekend is Regina resident Adam Ailsby, who says he was lucky to score seats to Sunday's show.

Ailsby and his girlfriend, Michele Ellingsen, 31, were on vacation in Mexico when tickets went on sale in February.

"I'd just sort of resigned myself to the fact that I wasn't going," said Ailsby, 28. "I'd given up all hope."

But Ailsby said the day before he left on his trip, a friend offered to go online to try for tickets.

The tickets went quickly - 6,000 sold out in 14 minutes - but on a beach in Mexico a self-proclaimed "big Canadian music fan" got the message he had been waiting for.

"I got an e-mail when I was in Mexico that we did get tickets and I was very, very excited about that," said Ailsby. "I danced around in the surf."

Said Ellingsen: "To find out we actually had tickets and could go ... was pretty exciting when you're a Canadian music fan."

Officials at Tourism Saskatoon estimate the Junos will draw about 3,000 people to the city from outside Saskatchewan and many more within the province. Preliminary figures suggest it will also inject as much as $7 million into the local economy.

It will also showcase Saskatoon for the rest of Canada, said Todd Brandt, president and CEO of Tourism Saskatoon and a co-chair of the Saskatoon Juno host committee.

"It does create a whole new level of exposure for Saskatoon," said Brandt.

"Instant credibility comes with understanding that Saskatoon is capable of hosting much more major events in our community," he said.

Ailsby and Ellingsen, who also saw the Rolling Stones perform in Regina last fall, said they hoped the Juno festivities will be a drawing card for other acts.

"I think these two events are putting Saskatchewan on the map," said Ailsby.

"Hopefully they'll inspire a whole bunch of other acts to come and make shows in Saskatchewan too."

Other cities that have hosted the Junos include St. John's (2002), Ottawa (2003), Edmonton (2004), Winnipeg (2005) and Halifax (2006).

The show heads to Calgary next year.

Darth Vader, Chewbacca star on new US stamps

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The U.S. Postal Service turned to the characters of "Star Wars" for inspiration on

Wednesday as it unveiled 15 new first-class stamps featuring the whole gang from Chewbacca to Darth Vader.

The stamps were unveiled at Grauman's Chinese theater in Hollywood where the original "Star Wars" movie opened 30 years ago. The stamps will go on sale on May 25, after a contest to choose the most popular of the stamps.

Among the "Star Wars" characters depicted on the stamps are Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Yoda, Darth Vader, R2-D2, C-3PO, Princess Leia, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Boba Fett.

The images are from all six "Star Wars" films and David Failor, executive director of stamp services for the U.S. Postal Service, said, "Because of the movies' popularity, we believe these stamps have the popularity of reaching the blockbuster status of the Elvis stamp."

Earlier in the month to publicize the new stamps, about 400 mailboxes around the country were designed to look like R2-D2.

Junos to air earlier on CTV

TORONTO (CP) - After receiving criticism for planning to air the Juno Awards as late as 11 p.m. in some parts of Canada, CTV has decided to broadcast the show earlier.

The network announced Wednesday afternoon that Sunday's show will now air live at 7 p.m. local time in Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Originally, the Junos were set to air at 10 p.m. in Ontario and Quebec and as late as 11 p.m. in the Maritimes.

That decision was made to accommodate a two-hour episode of "The Amazing Race."

Critics had lashed out at the plan, suggesting CTV was turning its back on an important Canadian cultural event.

The show is to be hosted by superstar Nelly Furtado in Saskatoon.

"We're here to support and celebrate the music community," said Susanne Boyce, CTV's president of programming. "The artists have spoken and we've listened. This is their showcase and we're proud to be part of it."

'Office' Star to Haunt 'Ghost Town'

Ricky Gervais, the creator and star of the original British version of "The Office," will be taking his comedic talents to a supernatural romantic comedy.

The Brit and Greg Kinnear have signed on to star in the David Koepp-directed DreamWorks comedy "Ghost Town," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The story revolves around a dentist who is performing routine surgery when he suddenly dies ... but only temporarily. When he comes back, he discovers that he has the ability to see dead people, all of whom demand that he help them contact the living for various reasons.

There's no indication which roles the actors will take.

The production is looking to begin production in October.

Kinnear, 43, was nominated for an Oscar for his supporting role in "As Good As It Gets." His recent credits include "The Matador," "Fast Food Nation," "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Invincible."

Gervais, 45, has also brought the BBC/HBO series "Extras" to television. His film appearances include "For Your Consideration" and "Night at the Museum." Next up for him is a part in the upcoming fantasy film "Stardust."

Disney could unlock `Song of the South'

ORLANDO, Fla. - Walt Disney Co.'s 1946 film "Song of the South" was historic. It was Disney's first big live-action picture and produced one of the company's most famous songs — the Oscar-winning "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah." It also provided the inspiration for the Splash Mountain rides at Disney's theme parks.

But the movie remains hidden in the Disney archives — never released on video in the United States and criticized as racist for its depiction of Southern plantation blacks. The film's 60th anniversary passed last year without a whisper of official rerelease, which is unusual for Disney, but President and CEO Bob Iger recently said the company was reconsidering.

The film's reissue would surely spark debate, but it could also sell big. Nearly 115,000 people have signed an online petition urging Disney to make the movie available, and out-of-print international copies routinely sell online for $50 to $90, some even more than $100.

Iger was answering a shareholder's inquiry about the movie for the second straight year at Disney's annual meeting in New Orleans. This month the Disney chief made a rerelease sound more possible.

"The question of `Song of the South' comes up periodically, in fact it was raised at last year's annual meeting," Iger said. "And since that time, we've decided to take a look at it again because we've had numerous requests about bringing it out. Our concern was that a film that was made so many decades ago being brought out today perhaps could be either misinterpreted or that it would be somewhat challenging in terms of providing the appropriate context."

"Song of the South" was re-shown in theaters in 1956, 1972, 1980 and 1986. Both animated and live-action, it tells the story of a young white boy, Johnny, who goes to live on his grandparents' Georgia plantation when his parents split up. Johnny is charmed by Uncle Remus — a popular black servant — and his fables of Brer Rabbit, Brer Bear and Brer Fox, which are actual black folk tales. (An honorary Oscar to James Baskett for his portrayal of Uncle Remus.)

Remus' stories include "The Tar Baby," a phrase Republican presidential hopefuls John McCain (news, bio, voting record) and Mitt Romney have been criticized for using to describe difficult situations. In "Song of the South," it was a trick Brer Fox and Brer Bear used to catch the rabbit — dressing a lump of hot tar as a person to ensnare their prey. To some, it's now a derogatory term for blacks, regardless of context.

The movie doesn't reveal whether it takes place before or after the Civil War, and never refers to blacks on the plantation as slaves. It makes clear they work for the family, living down dirt roads in wood shacks while the white characters stay in a mansion. Remus and other black characters' dialogue is full of "ain't nevers," "ain't nobodys," "you tells," and "dem dayses."

"In today's environment, `Song of the South' probably doesn't have a lot of meaning, especially to the younger audiences," said James Pappas, associate professor of African-American Studies at the University of New York at Buffalo. "Older audiences probably would have more of a connection with the stereotypes, which were considered harmless at the time."

Pappas said it's not clear that the movie is intentionally racist, but it inappropriately projects Remus as a happy, laughing storyteller even though he's a plantation worker.

However, Pappas said he thinks the movie should be rereleased because of its historical significance. He said it should be prefaced, and closed, with present-day statements.

"I think it's important that these images are shown today so that especially young people can understand this historical context for some of the blatant stereotyping that's done today," Pappas said.

From a financial standpoint, Iger acknowledged last year that Disney stood to gain from rereleasing "Song." The company's movies are popular with collectors, and Disney has kept sales strong by tightly controlling when they're available.

Christian Willis, a 26-year-old IT administrator in San Juan Capistrano, Calif., started a "Song of the South" fan site in 1999 to showcase memorabilia. He soon expanded it into a clearinghouse for information on the movie that now averages more than 800 hits a day and manages the online petition.

Willis said he doesn't think the movie is racist, just from a different time.

"Stereotypes did exist on the screen," he said. "But if you look at other films of that time period, I think `Song of the South' was really quite tame in that regard. I think Disney did make an effort to show African-Americans in a more positive light."

Though Willis is hopeful, there's still no telling when — or if — the movie could come out (beyond its copyright lapsing decades from now).

In a statement to The Associated Press, Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Disney's distribution arm, said: "`Song of the South' is one of a handful of titles that has not seen a home distribution window. To this point, we have not discounted nor committed to any distribution window concerning this title."

Juno broadcast to air pre-taped

TORONTO (CP) -- When Canadian music fans tune in to CTV on Sunday to see if their favourite artist takes home a Juno Award, many will be doing so after the show has taken place.

In most parts of the country, viewers will see a pre-taped version of Canada's premier music awards gala, to be hosted this year by pop superstar Nelly Furtado in Saskatoon.

The unusual situation is all because of a two-hour episode of the hugely popular reality show "The Amazing Race."

CTV wants to simulcast CBS's broadcast of "The Amazing Race," which airs at different times across the country.

As a result, the Junos will be bumped to 10 p.m. in Ontario and Quebec and as late as 11 p.m. in the Maritimes on the main network.

However, the show will be broadcast live in Atlantic Canada on the CTV-owned channel ASN, airing at 10 p.m. in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island and 10:30 p.m. in Newfoundland.

Out west, the show will be broadcast much earlier, hitting airwaves live at 7 p.m. in Alberta and taped at 9 p.m. in British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

Confused?

CTV admits that the Juno schedule is a head-scratcher, but says that pitting the music awards show against "The Amazing Race" on CBS was not an option.

"Our priority has always been to showcase the Junos to the biggest possible audience and we're confident that this Sunday's game plan ensures that this will happen once again," said CTV spokesman Mike Cosentino.

Two years ago it was the campy soap opera "Desperate Housewives" that caused scheduling headaches for CTV.

It ended up bumping the Junos show by a half hour in all time zones.

CTV spokesman Scott Henderson said the network's varied schedule has meant a constantly changing airtime for the Junos from year to year.

"We try to do the best we can to protect the show and we don't want to compete against ourselves," Henderson said.

Music fans with satellite television can sneak a peak at the awards show a bit earlier through broadcast "time shifting." For instance, viewers in Ontario and Quebec can catch the show at 9 p.m. instead of 10 p.m. by tuning into the Maritime's ASN feed or Alberta's CTV feed, which both air one hour earlier than the local feed.

This year's Junos will feature performances by rockers Three Days Grace, punk band Alexisonfire, hip-hop sensation k-os and veterans the Tragically Hip.

Furtado, rock band Billy Talent and k-os lead the nominees with five nods each.

An encore broadcast will air on CTV on Easter Sunday, April 8, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. across the country.

Comedian Eddie Griffin wrecks $1.5M car

IRWINDALE, Calif. - Eddie Griffin crashed a rare Ferrari Enzo worth $1.5 million into a concrete barrier while practicing at a racetrack, destroying the car but escaping uninjured.

The 38-year-old actor-comedian was practicing Monday for a charity race to promote his upcoming film, "Redline," when he drove too fast around a curve at the Irwindale Speedway. Video footage shows the red sports car screeching before it ricocheted off the barrier with heavy damage to its front.

"Undercover Brother's good at karate and all the rest of that, but the Brother can't drive," said Griffin, referring to his 2002 movie, after the accident.

The film's publicist, Wendy Zocks, said Griffin was "doing OK."

"He walked away completely unscratched, but probably a little shaken," Zocks said.

The Enzo is owned by "Redline" executive producer Daniel Sadek, whose exotic car collection is featured in the movie.

Sadek said the Enzo was damaged beyond repair.

"I'm glad Eddie came out of the crash OK, but my dream car got destroyed," Sadek said. "I went to my trailer for about 15 minutes and I thought,`There's people dying every day. A lot of worse things are happening in the world.'"

Only 400 Ferrari Enzos were produced, all between 2002 and 2004.

Griffin's film credits also include "Norbit," "Undercover Brother," "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo" and its sequel, and "Date Movie."

New Releases, March 27: Tim McGraw, Good Charlotte, Stevie Nicks

Tim McGraw "Let It Go"

The country-music superstar is set to unveil his first new studio collection since 2004's "Live Like You Were Dying." The first single from the new album, which directly follows 2006's "Reflected: Greatest Hits V. 2," is "Last Dollar (Fly Away)."

McGraw stands to rack up plenty of dollars during the next run of the Soul2Soul tour, which also features his wife, fellow singer Faith Hill. The duo's 2006 outing was the highest-grossing country tour in history.

This edition, dubbed Soul2Soul Tour 2007, launches in early June and is currently scheduled to hit arenas and amphitheaters in 34 cities throughout the US and Canada.

* * *
Good Charlotte "Good Morning Revival"

The pop-punkers unveil their fourth studio set, which follows 2004's platinum-selling "Chronicles of Life and Death." The new album was produced by Don Gilmore, who was at the controls for the band's self-titled debut in 2000.

"Good Morning Revival" features the leadoff single "The River," the music video for which was directed by Marc Webb, who previously worked with the group on the video for "Festival Song."

The band is expected to embark on a world tour to support the album. Details should be announced soon.

* * *
Stevie Nicks "Crystal Visions: The Very Best of Stevie Nicks"

The influential rock vocalist is ready to drop a career-spanning greatest-hits package that will include both solo material and tracks from her time with Fleetwood Mac.

"Crystal Visions: The Very Best of Stevie Nicks" will feature original recordings as well as concert takes and dance remixes. A DVD component contains 13 Nicks videos (with voice-over commentary by the artist) and an audio interview.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer will support the package during a national tour with Chris Isaak. Dates for the outing are expected to be announced shortly.

* * *
Kaiser Chiefs "Yours Truly Angry Mob"

British New Wave-revivalists Kaiser Chiefs deliver the follow-up to their 2005 debut, "Employment." The album's first single, "Ruby," was released to radio in early January.

The Chiefs, who won three Brit Awards last year, will support "Yours Truly Angry Mob" with a North American tour that kicks off April 6 in Philadelphia. The trek will include an April 29 set at the Coachella Festival in Indio, CA.

* * *
Jennifer Lopez "Como Ama una Mujer"

The multimedia queen releases her first-ever Spanish-language album. The first single from the set is "Que Hiciste."

Lopez, of course, has many irons in the fire. Besides being a successful recording artist, she continues to be an in-demand actress in Hollywood. She is married to Latin-music sensation Marc Anthony.

* * *
More new releases:
John Butler Trio, "Grand National" (Atlantic)
Clutch, "From Beale Street to Oblivion" (DRT)
Mark Ford, "Weary and Wired" (Blues Bureau)
Macy Gray, "Big" (will.i.am/Geffen)
Jack Ingram, "This is It" (Big Machine)
Lil' Flip, "Lil' Flip" (Asylum/Warner)
Machine Head, "The Blackening" (Roadrunner)
Mika, "Life in Cartoon Motion" (Casablanca)
Grant-Lee Phillips, "Strangelet" (Zoe/Rounder)
Prodigy (of Mobb Deep) "Return of the Mac" (Koch)
Tha Dogg Pound, "Dogg Chit" (Doggystyle/Koch)
Third Day, "Chronology 1" (Essential)
Various Artists, "British Beat: Best of the 60s" (Shout)
Various Artists, "Disneymania 5" (Disney)
Various Artists, "Now 24" (Capitol)
Mary Weiss, "Dangerous Game" (Norton)
Warren Zevon, "Envoy" (Rhino)
Warren Zevon, "Excitable Boy" (Rhino)
Warren Zevon, "Stand in the Fire" (Rhino)
Young Buck, "Buck the World" (G-Unit/Interscope)

Soundtracks and scores:
"Meet the Robinsons" (Disney)

Bagpipes, Trumpets Enliven New White Stripes CD

Bagpipes and trumpet work from a previously unknown Latin musician are among the new sounds to be heard on the White Stripes' "Icky Thump," due in mid-June via Third Man/Warner Bros. The 13-track set was produced by frontman Jack White and follows 2005's "Get Behind Me Satan," which debuted at No. 3 on The Billboard 200.

"Icky Thump" runs the gamut from arena rock to blues to a spoken-word prayer to Saint Andrew. "Conquest" is set to a hot tango rhythm, featuring a trumpeter that White discovered playing a Mexican restaurant in Nashville. The song describes a reversal of roles in a relationship, where "the hunted became the huntress / the hunter became the prey / she with all her female guile / led him helpless down the aisle."

Bagpipes and a rollicking Scottish dance structure are applied to "Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn," capped by the refrain of "lai-de-lai-de-li-oh." Drummer Meg White's voice can be heard a number of songs, including her banter with Jack on the playful "Rag and Bone" and on the aforementioned spoken-word track "St. Andrew (This Battle Is in the Air)."

There is no piano on "Icky Thump" despite the instrument's significant presence on "Get Behind Me Satan," though several tracks are punctuated with synths and Wurlitzer. Cuts like "300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues" and "Catch Hell Blues," as suggested by their titles, are a return to the garage-blues that underscored the band's earlier records.

As previously reported, the album was recorded at Nashville's Blackbird Studio over the span of three weeks. According to the group's Web site, an upcoming tour "will include all 10 provinces and 3 territories of Canada, as well as the remaining 16 states of the United States the band have yet to play. A few major markets that have been journeyed to in the past will also be included."

Here is the "Icky Thump" track list:

"Icky Thump"
"You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do As You're Told)"
"300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues"
"Conquest"
"Bone Broke"
"Prickly Thorn, But Sweetly Worn"
"St. Andrew (This Battle Is in the Air)"
"Little Cream Soda"
"Rag and Bone"
"I'm Slowly Turning Into You"
"A Martyr For My Love For You"
"Catch Hell Blues"
"Effect and Cause"

Timbaland gets ready to 'Shock'

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Timbaland is used to causing double takes with his music. Now he's hoping to make a few jaws drop, as well.

The producer, who in the past year helped put Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado atop the pop heap with platinum albums and torrid singles, strives for a new level of creativity April 3 with his genre-busting album Timbaland Presents Shock Value. After more than a decade of flooding the airwaves with hip-hop and R&B hits, the adventurous beatmaker blends rap, rock, R&B, punk and world music in his constant quest to stay ahead of the curve.

For first single Give It to Me, he calls in favors from Timberlake and Furtado, and he also collaborates with 50 Cent, Björk, The Hives, Elton John, Fall Out Boy, She Wants Revenge, Dr. Dre and Sri Lankan rapper MIA.

Timbaland does some rapping himself, but his boundary-busting ambitions will be realized in the soundscapes he masterminds.

"This is just me showing my versatility," says Timbaland (Tim Mosley), 36, aboard his tour bus in back of the University of Virginia's John Paul Jones Arena.

"I like being mainstream. There is nothing wrong with hip-hop, and I do a lot of it on my album. But I want to make global music that reaches everybody.

"It's shocking when you hear all the different types of music. It's pretty intense. When people hear it I want them to go, 'Hmmm. I would have never thought of that.' "

Shock Value is his first album since 2003's Under Construction: Part II, the third album he did with longtime friend and rapper Magoo. While his previous albums have usually been well received critically, they've never been big commercially. His current hot streak and tour with Timberlake, however, have changed things.

"It's different because my stardom level has gone up," says Timbaland, who always has been low-key compared with other celebrated producers. "The way people look at me is totally different, and I have a whole new fan base."

Industry observers think he could be right. Timbaland, who has at times said he was bored with hip-hop, could skirt the sales doldrums besetting the genre by expanding his horizons.

"The climate for music is so bad right now, it will depend on whether pop radio picks up on it and whether he is seen as a pop star," says Chuck "Jigsaw" Creekmur, co-owner of Allhiphop.com. "Historically, his albums haven't fared well, but he's put himself in a different light with the groundwork he's laid with the work he's done recently. It will be interesting to see if he gets the same attention as Justin or Nelly Furtado."

Vibe associate music editor Sean Fennessey says Timbaland always has been innovative as a hip-hop and R&B producer, but he has probably gone as far as he can creatively go. Working with other kinds of artists is a natural step for Timbaland, who appreciates a broad variety of sounds.

"I think he is genuinely a fan of rock music," he says. "He is an Elton fan, he is a Fall Out Boy fan, and that is why he wants to work with these people. I don't think he thinks of things in genres, either. He just thinks this is hot or not hot.

"What he does is universal music. It's very smart music, and at the same time, it's very danceable."

Furtado says Timbaland knows how to bring out the best in an artist. She says his enthusiasm for the music is infectious.

"When I work with Timbaland in the studio, I feel elevated and electric," she says. "He has an innate musical knowledge and sense of groove that cannot be quantified. Tim has been blessed by God with an incredible sense of rhythm. His production is full of primal energy. This energy really empowers me in the studio."

Timbaland has been on the road on Timberlake's Future Sex/LoveShow World Tour since January, and he has been previewing bits of Shock Value during a 20-minute DJ set in the middle of the pop star's two-hour concert. It's his first real tour, and he says he loves creating beats on stage.

He was not surprised when Timberlake asked him to join the tour.

"We're the best of friends, and we look at it as a team package," says Timbaland, who adds the singer also helped him during the album's production by providing a different perspective on the music.

The 38-stop tour hasn't kept him from his busy production schedule. He has a fully equipped recording studio on the bus — sort of a recording home away from home from his 5,000-square-foot facility in Virginia Beach. (He also has a residence in Miami.)

Chris Brown, 50 Cent and Rihanna are among the stars he has connected with while traveling. He says that whenever he has to, "we just pull over and go to work."

The Norfolk, Va.-born artist/producer has been putting in work since the early '90s, working as DJ Tiny Tim and collaborating with Missy Elliott and rapper Melvin Barcliff (Magoo). They got their first break when Elliott's girl group, Sista, was signed by Jodeci member/producer DeVante Swing to his Swing Mob label. That's where he was nicknamed Timberland, after the popular boots.

He was also a part of a production group, S.B.I. (Surrounded by Idiots), which included another star producer in the making, the Neptunes' Pharrell Williams.

Timbaland worked on several projects at Swing Mob, but by 1995, most of the acts, including Elliott and R&B singer Ginuwine, had moved on.

A year later, Timbaland produced the latter artist's debut album, Ginuwine … The Bachelor, which included the hit Pony. The song's complex drum patterns, stuttering bass lines and quirky sound effects became a Timbaland trademark and spawned numerous imitators.

He teamed with Elliott to write and produce Aaliyah's double platinum One in a Million. That success raised all of their profiles, and he had hits with the likes of Destiny's Child, Nas, Jay-Z, Janet Jackson and SWV. The bulk of his work, however, was concentrated on albums for his closest associates, including his own solo album and one with Magoo.

By 2001, he was still churning out hits. He introduced his new Beat Club imprint with rapper Bubba Sparxxx's Dark Days, Bright Nights and worked with such new acts as Tweet, Ms. Jade and Petey Pablo. Tragedy struck late that year when Aaliyah died in a plane crash. He keeps a portrait of her on his tour bus.

In 2002, he collaborated with star producer Scott Storch on several tracks on Timberlake's solo debut album, Justified. He has maintained a steady presence on the radio since then with hits for Xzibit, Brandy, Jennifer Lopez, Elliott, Tweet, LL Cool J, Pussycat Dolls and The Game.

During this time, his infusion of Asian and Middle Eastern rhythms into productions once again had other urban beatmakers scrambling to catch up.

"I listen to some of everything, and the rhythms come from me studying the world and seeing what's really out there besides us," Timbaland says. "I'm not stuck on one thing. That's just me."

He formed the Mosley Music Group in 2005 after his Beat Club deal folded. Furtado was his first signee and her smash Loose its initial album. Shock Value is next, and he plans to put out albums by alternative rock band OneRepublic and singer/songwriter Keri Hilston (who has written tunes for Mary J. Blige, Chingy, Chris Brown, Omarion, Usher, Letoya Luckett and others) later this year.

Other acts signed to the label include his brother Sebastian (Garland Mosley) and production partner Nate "Danja" Hills.

Currently, he's embroiled in a feud with Storch. Timberlake's Grammy-winning hit Cry Me a River, from Justified, was one of their joint efforts. Storch is credited with playing piano on the track but not as a co-producer, as Storch says he should have been. Timbaland disses Storch without mentioning his name on Give It to Me; Storch fired back at him on a song called Built Like That.

"Scott is not really in my league," Timbaland says. "I don't dislike him. I like him, but as a producer he can't see me. He don't have a fan base like I've got."

Storch has produced hits for Fat Joe, 50 Cent, Beyoncé and many others.

Timbaland says he has several high-profile collaborations in the works, but he's sworn to silence about them. Reports have him working with Duran Duran, Nicole Scherzinger and possibly Madonna. He has broached the idea of recording with troubled pop princess Britney Spears, although nothing is in the works.

"All I've said is that I was tired of people talking about her," he says. "I like Britney as a person. People should leave her alone and let her get her life in order and not write about her every five minutes. That doesn't show that you care about her. It just shows that you build a person up so that you can tear them down."

Nothing seems likely to tear him down soon. He already has done songs this year for the likes of Omarion, Bobby Valentino, Redman and Fabolous, thus satisfying his core fans' need for "dope beats to step to" while constantly finding new ones.

He says isn't sure why his music lately has had such broad appeal. He just shrugs his shoulders and says, "I don't know what I've tapped into. I'm just enjoying life and having fun."

New NHL deal keeps Hockey Night in Canada on CBC

The CBC and NHL announced a new television deal Monday that will keep Hockey Night in Canada on the air until 2014.

The six-year broadcast deal, which includes national English-language broadcast and multimedia rights to NHL games in Canada, will begin when the current agreement between the CBC and the league expires after the 2007-08 season.

"Can you imagine seven more years of me?" Don Cherry told CBC Sports Online Monday after the CBC announced a new six-year broadcast deal with the NHL.

"I'm very happy. [Hockey Night in Canada ] should be on the CBC: it's been on the CBC [since the 1950s] and this is where it belongs."

The CBC and NHL made the official annoucement during a news conference at the network's Toronto broadcast centre with the Stanley Cup trophy present.

"Some parts of my job never grow old — one of the fun parts in having the honour of presenting this magnificent trophy each year to the captain of the team that wins the Stanley Cup," NHL comissioner Gary Bettman told reporters.

"Another [fun part] is the being able to play a role in carrying on the tradition that is vitally important to Canadians, namely to bring Hockey Night in Canada to over one million hockey fans in Canada each Saturday night."

The CBC will maintain exclusive Canadian coverage of NHL games on Saturday nights, including traditional doubleheaders and more regional telecasts.

The CBC also retains exclusive Canadian coverage of the Stanley Cup Final, the NHL All-Star Game and the annual NHL Awards, and continued coverage of Canadian teams in the playoffs, ensuring national coverage of all Canadian clubs involved in the post-season.

Also, a multimedia package including live and on-demand video streaming of all CBC's hockey broadcasts will be available online at CBC.ca in the near future. That means fans in Canada will be able to watch any Hockey Night in Canada broadcast on CBC.ca, regardless of what game is being aired in their area of the country.

"This is the first day of a very exciting future for us and the NHL," said Richard Stursberg, the executive vice-president of CBC Television.

CBC's Hockey Night in Canada is currently in its 54th season on television.

Monday's announcement was a big win for the CBC because the public broadcaster suffered some setbacks in negotiations for key television properties the past few years.

In December 2006, the Canadian Football League announced a new five-year television contract with TSN, a deal that leaves the CBC watching from the sidelines once its current agreement with the league expires after the 2008 season.

CBC also lost the rights to Canadian Curling Association properties, such as the Brier and Tournament of Hearts, to CTV-TSN in 2006.

In 2005, a Bell Globemedia-Rogers Communications consortium won the rights to the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver and the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. CBC had held Olympic broadcast rights since 1996.

CBC Sports responded to those losses by signing an eight-year agreement with FIFA that includes the rights to the next two World Cups, a four-year deal for alpine skiing and an eight-year contract for the World Curling Tour's Grand Slam events.

Rush announces tour dates

Canadian rock legends Rush have announced dates for their upcoming tour, and it includes six Canadian stops.

The 62-date stint will begin on June 13 in Atlanta, and will make its way to Calgary on July 18, London on September 12, Quebec City on September 14, Montreal on September 15, Toronto on September 19, and Ottawa on September 21.

The tour will wrap up in Helsinki, Finland on October 29.

Tickets for the Canadian portion of the trek will go on sale on April 20 and April 21. There will also be a presale through Rush's official site.

The tour is in support of their new studio album "Snakes & Arrows," which hits stores on May 1.

Here's the list of tour dates:

13-June Atlanta, GA HiFi Buys Amphitheatre

15-June West Palm Beach, FL Sound Advice Amphitheatre

16-June Tampa, FL Ford Amphitheatre

18-June Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless

20-June Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Amphitheatre

22-June Virginia Beach, VA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

23-June Bristow, VA Nissan Pavilion

25-June Pittsburgh, PA Post-Gazette Pavilion

27-June Boston, MA Tweeter Center

29-June Scranton, PA Toyota Pavilion

30-June Saratoga Springs, NY SPAC

2-July Wantagh, NY Nikon at Jones Beach Theater

4-July Buffalo, NY Darien LakeApril 14

6-July Camden, NJ Tweeter Center

8-July Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center

9-July Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Arena

18-July Calgary, AB Pengrowth Saddledome

20-July Seattle, WA White River Amphitheatre

21-July Portland, OR The Amphitheatre at Clark County

23-July Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl

25-July Irvine, CA Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

27-July Phoenix, AZ Cricket Pavilion

28-July Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena

30-July San Diego, CA Coors Amphitheatre

1-Aug. San Francisco, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre

3-Aug. Concord, CA Sleep Train Pavilion

4-Aug. Sacramento, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre

6-Aug. Salt Lake City, UT USANA Amphitheatre

8-Aug. Denver, CO Red Rocks Amphitheatre

11-Aug. Dallas, TX Smirnoff Music Centre

12-Aug. San Antonio, TX Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

14-Aug. Houston, TX Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

23-Aug. Kansas City, MO Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

24-Aug. St. Louis, MO Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

26-Aug. Indianapolis, INVerizon Wireless Music Center

28-Aug. Detroit, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre

30-Aug. Cleveland, OH Blossom Music Centre

1-Sept. Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center

2-Sept. Columbus, OH Germain Amphitheater

6-Sept. Milwaukee, WI Marcus AmphitheaterSaturday,

8-Sept. Chicago, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre

9-Sept. St. Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center

12-Sept. London, ON John Labatt Centre

14-Sept. Quebec City, PQ Colisee de Quebec

15-Sept. Montreal, PQ Bell Centre

19-Sept. Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre

21-Sept. Ottawa, ON ScotiaBank Place

3-Oct. Glasgow, Scotland SECC

5-Oct. Newcastle, England Metro Radio Arena

6-Oct. Sheffield, England Hallam FM Arena

9-Oct. London, England Wembley Arena

10-Oct. London, England Wembley Arena

11-Oct. Birmingham, England NEC Arena

14-Oct. Manchester, England MEN Arena

16-Oct. Rotterdam, Netherlands Ahoy

17-Oct. Rotterdam, Netherlands Ahoy

19-Oct. Oberhausen, Germany Arena

21-Oct. Mannheim, Germany SAP Arena

23-Oct. Milan, Italy Forum Arena

26-Oct. Oslo, Norway Spektrum Monday,

27-Oct. Stockholm, Sweden Globe Arena

29-Oct. Helsinki, Finland Hartwell Arena

Turtles top box office with $25 million

LOS ANGELES - The ninja turtles are back, and they're winning. The Warner Bros. adventure "TMNT," a computer-animated update of the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" comics, cartoons and 1990s live-action movies, debuted as the top weekend flick with $25.45 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Warner also had the second-place movie with "300," which had been No. 1 the previous two weekends. The battle epic set in ancient Greece took in $20.5 million, lifting its total to $162.4 million.

Paramount's "Shooter," starring Mark Wahlberg as an ex-Marine sniper framed for a presidential assassination, led the runners-up among a rush of new movies, opening at No. 3 with $14.5 million.

New Line's family fantasy "The Last Mimzy" premiered in fifth place with $10.2 million. The movie centers on a brother and sister who discover a mysterious box of toys and are endowed with superhuman powers to help them preserve humanity's future.

Fox Atomic's horror sequel "The Hills Have Eyes 2," about National Guard troops who stumble on a clan of mutant cannibals, opened at No. 7 with $10 million.

Adam Sandler had a soft debut for his latest dramatic detour, the post-Sept. 11 drama "Reign Over Me," which came in at No. 8 with $8 million. The Sony release features Sandler as a lost soul whose family died in the Sept. 11 attacks, with Don Cheadle co-starring as an old friend helping him to reconnect with the world.

Lionsgate's sports tale "Pride," starring Terrence Howard and Bernie Mac in the story of a coach who starts a swim team for impoverished black youths in the 1970s, opened with $4 million to come in at No. 9.

Hollywood continued a recent business upswing, with the top 12 movies taking in $125.7 million. That's up 28 percent from the same weekend last year, when "Inside Man" debuted at No. 1 with $29 million.

The upward trend likely will end next weekend. New movies that include Will Ferrell's comedy "Blades of Glory" and the animated feature "Meet the Robinsons" will have a hard time matching up to "Ice Age: The Meltdown," which opened with $68 million over the first weekend in April last year.

"We're on a roll and on an up streak right now, but it's going to be a real tough comparison for this weekend," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers.

"TMNT" follows the escapades of four hip turtles who mutate into man-sized reptiles and use their martial-arts mastery to fight bad guys.

"It's sequel time, dudes," said Harvey Weinstein, co-chairman of the Weinstein Co., which is distributing "TMNT" overseas. "We knew from the inception of this project that that the `TMNT' characters would continue to resonate with audiences across the world."

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "TMNT," $25.45 million.
2. "300," $20.5 million.
3. "Shooter," $14.5 million.
4. "Wild Hogs," $14.4 million.
5. "The Last Mimzy," $10.2 million.
6. "Premonition," $10.1 million.
7. "The Hills Have Eyes 2," $10 million.
8. "Reign Over Me," $8 million.
9. "Pride," $4 million.
10. "Dead Silence," $3.5 million.

The Couch Potato Report - March 24th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report shines the spotlight on a Genie nominee, an Oscar nominee and the fifth sequel to the Best Picture of 1976.

First up this week is a film you might not have heard of, but a few weeks ago it stood as one of the best Canadian films of last year at The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television's Genie Awards.

The film is called CHEECH.

It is a film from Quebec about six people living through the worst day of their lives.

The less than respectable people in the film - the lead character runs an escort service - keep making bad decisions as their day goes on, and each one seems to make things worse.

One of the female escorts would like to join a new agency, so as a sign of good faith, she has told them the best way to rob her current employer.

Meanwhile, her current boss is trying to increase his business, and he has an assistant who is in love with one of the women who works with them.

Nothing seems to go right for these people...nothing...and that is a credit to CHEECH as just when you think you might know what is going to happen, it takes a twist or turn and you are back at square one, guessing what is going to happen again.

CHEECH is not an unfamiliar film, in fact most of it will seem very familiar, especially if you saw last year's Academy Award winning film CRASH...but what is unique about it, is that fact that it takes place in Quebec, and the sights and sounds are all pure Canadian!

Something else that is unique is the fact that the main character stops whatever he is doing several times during the film for a daily affirmation, in hopes of getting out of his depression.

And when he stops, the people around him stop, and the action in the film stops.

CHEECH is not a perfect film, and it's subject matter, language and violence prevent me from recommending it to everyone, but if you are interested in seeing how the lives of six less than perfect people collide, then perhaps you should look for it.

It isn't superb, or all that unfamiliar, but CHEECH does have it's unique moments.

Up next this week is the Academy Award nominated film BLOOD DIAMOND.

Leonardo DiCaprio was nominated in the Best Actor category and Djimon Hounsou from the movies GLADIATOR and IN AMERICA was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for their superb work in this thought provoking film about the diamond trade in Africa.

In BLOOD DIAMOND DiCaprio plays an ex Mercenary and Hounsou a fisherman.

Both men are African, but their histories as different as any can be, until their fates become joined in a common quest to recover a rare pink diamond that can transform their lives.

Jennifer Connelly from A BEAUTIFUL MIND also stars in the film as a journalist who is looking to tell the true story of Africa's diamond trade.

BLOOD DIAMOND features great acting and an engaging story and group of actors, and it also depicts the savagry and barbarism that people in Africa will go through to get their hands on diamonds.

At times it is a tough film to sit through, but at all times it is honest.

If you are thinking of buying a diamond for someone you love, I sugest that you see this film first AND you should also watch the documentary on the DVD called BLOOD ON THE STONE.

In will open your eyes, I guarantee it!

Our final film this week is the very satisfying ROCKY BALBOA.

At the Academy Awards in 1976 the original ROCKY, about an underdog boxer from Philadelphia who was given a chance to succeed, was named best picture.

While it's sequels 2 through 4 didn't win Oscars, they did win the hearts of movie goers as The Italian Stallion became a worldwide sensation...on screen and off.

After ROCKY 5 came out and flopped in 1990 it looked like we would never get another one...but now ROCKY BALBOA is available and in this sixth and reportedly final chapter Rocky comes out of retirement to step into the ring for the last time.

I am am fan of the ROCKY films. I grew up with them, I watch them today, and I love them. But when I heard that Stallone was making another one I was very, very skeptical.

But the film is very satisfying, both to me as a fan o fthe series and characters, to me as a fan of films, and to me, as someone who is getting older, and isn't always all that happy about that fact.

ROCKY BALBOA is a very entertaining film, even if you have never seen any of the others.

ROCKY BALBOA, and all of the ROCKY films for that matter, are now available on DVD. So is the entertaining and informative BLOOD DIAMOND and the not that unfamiliar, but unique in it's own right film CHEECH.

Coming up in two weeks on the next Couch Potato Report

We'll look back at the life and career of the late great film director Robert Altman with his eight film box set THE ROBERT ALTMAN BOX; a naive barber is the main character in the new-to-DVD classic Canadian film HIGHWAY 61; the great Ashley Judd is a woman searching for love in COME EARLY MORNING; and the animated film HAPPY FEET tap dances it's way onto DVD.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in fourteen days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next time on The Couch!

Gibson, professor trade barbs over film

LOS ANGELES - Mel Gibson exchanged angry words with a university professor who challenged the accuracy of his film "Apocalypto" at an on-campus screening. Gibson was answering questions from the crowd at California State University, Northridge, Thursday night when Alicia Estrada, an assistant professor of Central American studies, accused the actor-director of misrepresenting the Mayan culture in the movie. Gibson directed an expletive at the woman, who was removed from the crowd.

"In no way was my question aggressive in the way that he responded to it," Estrada said. "These are questions that my peers, my colleagues, ask me every time I make a presentation. These are questions I pose to my students in the classroom."

Gibson's publicist, Alan Nierob, characterized the professor as "a heckler."

"The woman ... was rude and disruptive inasmuch as the event organizers had to escort her out," Nierob said.

Lauren Robeson, editor-in-chief of the campus newspaper, the Daily Sundial, said Gibson denounced Estrada as a troublemaker.

"It was a brief disruption to an otherwise interesting, stimulating event from our students' perspectives," said university spokesman John Chandler. "The students were very appreciative of Mr. Gibson being there. He spent a lot of time answering questioernational headlines. The R-rated epic about the decline of Mayan civilization shows Mayan rulers slitting throats and beheading and ripping the beating hearts from the chests of their enemies.

Human sacrifice among the Mayans has been well-documented in recent years and is accepted as fact by most anthropologists, knocking down a previous theory that the culture did not take part in such bloody rituals.

However, there are some scholars and Indian activists who still believe the human sacrifice accounts are false or overblown, and an attempt by racist scientists to paint the culture as violent.

"This isn't the Mayan culture," Juan Tiney, leader of the National Indian and Farmer Committee, Guatemala's biggest Mayan organization, told the AP. "Although it might be part of it, there was also culture, economics, astronomical wealth and language. ... It discredits a people to present them in this manner."

Gibson "did his homework and consulted with world authorities on this matter," Nierob said.

"Apocalypto" has grossed more than $100 million worldwide, and it earned three Academy Award nominations.

"Titanic" stars DiCaprio, Winslet reuniting

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, who played ill-fated lovers in the 1997 smash hit "Titanic," are reuniting for a drama about postwar disillusionment, the DreamWorks movie studio said on Friday.

"Revolutionary Road" will be directed by Winslet's husband, British filmmaker Sam Mendes, who won an Oscar for directing 1999's dysfunctional family drama "American Beauty."

The DreamWorks project, based on the 1961 novel by Richard Yates, revolves around a suburban couple caught between their hopes for a life of art, culture and sophistication and the everyday drudgery of boring jobs and domesticity.

"Revolutionary Road" is considered a master work of modern American literature, and was named one of the top 100 novels of all time by Time magazine.

In "Titanic," DiCaprio's working-class character fell in love with a wealthy socialite played by Winslet aboard the doomed ocean liner that sank in the icy North Atlantic in 1912.

It became the highest-grossing movie of all time, raking in more than $1.8 billion in global ticket sales, and made DiCaprio and Winslet household names.

Both DiCaprio and Winslet were nominated for Oscars this year, for thriller "Blood Diamond" and drama "Little Children," respectively. DiCaprio has earned three Oscar nominations and Winslet five.

Discord in Boston after Delp suicide

CONCORD, N.H. - The band Boston spoke to people's souls during the 1970s with smash hits like "More Than a Feeling" and "Peace of Mind." But two weeks after lead singer Brad Delp's suicide at his New Hampshire home, bad feelings abound.

Current members of the band, including the chief songwriter and founder, Tom Scholz, were not informed about or invited to Delp's funeral, which was attended by early band members who opposed Scholz in a 1980s legal battle.

Last week, Delp's ex-wife Micki was quoted on a radio station saying Delp was distressed about the conflicts in his professional life and became despondent after a longtime friend, Fran Cosmo, was cut from Boston's summer concert lineup. The story spread online, where fans trying to figure out the reason for Delp's suicide took up the cudgels.

Scholz, who called Delp his "closest friend and collaborator in music for over 35 years," said he was crushed by Delp's suicide and his exclusion from the funeral. Now he feels he is being unfairly blamed for Delp's death.

"It went from devastating on the initial phone call to an absolute nightmare," Scholz told The Associated Press on Friday in a tearful telephone interview, his first since Delp's death on March 9. (An interview conducted by e-mail was published earlier in Rolling Stone.)

"We had been told it would only be his immediate family (at the funeral), and of course it wasn't," he said.

A lawyer for Scholz sent a letter to Micki Delp on Friday demanding a retraction. She did not immediately respond Friday to an e-mail message from The Associated Press via the publicist who has handled statements for the family.

Boston has canceled its summer engagements, and Scholz said he still hopes the rift can be mended and the band can be part of a public memorial service that Delp's children and fiancee, Pamela Sullivan, said last week was in the works.

Tensions between Scholz and some of the early band members date from the early 1980s, when CBS Inc. sued the band over delays in recording new albums. The company's Epic Records label recorded the band's first two releases: "Boston," in 1976, and "Don't Look Back," in 1978.

Scholz countersued for the rights to the band's name and music. Three members of the original band — Barry Goudreau, Sid Hashian and Fran Sheehan — testified for the record company, which lost. Goudreau is Micki Delp's brother-in-law, and she reportedly remains close to the ousted band members.

Delp, the only band member besides Scholz whose name was on the CBS recording contract, remained friends with everyone, touring and recording with Scholz and the others over the decades. He also started a Beatles tribute band, Beatle Juice.

Scholz wrote, engineered, and laid down nearly all the instrumental tracks on the first album, but he said Delp helped him refine the songs and brought his music to life.

"It went from a guitar lick that didn't mean a thing to a real song as soon as he opened his mouth. That was always the case," Scholz said. "We had a very, very close working relationship. I swear it was like we were hooked up by a cable. We didn't even have to talk most of the time."

Scholz and Delp were both vegetarians and pacifists, both dedicated their money and talents to causes they believed in, and both proposed to their longtime girlfriends on Christmas Day 2006 by putting rings in their stockings — only learning about the coincidence in a conversation afterward.

The band's first album was wildly successful, and remains one of the best-selling debut albums of all time, according to Billboard, selling more than 16 million copies. Boston's early music also remains a staple on classic rock stations, especially in New England.

96.5 FM ("The Mill") in Manchester plans a two-hour tribute to Boston on Sunday featuring excerpts from the station's interviews with Delp over the years. Program Director J.C. Haze said he remembers hearing the first album.

"Tom and Brad, they made such a unique sound it just took the world by storm," Haze said. "Nothing ever sounded like it, and nothing ever did since."

'Galactica's' Fourth Season Battles Longer

Next season, fans can expect more Cylon action.

The Sci Fi Channel has increased its initial 13-episode order of the fourth season of "Battlestar Galactica" to 22 episodes.

The Peabody Award-winning series will also include a special two-hour extended event that will air during the late fall or early winter 2007 and will be released on DVD later.

The redefined space opera is currently approaching its third season finale Sunday, March 25 in which Baltar is on trial and the identity of some of the humanoid Cylons may be revealed.

The fourth season will begin production in May, shooting for an early 2008 premiere.

Music publishers sue XM over copyrighted songs use

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The National Music Publishers' Association (NMPA) filed a lawsuit against XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc on Thursday for providing radios that allegedly let users reproduce and distribute copyrighted music without paying appropriate royalties.

The publishers said the suit alleges that XM engages in massive copyright infringement with devices that provide its service known as "XM + MP3," which lets listeners store songs they hear on XM's service and arrange them into playlists.

In a statement, the publishers' group said the suit, filed in New York federal court following months of failed negotiations, includes such well-known songs as "Let it Be," "My Heart Will Go On" and "Me and Bobby McGee."

The complaint seeks a maximum of $150,000 in statutory damages for each work infringed by XM, and lists over 175 songs as a "small fraction" of those being illegally distributed through the "XM + MP3" service.

In a statement, XM said the lawsuit was a negotiating tactic to gain an advantage in ongoing business discussions.

An XM spokesman said it pays royalties to writers and composers who are also compensated by its device manufacturers and that it was confident it would prevail and the lawsuit was without merit.

Last year, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) filed a similar copyright infringement lawsuit against XM on behalf of its record label members.

In January, XM was dealt a setback in that copyright infringement case when its motion to dismiss that lawsuit was denied by a federal court.

The case, originally filed last May in New York federal court, alleged that XM's portable "Inno" device -- which can store music -- infringes on copyrights and transforms a passive radio experience into the equivalent of a digital download service such as Apple Inc.'s iTunes.

XM argued that the 1992 Home Recording Audio Act protected it from being sued, saying that the law shields equipment makers and consumers who make digital music recordings for private use.

Cruise drafted for Singer thriller

When Bryan Singer and Christopher McQuarrie brought their new thriller to United Artists, they got more than a producer. They got a star.

UA co-head Tom Cruise, who snagged the rights to the "Usual Suspects" reunion, will also star in the currently untitled World War II drama. This will be the second straight United Artists pick-up that Cruise has also opted to star in, after taking a supporting turn in Robert Redford's "Lions for Lambs."

Details on the project were initially vague, but somebody fed the industry trades the information that McQuarrie's script is based the real events surrounding a group of German generals plotting to assassinate Adolph Hitler. While the trades say that Cruise agreed on Tuesday to take a lead role, no role is specified, though the "Born on the Fourth of July" star probably won't be playing Hitler.

Singer hopes to slot in the relatively inexpensive ensemble thriller before Warner Brothers' "Superman Returns" sequel begins to occupy all of his time.

"Lions for Lambs," the first United Artists film since Cruise and Paula Wagner were given creative control of the company, will open on Nov. 9. Cruise was last seen on the big screen in "Mission: Impossible III."

McCartney To Anchor New Starbucks Label

After weeks of speculation, Paul McCartney is now officially the first artist signed to Hear Music, a new joint label formed by Starbucks and the Concord Music Group. The as-yet-untitled album is due in early June; its release on Hear Music marks the end of McCartney's decades-long association with Capitol.

"This is something I’ve been working on for a little while now," McCartney said of the David Kahne-produced album during a Webcast today (March 21). "A lot of it’s very personal to me.Tthe songs are in some ways a little bit retrospective. Some of them are of now, some of them hark back to the past, but all of them are songs I’m very proud of."

As previously reported, Starbucks will primarily handle A&R for the collaborative initiative, while Concord will head up marketing, promotion and distribution of the label's product outside the coffee shops. The Hear Music name has been used since 1999 for compilations and co-releases at Starbucks; it will now apply exclusively to this partnership.

Starbucks' profile as a music retail outlet has jumped significantly in the past few years, especially following the success of Ray Charles' "Genius Loves Company," a joint production with Concord that scored eight Grammy awards. The company has also struck deals to release exclusive albums by Bob Dylan and Alanis Morissette.

McCartney's last studio album was 2005's critical favorite "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard," which has sold 533,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Letterman regular 'Bud' Melman dies

NEW YORK - Calvert DeForest, the white-haired, bespectacled nebbish who gained cult status as the oddball Larry "Bud" Melman on David Letterman's late night television shows, has died after a long illness. The Brooklyn-born DeForest, who was 85, died Monday at a hospital on Long Island, Letterman's "Late Show" announced Wednesday.

He made dozens of appearances on Letterman's shows from 1982 through 2002, handling a variety of twisted duties: dueting with Sonny Bono on "I Got You, Babe," doing a Mary Tyler Moore impression during a visit to Minneapolis, handing out hot towels to arrivals at the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

"Everyone always wondered if Calvert was an actor playing a character, but in reality he was just himself — a genuine, modest and nice man," Letterman said in a statement. "To our staff and to our viewers, he was a beloved and valued part of our show, and we will miss him."

The gnomish DeForest was working as a file clerk at a drug rehabilitation center when show producers, who had seen him in a New York University student's film, came calling.

He was the first face to greet viewers when Letterman's NBC show debuted on Feb. 1, 1982, offering a parody of the prologue to the Boris Karloff film "Frankenstein."

"It was the greatest thing that had happened in my life," he once said of his first Letterman appearance.

DeForest, given the nom de tube of Melman, became a program regular. The collaboration continued when the talk show host launched "Late Show with David Letterman" on CBS in 1993, though DeForest had to use his real name because of a dispute with NBC over "intellectual property."

Cue cards were often DeForest's television kryptonite, and his character inevitably appeared in an ill-fitting black suit behind thick black-rimmed glasses.

DeForest often drew laughs by his bizarre juxtaposition as a "Late Show" correspondent at events such as the 1994 Winter Olympics in Norway or the anniversary Woodstock concert that year.

His last appearance on "Late Show," celebrating his 81st birthday, came in 2002.

DeForest also appeared in an assortment of other television shows and films, including "Nothing Lasts Forever" with Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd.

At his request, there will be no funeral service for DeForest, who left no survivors.

'Huckabees' director's spat on Net

HOLLYWOOD -- A couple of explosive video clips have been making the e-mail rounds all over town this week, featuring a highly agitated Lily Tomlin and her verbally abusive I Heart Huckabees director David O. Russell.

The recordings, made by a technician who thoughtfully allowed the tape to continue rolling, originally had been swapped between talent agencies back when the poorly-received movie came out in 2004, but have mysteriously reappeared on YouTube and other video-sharing sites.

They most definitely are not for sensitive ears.

One shows Tomlin going on an expletive-filled tirade against her off-camera director while sitting at a desk, next to a very uncomfortable-looking Dustin Hoffman.

In the other clip it's Russell's turn -- hurling the nasty c-word in Tomlin's direction before trashing props and storming off the set.

Given the film's existential themes, their behaviour certainly doesn't seem very Zen-like, although it isn't the first time the mercurial Russell has had at it with one of his cast members.

Back during the filming of Three Kings, the nominally easy-going George Clooney was so upset by Russell's yelling and screaming at crew members, that at one point the two actually got into a fistfight. The experience left Clooney vowing never to work with the director again.

Russell, meanwhile, hasn't made another movie since Huckabees, but is currently developing a new comedy project tentatively called The H-Man Cometh, which has Vince Vaughn attached as a glib talk radio jock.

Wonder if Vaughn's checked out YouTube lately?

Is It A Rumour Over Nothing?

People have been asking "Is Seinfeld coming in May?"

Well, it seems the anwser is "No, its not coming in May." Thanks to one of our friendly retailers, we have a rumored date of June 5.

Of course this won't be official until it's announced by Sony.

Until then, here is a list of the season 8 episodes:

The Foundation
The Soul Mate
The Bizarro Jerry
The Little Kicks
The Package
The Fatigues
The Checks
The Chicken Roaster
The Abstinence
The Andrea Doria
The Little Jerry
The Money
The Comeback
The Van Buren Boys
The Susie
The Pothole
The English Patient
The Nap
The Yada Yada
The Millennium
The Muffin Tops
The Summer of George

Oshawa serves up silliness for faux American right-wing pundit Stephen Colbert

OSHAWA, Ont. (CP) - Hordes of Stephen Colbert fans turned out Tuesday to fete the American comic whose buffoonish right-wing pundit delights fans on both sides of the border with his idiotic commentary on "The Colbert Report."

As many as 3,000 people packed the General Motors Centre in this normally quiet working-class city on Tuesday night. They were there to take part in "Stephen Colbert Day," the event that came about when Oshawa's mayor lost a bet on an OHL game with Colbert, the eyebrow-arching faux commentator whose inspiration is Fox News's pugnacious Bill O'Reilly.

"This is a city I have admired ever since I learned of its existence recently," Colbert, who didn't attend the festivities, told the crowd via a taped message played on the arena's big screen.

He ordered the throng to turn "Stephen Colbert Day" into a wild party, naming several local pubs where the celebrations could continue into the wee hours.

"I want this to be the biggest raver in Oshawa since last year's peony festival," he said to roars of laughter before digging into a cake festooned with the words Happy Stephen Colbert Day.

Mayor John Gray was also forced to eat cake - his own birthday cake, decorated with a photo of Colbert in all his thumbs'-up, arched-eyebrow glory.

"I feel very lucky to be born on Colbert Day," Gray told the crowd on Tuesday night. "Mr. Colbert, this is the way to lose a bet."

The seed for "Stephen Colbert Day" was planted when about two million Colbert fans inundated an online contest a few months ago to name the mascot of the Saginaw Spirit, a Michigan OHL team. Steagle Colbeagle the Eagle was born as a tribute to the comedian.

Colbert - who encouraged fans of his Comedy Central/Comedy Network show to cast the ballots - threw his support behind the squad and began trash-talking its OHL rivals, especially the Generals.

After a public volley of taunts and counter-taunts, Gray issued a challenge to Colbert on the eve of a recent showdown between the two teams: if the Generals won, Colbert would have to wear a Generals jersey for an entire show. If the Spirit won, Gray had to declare Colbert's birthday "Stephen Colbert Day" in Oshawa.

Colbert accepted the challenge but had a more humiliating suggestion: he wanted "Stephen Colbert Day" to be declared not on his own birthday, but on Gray's - March 20.

In the absence of Colbert, hockey icon Don Cherry provided the night's biggest star power. Dressed in a brilliant red crushed-velvet jacket, he was treated with reverence as he waited in the wings before taking to the stage to honour former Boston Bruin Bobby Orr, whose birthday was also on Tuesday. The legendary defenceman once played for the Oshawa Generals.

"Sir Cherry!" one teenaged girl shouted out in excitement as the larger-than-life Hockey Night in Canada commentator walked towards the stage.

Of Colbert, Cherry had this to say: "He's the guy who started all this and then didn't even have the guts to show up." He later referred to Colbert as a "leftie pinko," adding that if the comedian was a hockey player, he'd wear a visor.

It was an uncharacteristically silly event for the city of Oshawa, a community on Lake Ontario that's long lived in the cultural shadow of nearby Toronto. Even Gray acknowledged "Stephen Colbert Day" was something of a rarity for his city.

"Oshawa isn't exactly known for liveliness," said Gray. "We have that old, grey image, and we're trying to shake it off. We've been looking for a way to expose the world to all the great things about Oshawa, and Stephen Colbert comes along and helps us."

Until Tuesday's event, Oshawa was best known to the rest of Canada as the home base for General Motors Canada and for the Generals, its dynamic OHL club. The squad has a serious NHL star in the making in John Tavares, who recently broke Wayne Gretzky's record for the most goals scored in the OHL by a 16-year-old player.

Five finalists in the Stephen Colbert lookalike contest were on hand at the General Motors Centre, all of them certain they had the swagger and the arched brow necessary to win the prize of a trip to New York City for a taping of "The Colbert Report."

They ranged in age from Jacob Kanter, 16, of Toronto to John Tate, 58, of Manitoba, and included at least one Colbert - Jason Colbert from Ancaster, Ont., who suggested he might be distantly related to his comedic idol.

Maurice Collard of Saskatoon, Sask, won the contest, even though young Kanter's Colbert imitation and belligerent commentary, including a swipe at Hillary Clinton, got the biggest laughs.

Tate, a retired schoolteacher from Treherne, Man., possessed the most striking physical resemblance to Colbert. He recounted how a former student called him up and told him he wanted to take pictures of him because of the uncanny likeness.

"I assumed it was just some project he was doing for school. He came over the next morning and of course it wasn't pictures, it was video, and next thing I know I'm on YouTube - he's going to pay," Tate said.

The night's festivities also included a showdown between the mascots from the Michigan and Oshawa OHL teams and lots of free cake and Dr. Pepper, Colbert's favourite soft drink.

Woody's the man for Johansson?

Forget Justin Timberlake and Josh Hartnett.

The love of Scarlett Johansson's life is Woody Allen.

"I'd sew the hems of his pants if he asked me to," the actress, 22, coos in the April issue of Vogue, on newstands Tuesday.

And the adoration is mutual.

She's "criminally sexy," Allen, 71, said in an e-mail sent to Vogue about his Match Point muse. "She is unlike anyone who has come before her, and while she is a much stronger actress in every way, there is a tiny bit of Marilyn Monroe in her zaftig humidity."

Though their heat is strictly professional, Johansson tells Vogue she works hard to keep her romantic life private. But she's quick to declare as "not true" reports last month that she and Timberlake were an item.

"We had fun together, but it's not like the first time I've ever hung out with him," she says. "I think this happens because we're both single and in the spotlight, and obviously Justin's a very high-profile person."

But Vogue reports Johansson's sunny disposition turned dark when asked about Hartnett, her co-star in The Black Dahlia.

"I'd rather not comment on my personal life in that way," the actress says.

Johansson's next film, The Nanny Diaries, opens April 20.

The Couch Potato Report - March 20th, 2007

This week The Couch Potato Report shines the spotlight on two great TV series, a useless movie, with a great making of, and James Bond.

I have said it before, and I will say it again: One of the greatest things about DVDs is the fact that we can now sit back on our couches and watch old TV shows and series in their entirety, whether it is St. Patrick's day or not.

Neither video cassettes or laserdiscs offered us that option as easily as DVD does, and I for one love seeing shows I love again and again!

One show that I loved when it aired in the late 1990s - on CBC no less - was the unique series TWITCH CITY, and it now available on DVD for my viewing pleasure once again!!

The very funny TWITCH CITY takes place in the Toronto neighbourhood of Kensington Market.

Don McKellar from THE RED VIOLIN and PRAIRIE GIANT stars in the show as Curtis, a couch potato who never leaves his apartment and is constantly watching television.

For some reason, I related to the character.

In the first episode Curtis' roomate Nathan is sent to prison for killing a homeless man with a can of cat food.

In a nod to that other great television series filmed in the area, the homeless man was played by Al Waxman, who had been the star of the 1970s sitcom KING OF KENSINGTON.

Prior to his incarceration Nathan's girlfriend Hope was about to move in with him, but now that he is in prison, Curtis rents out his room.

However, he is still interested in having Hope move in.

Throughout the series, Curtis and Hope get to know each other better, they continually try to find new roomates, and they watch The Rex Reilly Show, a Jerry Springer-esque show that always has a unique topic to hook viewers with.

TWITCH CITY didn't have mainstream success when season one aired in 1998 or when it came back in 2000, and to thsi day it is still thought of as the second best series ever made about Kensington, but those of us who watched it, enjoyed it, and we can now own it on DVD!

And who knows, maybe some day KING OF KENSINGTON will come out on DVD as well so we can watch more TV.

Most North American viewers watch more than forty hours per week, I certainly do, and the time I spent watching TWITCH CITY was time well spent.

I would also make that claim regarding DOCTOR WHO. I have spent my whole life watching this series, and I always enjoy it!!

DOCTOR WHO is the long-running BBC science fiction show about the adventures of a mysterious time-traveller known as "the Doctor", who explores time and space with his companions, solving problems and righting wrongs.

DOCTOR WHO originally ran from 1963 to 1989. Then, a television movie was made in 1996, and the programme was successfully relaunched in 2005 with the great Christopher Eccelston starring as the title character.

Like all Time Lords, the Doctor has the ability to "regenerate" his body when near death, allowing for the convenient recasting of the lead actor, so when Eccelston left the show after one season, he was replaced by David Tennant.

It is Tennant's shows that are now available on DVD in DOCTOR WHO - THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES and they are a great addition to the legacy of DOCTOR WHO.

The series brings back classic villains, introduces interesting new ones, and if you are a long time fan of the show, there is even the return of an old friend.

Even if you are not a long time fan of the show, the episode where one of the Doctor's former traveling companions will still pack an emotional whallop. The show is that well written and acted.

But it is also fun! Fun to watch, and in SERIES TWO the actors make it look like it was fun to film as well.

If you missed any of the DOCTOR WHO episodes when they aired Monday nights on CBC recently, you can catch them again as they air on Saturdays from 12:30 a.m. - 1:30 a.m.

And the incredible DOCTOR WHO - THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES is also now on DVD.

Okay, I have two more releases to discuss with you this week, and I will do that briefly.

The reason I am being brief about the film SHORTBUS starring CBC radio's own Sook-Yin Lee is because the film is useless!

Completely and utterly useless.

In this film, people go to the exclusive club Shortbus to work out problems in their sexual relationships.

There are straight people, gay people, and some who are just lonely and alone.

All of them are trying to work out their problems.

And the actors in SHORTBUS are not pretending or acting, this is a film full of very graphic situations.

John Cameron Mitchell, the writer and director of the film, is on record saying that SHORTBUS is that it is an uncensored look at relationships.

My opinion is that he knew how uninteresting a film he was making, so he decided to put as much nudity in it as possible in order to get people talking about the movie.

But in the end, SHORTBUS is just a film full of desperate people, in desperate situations and none of it all that interesting, entertaining, or even titallating.

However...the DVD includes a making of featurette that is interesting. It seems as if the filmmakers actually took some time to plan out, cast, create and film their movie, and while I have nothing good to say about their work, I did find the process that they went through quite engaging.

So let me surmise...as a film SHORTBUS is completely and utterly useless, but the story of how it got made is actually very interesting.

Now, lets get away from the useless side of cinema and move toward something more usefull.

Yes, the latest James Bond film is very usefull, and entertaining and even if you have never seen a Bond film before, you can still enjoy CASINO ROYALE.

There are great action sequences, an interesting story, and if you have watched these films over the years, or read the books, there is even a nod or two to the series' history.

Plus, CASINO ROYALE has another thing going for it! Someone named Daniel is now Bond...James Bond.

Daniel Craig is a superb James Bond and CASINO ROYALE is now available on DVD, alongside the utterly useless SHORTBUS, the always entertaining DOCTOR WHO - THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES and the 1990s CBC series TWITCH CITY.

Coming up in the next Couch Potato Report

CHEECH is a Genie nominated film from Quebec about six people living through the worst day of their lives.

Also next week, Sylvester Stallone returns is the very satisfying ROCKY BALBOA; Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou and Jennifer Connelly star in the Oscar nominated BLOOD DIAMOND; and the great Ashley Judd is a woman searching for love in COME EARLY MORNING.

I'm Dan Reynish. I'll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.

For now, that's this week's COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I'll see you back here next time on The Couch!

New Releases, March 20: Modest Mouse, Joss Stone, Elliott Yamin

Modest Mouse "We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank"

After several delays, this Pacific Northwest indie-rock act finally returns with its fifth studio album. The first single from the record is "Dashboard."

"We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank" is the band's first release to feature former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr as a permanent member. Last year, Modest Mouse frontman Isaac Brock told Rolling Stone that Marr planned only to be a studio player for the forthcoming Modest Mouse album, but the guitarist found he was a perfect fit for the group.

* * *
Joss Stone "Introducing Joss Stone"

Young soul sensation Joss Stone is set to follow her highly successful debut album, "Mind Body and Soul." Prior to that 2005 effort, the Grammy-winning singer/songwriter had released an EP, 2003's "The Soul Sessions," when she was just 16 years old.

"Introducing Joss Stone" features production work by Raphael Saadiq (D'Angelo, The Roots). The British vocalist will support the album with a North American tour that launches in late April and includes a May 6 date at New Orleans' Jazz and Heritage Festival.

* * *
Elliott Yamin "Elliott Yamin"

Elliott Yamin is the latest star from last season's "American Idol" series to release a debut record. He follows finalists Chris Daughtry, Katharine McPhee and winner Taylor Hicks. The first single from Yamin's self-titled record is "Movin' On."

* * *
Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Ray Price "Last of the Breed"

Few titles are as appropriate as this one. "Last of the Breed" is a collaboration between three of the finest country singers of all time--Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Ray Price--inarguably the greatest country super-group since the Highway Men (which featured Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson).

* * *
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists "Living With the Living"

The edgy rock trio--featuring singer/songwriter/guitarist Ted Leo, bassist Dave Lerner and drummer Chris Wilson--is set to drop its fifth record. The band will support "Living With the Living" with a North American tour that kicks off March 28 in Philadelphia.

* * *
More new releases:
Andrew Bird, "Armchair Apocrypha" (Fat Possum)
Miguel Bose, "Papito" (Warner Bros.)
C-Murder, "Screamin' for Vengence" (Priority/Capitol)
Roger Clyne and Peacemakers, "No More Beautiful World" (Emmajava)
Marques Houston, "Veteran" (Universal)
J-Dilla, "Ruff Draft" (Stones Throw)
Joseph Israel, "Gone are the Days" (New Door/UME)
LCD Soundsystem, "Sound of Silver" (Capitol)
Low, "Drums and Guns" (Sub Pop)
Jesse Malin, "Glitter in the Gutter" (Adeline)
Stephen Marley, "Mind Control" (Republic)
Miguel Migs, "Those Things" (Om)
Otep, "Ascension" (Capitol)
Panda Bear, "Person Pitch" (Paw Tracks)
Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby, "Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby" (Sony)
Tracey Thorn, "Out of the Woods" (Astralwerks)

Soundtracks and scores:
"Amazing Grace" (Spring House)

Traveling Wilburys Reborn With Rhino

After being out of print for more than a decade, the two studio albums from all-star band the Traveling Wilburys will return to the marketplace in a variety of formats June 12 via Wilbury Records/Rhino, Billboard.com has learned.

"Traveling Wilburys Volume 1" and "Traveling Wilburys Volume 3" will be available together in one package with bonus tracks and a DVD of rare footage, as a deluxe linen-bound edition, a vinyl set and a digital bundle. The DVD boasts a 24-minute documentary and five music videos.

The Wilburys formed in 1988 after Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison assembled at a California studio to record a B-side for the Harrison single "This Is Love."

The resulting song, "Handle With Care," was instead released under the Wilburys name, with the artists posing as a band of brothers. It went on to reach No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the "Volume 1" album hit No. 3 on The Billboard 200. The reissued version of the album includes the previously unreleased tracks "Maxine" and "Like a Ship."

Orbison died in late 1988 before a second album could be completed; it was eventually released as "Volume 3" in 1990. The set is expanded here with the B-side "Runaway" and "Nobody's Child," which was released on a benefit album for Romanian orphans.

Sales can't buy love for some top bands

NEW YORK - Few bands inspire such intense hatred as Nickelback.

The post-grunge Canadian quartet has been trashed, bashed and hated on by countless critics, music snobs and other like-minded souls. So have much-maligned acts like Hinder, a rock band from Oklahoma; the Grammy-winning Black Eyed Peas, who have spawned infectious rap hits "My Humps" and "Don't Phunk With My Heart"; and Britney Spears, who in her heyday ruled radio but was condemned for everything from her voice to not writing her own songs.

Yet these acts have sold millions upon millions of albums. So are the critics wrong? Do music buyers have bad taste? Is this karmic payback to all the haters?

"There are some bands that, let's face it, are critic-proof," said Nathan Brackett, a senior editor at Rolling Stone. "Just like there are some movies that are critic-proof. Nobody is really reading the reviews for `Norbit,' you know? And nobody's reading Nickelback reviews either."

That might be a good thing. Nickelback's "All the Right Reasons," which debuted at No. 1 on the charts in the fall of 2005 and was still number 16 this week, was called "hard-rock ridiculousness" by The New York Times and "unspeakably awful" by Allmusic.com. Even the late Nirvana frontman and grunge icon Kurt Cobain would disapprove, suggested Rolling Stone, which called the disc "so depressing, you're almost glad Kurt's not around to hear it."

Young people who "are introduced to these bands on the radio, they don't have a lot of baggage," Brackett said. "A lot of kids don't care if an act, you know, kind of took their guitar sound from some other band."

Post-grunge outfits like Nickelback and Hinder continue to be popular — or wreak havoc, whatever your opinion — in part because they appeal to the estrogen set, said Craig Marks, editor in chief of Blender magazine. A "slightly hipper band" will sell more albums to guys than girls, he said.

"They're selling a lot of records to very casual music fans who don't buy a lot of CDs," Marks said. "When you're selling 5 million albums like Nickelback or 2 1/2 million like Hinder, and especially when you're making your mark with big ballads that are kind of wedding songs, then you're selling records to both males and females. And that's often how you get from selling 1 1/2 million records to selling 4 or 5 million records."

When "teenage girls or tween girls like an artist, that's often a sign that ... the artist isn't cool," said Marks, who also gives Spears as an example. "You know, `My little sister likes them.'"

Advertisements, music reviews and fashion trends tell us that "cool" is an edgy rapper, an up-and-coming hipster band or a British chanteuse like Amy Winehouse. Cool is not Nickelback or the Black Eyed Peas. They're not so uncool that they're cool, like Fountains of Wayne.

They're just, in a word, uncool.

Chris St. Peter, 26, of New York, witnessed this hatred years ago at a concert in Boston, where Nickelback was opening for another band in front of an indie-rock crowd.

"They threw batteries at them, which is also terrible but also really funny," St. Peter said. "Nickelback represented everything I think they hated."

Though he didn't hurl any batteries, St. Peter gives the band a thumbs-down. "I hope they go the same way as, like, Creed, and they just sort of disappear."

But for every hater there's a lover like Jaclyn Hafenstein, 30, from Madison, Wis. "Don't they trash them because their music is considered simple, not unique?" she wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "Why is that bad? Whatever it (is) they're doing, it makes me bob my head and sing along! I can't say that for every band, whether I like them or not."

Often, bands that are popular in places like Wisconsin get dissed by snobs on the coasts. "There's a real danger with ... writers being in their kind of music-critic clique, you know, in either New York or L.A. or San Francisco, and kind of ignoring these bands just because all the critics they know and all the kind of so-called cool kids are ignoring these bands," Brackett said.

He points out that classic acts like Led Zeppelin, the Doors and Billy Joel were at first ignored by critics. Then again, he said, "there are a lot of times when music critics are right."

Acts hoping to collect both money and respect would do well to study an It band like Fall Out Boy, which sells heaps of records to teen girls while delighting the critics, too. They don't take themselves too seriously, unlike, say, the Killers in their latest incarnation or — again — Nickelback.

It all comes back to Nickelback, doesn't it? At least they're now big enough to headline their own shows, and that means no batteries will be hurled.

Only verbal ones, from outside the venue.

"You know, you have to be really popular in order to corral that sort of hatred," Marks said. "It's the best ballplayer on the visiting team who gets booed during the introductions. No one boos the guy off the bench, but you always boo the star of the other team. You know, it is a tribute to their success."

David Letterman goes home sick

NEW YORK - David Letterman showed up for work, but had to go home sick Tuesday before taping the "Late Show."

A stomach bug was to blame, a network spokeswoman said.

Adam Sandler, one of the night's guests, was quickly enlisted to fill in as host.

The CBS late-night personality has had extended absences following heart surgery and a case of the shingles. But this was believed to be the first time Letterman showed up for work and couldn't go on.

He will have time to recover. Letterman had taped Wednesday's show in advance, and he's being pre-empted for NCAA basketball on Thursday and Friday.

"Extras" calling it a wrap after two seasons

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The comedy "Extras" won't return for a third season.

Writer-directors Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, who also star alongside Ashley Jensen, have decided to forgo another season of the BBC2/HBO series in favor of bowing out with a special finale -- the same way they ended their previous show, "The Office."

"Extras" was nominated for an Emmy last year in the comedy series writing category; guest stars Kate Winslet, Ben Stiller and Patrick Stewart also received Emmy nominations. Gervais starred as a hapless actor looking for his big break.

Exclusive: Shia LeBeouf Talks Indy IV!

Phew, it’s all kicking off over at Indy IV Towers, isn’t it? First of all came today’s news that Cate Blanchett has signed on to play an as-yet undisclosed role opposite Harrison Ford in the fourth Indy movie.

Then an email from an anonymous source dropped into Empire Magazine’s inbox this morning, which speculates that Messrs. Lucas and Spielberg may have finally settled on a title: it's all very unofficial at this point, but the current thinking is that the movie may wind up as Indiana Jones And The City Of Gods.

And, last but not least, our man at ShoWest, the big old exhibitor, erm, exhibition in Las Vegas, has reported back with an exclusive quote or two from Shia LeBeouf on his rumoured involvement in Indy IV/City Of Gods/Whatever It’s Called.

Now, if you’ve been keeping up to date, you’ll know that LeBeouf, who will soon be seen in the forthcoming Transformers, has been linked with the role of Indiana Jones’ son (would that make him Henry Jones III?), with some sources claiming that the deal was as good as done and dusted. But according to The Beef, that just ain’t so.

“I was rumoured to be in Superman as Jimmy Olsen, and I put a lot of eggs in that basket and I was really excited about it, so super-stoked,” said the 20 year-old actor. “Then it fell through. This is that same type of thing for me...”

Ah, but does that mean that there’s some truth in it? After all, for something to possibly fall through, the possibility of it remaining upright must first exist, non?

“It is a rumour, one that I might have started,” continued The Beef. “Who wouldn't? But at this point I don't have it and I'd be lying if I said I did. So it's a rumour, and maybe it's a rumour that's helping or hindering me. I don't know what the role is, I don't know if there is a role... but it's one of those things. It's just another rumour.”

Well, thanks for clearing that up, Shia. As for that rumoured title, it certainly sounds suitably Indiana Jonesy, and right now some of Empire’s finest brains are working hard to figure out if it’s a) genuine, and b) holds any clues as to the object Indy will be looking for this time around. We’re pretty sure that there is no connection to Fernando Meirelles’ classic, City Of God, though. Let the speculation begin!

Bon Jovi Charges Down The 'Highway' On New CD

Bon Jovi will release its next album, "Lost Highway," June 19 via Island/Mercury Nashville. First single "(You Want To) Make a Memory" hits radio tomorrow (March 20); the group will perform it live April 16 during the CMT Awards in Nashville, May 2 on "American Idol" and June 19 on NBC's "Today."

Two other album cuts have already been utilized in TV and film; the title song is featured in the trailer for the John Travolta comedy "Wild Hogs," while "We Got It Going" featuring Big & Rich serves as the theme for ESPN's coverage of the Arena Football League.

The Dann Huff- and John Shanks-produced "Lost Highway" is the follow-up to 2005's "Have a Nice Day," which has sold 1.4 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The album's single, "Who Says You Can't Go Home" featuring Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland, hit No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, the first time in almost 30 years that a top billed non-country artist has reached No. 1 with their first attempt at the country chart. It hadn't happened since pop crooner Tom Jones did so with "Say You'll Stay Until Tomorrow" in 1977.

Bon Jovi has yet to announce tour plans; the group finished 2006 with the No. 3 tour according to Billboard Boxscore, grossing $131 million.

Elvis Costello Albums Reborn Via Universal

A hefty batch of reissues as part of Universal's acquisition of the Elvis Costello catalog will arrive May 1. Eleven Costello albums, from 1977's "My Aim Is True" to 1986's "King of America," will re-appear in digipaks with their original U.S. track listings and artwork.

Also due for release are "This Year's Model," "Armed Forces," "Get Happy!!," "Trust," "Almost Blue," "Imperial Bedroom," "Punch the Clock," "Goodbye Cruel World" and "Blood & Chocolate."

In addition, Universal has created two new compilations with track listings supervised by Costello himself. "The Best of Elvis Costello -- The First 10 Years" rounds up 22 songs from the period, including classics such as "Watching the Detectives," "Pump It Up," "Clubland," "Man Out of Time" and "Oliver's Army."

The second album, "Rock and Roll Music," is meant to showcase the more up-tempo side of Costello's oeuvre, from "No Action" and "Lipstick Vogue" to live versions of "Mystery Dance" and "You Belong to Me." Two previously unreleased tracks, an alternate version of "Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?" and a demo of "Welcome to the Working Week," are also included.

Costello has also scheduled a short North American tour, beginning May 2 in Los Angeles and running through May 19 in Philadelphia.

Sex and the small screen

Lost's Evangeline Lilly (Kate) and Grey's Anatomy's Patrick Dempsey (Derek, aka Dr. McDreamy) are the "Sexiest Stars" on TV.

That's according to TV Guide's first list of the sexiest, which hits newsstands Thursday featuring the No. 1's on separate covers.

The picks, chosen by the magazine's editors, suggest that TV's sexiest show is Grey's: Three of the hit drama's docs made the cut.

Oddly enough, the actor who plays Mark Sloan (Eric Dane), dubbed Dr. McSteamy, isn't hot enough for the top 10.

The steamiest network? ABC, taking half of the sexiest slots, far ahead of NBC's five.

The rest of the ladies:

2. Eva Longoria, Gabrielle Solis on Desperate Housewives
3. Katherine Heigl, Izzie Stevens on Grey's Anatomy
4. Marg Helgenberger, Catherine Willows on CBS' CSI
5. Ali Larter, Niki Sanders on Heroes
6. Nadine Velazquez, Catalina on My Name Is Earl
7. Roselyn Sanchez, Elena Delgado on Without a Trace
8. Rashida Jones, Karen Filippelli on The Office
9. Rebecca Romijn, Alexis Meade on Ugly Betty
10. Jennifer Morrison, Allison Cameron on House

And gentlemen:

2. Sendhil Ramamurthy, Mohinder Suresh on Heroes
3. James Tupper, Jack Slattery on Men in Trees
4. Josh Holloway, Sawyer on Lost
5. Taylor Kitsch, Tim Riggins on Friday Night Lights
6. Shemar Moore, Derek Morgan on Criminal Minds
7. Skeet Ulrich, Jake Green on Jericho
8. Eric Mabius, Daniel Meade on Ugly Betty
9. Justin Chambers, Alex Karev on Grey's Anatomy
10. Dave Annable, Justin Walker on Brothers & Sisters

Oshawa preps for 'Colbert Day'

TORONTO (CP) - Ever since his satirical news program took to the airwaves in late 2005, American comic Stephen Colbert has revelled in taunting Canada.

He welcomed Canadian viewers to "The Colbert Report" - pronounced "ra-PORE" - when it launched on The Comedy Network in November '05 by telling them: "I am Stephen Colbert. I have balls. If you're lucky, they might just rub off on you."

When the Conservatives booted the Liberals out of power in last year's federal election, Colbert was quick to take credit, crowing: "I fixed Canada in 77 days!"

Now Canada, it appears, is ready to thank Colbert for his repair work by holding a "Stephen Colbert Day" celebration, featuring none other than Don Cherry himself, the type of no-nonsense straight-shooter who would be well and truly adored by Colbert's faux right-wing pundit.

A night of festivities, including a Colbert lookalike contest, is being held Tuesday in Oshawa, an industrial city east of Toronto better-known for its GM plant than its tendency to whoop it up.

"The only cool thing that has ever happened to Oshawa," commented one blogger on her blog It's Gonna Be a Blue Moon Rising.

Shannon McFadyen, a spokeswoman for the city of Oshawa, said Sunday that Colbert himself is not appearing at the event, but added "The Colbert Report" may send a field producer for a future segment on the show.

Nonetheless, more than 1,500 people are expected to turn out at the General Motors Centre, a gleaming new venue in downtown Oshawa that opened in November and seats 6,000, McFadyen said.

"We're getting a really interesting mix of people who are coming," McFadyen said. "There are hockey fans, Don Cherry fans and then sort of younger university students who are really into the Colbert show. We have a group of kids coming up from New York University, for example, and some interest from Newfoundland. It's a real blend of people because the themes are hockey and comedy."

It all started when about two million Colbert fans inundated an online contest to name the mascot of the Saginaw Spirit, a Michigan OHL team. Steagle Colbeagle the Eagle was born as a tribute to the comedian.

Colbert soon threw his support behind the squad and began trash-talking its OHL rivals, especially the Oshawa Generals.

After a public volley of taunts and counter-taunts, Oshawa Mayor John Gray issued a challenge to Colbert on the eve of a recent showdown between the two teams: if the Generals won, Colbert would have had to wear a Generals jersey for an entire show. If the Spirit won, Gray had to declare Colbert's birthday "Stephen Colbert Day" in Oshawa.

Colbert, whose pundit was inspired by Fox News's belligerent Bill O'Reilly, accepted the challenge but had a more humiliating suggestion: he wanted "Stephen Colbert Day" to be declared not on his own birthday, but on Gray's - March 20. And so it was.

"How old are you going to be?" Colbert asked Gray in a recent interview on his show. "Old enough to know better than to take on Stephen Colbert?"

"Hopefully, in the future, yes," Gray, who turns 48 on Tuesday, admitted sheepishly.

One of the highlights of the night's festivities promises to be the selection of the winning Colbert lookalike.

Five semi-finalists have been chosen from across Canada and the winner will be determined by the competitor who gets the loudest cheers from the audience on Tuesday night. The victor wins a trip to New York City, where he'll attend a taping of the "The Colbert Report," a spawn of Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show."

There will also be a hockey challenge featuring a showdown between the team's mascots: the Generals' Shooter and the Spirit's aforementioned Steagle Colbeagle the Eagle.

For the $5 cost of admission, there will also be free cake and Dr. Pepper - Colbert's favourite soft drink.

For McFadyen, the entire Stephen Colbert event signifies that the city of Oshawa, which has long lived in Toronto's shadow, has a sense of fun all its own.

"It's just one of the things we are doing to say Oshawa has a lot to offer. It's an exciting place to be."

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles go digital

There's no "Cowabunga" this time around.

That Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles rallying cry and the rapid-fire one-liners have fallen by the wayside as the still-lean, still-green, nunchaku-wielding, pizza-eating terrapins return Friday for their fourth film installment. "We just wanted to present them in a more dignified light and make the movie an homage to the comics that spawned the Turtles," says "TMNT" director Kevin Munroe.

Instead of employing martial arts stuntmen in bulky prosthetics, "TMNT" is rendered completely in CGI. And by drawing on the talents of some 370 animators from two continents, Munroe has created a digital New York City in which talking turtles bounding across rooftops and skateboarding through sewers look perfectly in place.

The new Turtles movie comes hot on the heels of two recent comic-book-based blockbusters, "300" and "Ghost Rider." Whether "TMNT" can replicate such success, however, depends on whether fans still connect with Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael.

By bringing the Turtles back to their roots, Munroe, a self-professed comic-book geek and Turtles fan (he owns the first "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" comic from 1984), hopes to appease the current generation of fans as well as those who grew up reading the comic books.

"The movie is about family," says Munroe, who served double duty as writer. "Leonardo, who has been off training on his own for a year, comes back to a family that has drifted apart and is charged by their father, Master Splinter, with bringing them back together."

Bat-wielding vigilante Casey Jones (voiced by Chris Evans) is back, as is longtime Turtles ally April O'Neil (Sarah Michelle Gellar). Gone, however, is the Turtles' erstwhile nemesis Shredder; in his place is tech industrialist Max Winters (Patrick Stewart).

In addition to the Turtles, the other "star" of the movie is the special effects, the work of upstart Imagi Animation Studios.

The relatively unknown Hong Kong company, whose brief r–sum– includes producing animation for the short-lived DreamWorks TV series "Father of the Pride," seems like an odd choice to rejuvenate the Turtles, a property that has generated $6 billion in revenue worldwide.

But the president and chief executive of its U.S. office is Thomas Gray, who was the linchpin for the first three Turtles movies.

Up until 1998, Gray was head of production for Hong Kong's Golden Harvest, which is best known for producing most of the Jackie Chan films. It was there that he was approached about making a film based on a comic book featuring human-sized talking turtles named after Renaissance artists.

Gray's visceral response: "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard of."

At the time, the Turtles, who began life as an obscure independent comic book, were just beginning to break into the mainstream. And after a little coaxing, Gray began to see the upside. "We'll put four of Jackie Chan's stunt guys in suits, make the movie for $3 million and get our money back."

But Gray had a difficult time landing a domestic deal for the movie, whose budget had ballooned to $11 million. "Every studio passed on the film — sometimes twice." Gray finally convinced New Line Cinema to take a chance. The film opened with a $25-million weekend on its way to a final box-office tally of $135 million, making it one of the highest-grossing independent films in history.

Two more movies were rushed to the market, each more expensive and less profitable than its predecessor. By the time the third film was released in 1993 to a gross of just $42 million domestically, it seemed the franchise had run its course.

Fast forward 10 years. After joining Imagi's U.S. studio, Gray was again approached about doing a Turtles movie, this time by Imagi founder Francis Kao.

Although the front end — production design, character design and story-boarding — and the back end of "TMNT were done in the U.S., the long, laborious middle part was produced in Hong Kong.

"We were able to bring the film in at $34 million," Gray said. (By contrast, the budget for Pixar's "Cars," which was created entirely in-house, is estimated at $120 million.)

Another cost-cutting measure involved Imagi's choice of directors: Gray ultimately decided to give 34-year-old Munroe his first shot at directing a feature film.

"They ran out of money, so that got me instead of John Woo," jokes Munroe, referring to early trade reports tying Woo to the Turtles.

Although the movie will certainly appeal to fans watching the current Turtles animated series, the film was definitely made with an eye toward the first generation of Turtles fans, which is why Gray was so surprised when many of the studios that passed on the Turtles the first time around did so again.

Film producer Harvey Weinstein, though, was instantly smitten. "I didn't have any reservations about the movie, none," says Weinstein, who is distributing the movie along with Warner Bros. "It just felt right."

Oscar-losing decision for Academy Awards

The organization that presents the Academy Awards has lost a court battle against an Italian broadcaster over the use of the word Oscar.

A judge in Los Angeles has turned down a suit by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) against RAI International for broadcasting several awards programs, including Oscar del Vino (Wine Oscars) and La Kore — Oscar della Moda (Fashion Oscars ).

The programs are seen in the U.S. through the satellite company EchoStar Communications Corp.

"EchoStar presents evidence that the meaning of Oscar in the Italian-language programs is quite different than the meaning of Oscar in English," wrote Judge Audrey Collins.

"The use of Oscar to describe an award or awards program is arbitrary or fanciful and deserves maximum protection. However, EchoStar has presented evidence showing that the word Oscar could be considered generic in Italy and in the Italian language."

David Quinto, the attorney for AMPAS, argued that the shows are seen by non-Italians in the U.S. and for them Oscar is connected to the Academy Awards.

But in her decision, Collins also noted that the shows highlighted achievement in Italian sectors other than entertainment.

The Academy is still pursuing the case. Quinto told the Hollywood Reporter that AMPAS has requested that EchoStar produce its entire customer list so the Academy can hire experts to gauge whether there is actual confusion over the case.

"The court has simply said on the record before it [that] the evidence was insufficient to grant the motion," said Quinto.

'300' conquers box office for a 2nd week

LOS ANGELES - Spartans continued to fend off the box-office competition as the battle epic "300" took the No. 1 spot for the second-straight weekend with $31.2 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The Warner Bros. movie, the story of vastly outnumbered Spartans defending against Persian invaders, shot past the $100 million mark after just a week in theaters, bringing its total to $127.5 million.

Disney's road comedy "Wild Hogs" also crossed the $100 million mark, remaining the No. 2 movie with $18.8 million to lift its total to $104 million.

Sony's paranormal thriller "Premonition," starring Sandra Bullock as a woman whose husband is killed one day but turns up alive and well the next, debuted in third place with $18 million.

The weekend's two other new wide releases had modest openings. Universal's fright flick "Dead Silence" — the tale of a maniacal ventriloquist dummy, from director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell, the team behind the original "Saw" horror hit — debuted at No. 4 with $7.8 million.

Fox Searchlight's "I Think I Love My Wife," a romance starring Chris Rock as a bored hubby drawn to a temptress ( Kerry Washington), premiered in fifth place with $5.7 million. Rock also co-wrote and directed the movie.

In limited release, IFC's Irish historical drama "The Wind That Shakes the Barley" opened solidly over St. Patrick's Day weekend with $75,311 in nine theaters. The top prize winner at last spring's Cannes Film Festival, the movie is directed by Ken Loach and stars Cillian Murphy in the story of two brothers on opposite sides of Ireland's civil war in the 1920s.

Bad weather on the East Coast and the NCAA basketball tournament, combined with traditional partying on St. Patrick's Day, put a bit of a damper on the box office, particularly among young males who are the main audience for "300."

In Boston, with its heavy Irish-American population, crowds for "300" were down 70 percent on St. Patrick's Day compared to the previous Saturday, while the drop in the rest of the country was just 49 percent, said Dan Fellman, head of distribution for Warner Bros.

Even so, overall box office rose, with the top-12 movies taking in $102.4 million, up 10.5 percent from the same weekend last year.

Movie attendance this year is up 3.5 percent compared to 2006 admissions, with hits such as "300" and "Wild Hogs" giving Hollywood an early start on what is expected to be a huge summer season. Among summer's blockbuster sequels are "Shrek the Third," "Spider-Man 3," "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" and " Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."

"`300' and the other late-spring hits have put us in a fantastic position heading into the homestretch leading up to summer," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers.

Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "300," $31.2 million.
2. "Wild Hogs," $18.8 million
3. "Premonition," $18 million.
4. "Dead Silence," $7.8 million.
5. "I Think I Love My Wife," $5.7 million.
6. "Bridge to Terabithia," $5.1 million.
7. "Ghost Rider," $4 million.
8. "Zodiac," $3.1 million.
9. "Norbit," $2.7 million.
10. "Music and Lyrics," $2.2 million.

CBC Radio Two goes after iPod generation with revamped schedule

CBC Radio Two listeners can expect a new evening schedule featuring jazz, live performance and contemporary music beginning Monday.

The new evening programming, the result of a revamp of CBC Radio's arts and culture programming, is designed to attract younger listeners to the network.

Younger means aged 35 to 49, rather than the under-35 listeners who may be more attracted by CBC Radio Three, said Jennifer McGuire, executive director of programming at CBC Radio.

"As a public broadcaster, our mandate is to reflect the breadth and range of diversity across this country," she said. That means music from a wider range of genres and from every region.

CBC research showed that of the estimated 30,000 songs created in Canada annually, only about 0.8 per cent get airplay. The Canadian content of the Radio Two music service will be increased, McGuire said.

The change in the schedule starting Monday is the first stage of a process that will see music programming migrating off CBC Radio One, the news and current affairs-focused main service, but remain the focus of Radio Two.

The new shows that will comprise the Radio Two evening schedule:

- Tonic, 6 to 8 p.m., jazz, blues and world music, hosted by Katie Malloch on weekdays, Tim Tamashiro on weekends.

- Canada Live, 8 to 10 p.m., live performances, hosted by Matt Galloway on weekdays and Patti Schmidt on weekends.

- The Signal, 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., contemporary music, hosted by Laurie Brown Monday to Thursday, Pat Carrabré Friday to Sunday.

- Nightstream, 1-6 a.m., a mix of musical genres, hosted by Danielle Charbonneau.

- Show times are a half-hour later in Newfoundland.

Range of styles

While most of the day on Radio Two will continue to be devoted to classical music, the broader range of musical styles is designed to reflect the way people now listen to music.

"If you look at what people have on their iPod, it's usually a whole range of musical styles," said Galloway, the Toronto-based host of Here and Now. Galloway will remain host of the Toronto drive-home show while taking on Canada Live.

"People who like jazz usually like a bit of the blues and they may be interested in world music," he said in an interview with CBC Arts Online.

The Canada Live format features mainly Canadian artists, but a range of musical styles and venues, including concerts recorded by CBC in concert halls, in bars and at festivals.

"The point is to move from place to place and to give a feel for the incredible range of music being created in this country," Galloway said.

The opening show Monday features Maritime singer-songwriter Joel Plaskett performing in concert with Symphony Nova Scotia, St. John's indie artist Amelia Curran and Celso Machado, a Brazilian-born artist who plays guitar, stones and the corpo (his own body) for a unique sound.

On Wednesday, a show from Ottawa will air songs by several Canadian artists —including Phat Al, Acorn, Kelly Lee Evans, Jill Barber and the Mighty Popo — who were commissioned by CBC to write songs based on black historical figures.

That same show features the Ottawa Chamber Music Society playing in a downtown bar and a violin concerto composed by Canadian Steven Gellman.

Brown said The Signal also will stray across a range of genres, featuring music that is rarely heard on radio.

"I want people to discover new artists, people they've never heard of," she said in an interview. "At least once a night I want them to say, 'Who is that? I love that track.'"

The contemporary music she is choosing for the show includes new music, but also electronic, ambience, sound tracks, instrumentals and any artist who can be considered an "original innovator."

New artists

This reflects the way people listen to music now, mixing up genres and tracking down new artists on MySpace or elsewhere on the internet, she said.

"Radio is competing with iPod," Brown said. "Everyone is searching for new discoveries. That's where I find new music — by searching the internet and friends telling me about something new they've heard."

She'll play musicians such as Gavin Byers, Philip Glass, Buck 65, Bjork and Caribou, linking works together by their sound or emotional links.

"It's music that crosses genres," she said. "We might have a composer who grew up writing rock work at composing for orchestra or a jazz musician who invites a DJ to scratch over his work."

Brown, who began as a music journalist with The New Music and was a journalist with CBC TV, makes her radio hosting debut on The Signal. She'll be working out of Toronto four days a week, while composer Carrabré takes over from Winnipeg the other three days.