COURTNEY LOVE failed to show up to a Beverly Hills court for a pre-trial hearing on charges of drug possession stemming from an October 2003 arrest. A bench warrant was issued for Love's arrest, but a judge suspended it after Love's attorney explained that her absence was due to "security" reasons. During two previous court dates, Love was harassed by a stalker outside the courtroom. The bench warrant will remain on hold until February 17th, the rescheduled date for Love to appear in court. She faces two felony counts for possession of prescription painkillers. Love's debut solo album, America's Sweetheart, was released this week . . .

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE has signed on to make his feature film debut in Edison with KEVIN SPACEY, MORGAN FREEMAN and LL COOL J. The movie will begin shooting next month in Vancouver with plans for a 2005 release . . . NELLY FURTADO and SARAH McLACHLAN lead the field for the thirty-third annual Junos with five nominations each. The awards, the Canadian version of the Grammys, will be held in Edmonton on April 4th . . . OUTKAST's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below and "Hey Ya" topped the Village Voice's annual Pazz and Jop album and singles polls, respectively. The poll includes input from more than 700 music critics . . . RUBEN STUDDARD and the BEACH BOYS will perform during festivities for the NBA's All-Star Game on February 14th in Los Angeles . . . ELVIS COSTELLO, nominated for an Oscar for his Cold Mountain song "Scarlet Tide," will perform at the ceremony on February 29th . . .

Russian papers are reporting that T.A.T.U. have split with the manager that helped them concoct their faux-lesbian schtick and are planning to continue under a new name . . . Bloodshot Records will celebrate its tenth anniversary with two showcases at the SXSW Music Conference in Austin March 18-19 featuring GRAHAM PARKER, JON LANGFORD and others . . . A collection of GEORGE JONES performances from the "Louisiana Hayride" radio show between 1956 and 1969 will be released on March 9th . . . ANGEL DEAN and SUE GARNER will release a new collaborative record, Pot Liquor, this spring . . . G. LOVE AND SPECIAL SAUCE will begin a fifteen-date tour on February 21st in Ithica, New York . . .

U2 will re-team with STEVE LILLYWHITE, who produced the band's early records, for their tenth studio album. Though Lillywhite added some production to the 2000's All That You Can't Leave Behind, the new record will be his first full collaborative effort with the band in more than twenty years. Recording begins next week in hopes of a fall release . . .

FREEWAY has teamed with PEEDI CRACK, FACE MONEY and BARS AND HYDRO to form ICE CITY. The group is working on a debut album due in the supper with guest spots by BEANIE SIGEL and JOE BUDDEN . . . PETE TOWNSHEND and PAUL WELLER will perform at a concert honoring late SMALL FACES guitarist RONNIE LANE on April 8th at London's Royal Albert Hall . . . DIANA ROSS was convicted this week for a December 2002 driving under the influence charge and sentenced to two days in prison . . .

EMINEM's ex-wife KIM MATHERS was sent to jail last week after a drug test, part of a January probation sentence, revealed that she had cocaine in her system. She's being held without bond until a February 12th arraignment . . . GUIDED BY VOICES have lined up seven March tour dates to make up for gigs cancelled due to frontman ROBERT POLLARD's back injury. Though the group has been recording a new studio set, Pollard will first release a new solo album, Fiction Man, in March . . .

Grammy-winning SEAN PAUL (his Dutty Rock won Best Reggae Album) will headline the twenty-third annual BOB MARLEY Day Festival on February 14th and 15th at Long Beach Arena in Southern California. WAYNE WONDER and ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT will also perform . . . The PIXIES have set the dates for their first tour in more than a decade. The outing begins April 14th in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and makes stops in the Pacific Northwest and Canada . . . Former BEATLES sound engineer GEOFF EMERICK has written a book about his work with the band, Here, There and Everywhere, to be published later this year . . .

ALEJANDRO SANZ, whose No Es lo Mismo won a Grammy for Best Latin Pop Album, will begin a fifteen-date tour on April 24th in Miami . . . FIVE FOR FIGHTING frontman JOHN ONDRASIK will begin a seven-date solo acoustic tour on February 14th in Chicago . . . The BOTTLE ROCKETS' Leftovers and Brand New Year and TIM EASTON's Special 20 will be reissued by New West Records on April 6th . . . The SOUNDS will begin a nineteen-date tour on February 15th in Milwaukee . . . BERNIE LEADON, who has played with the EAGLES and FLYING BURRITO BROTHERS, will release a new solo album, Mirror, on March 23rd.

(February 11, 2004)