Me'Shell Ndegeocello made Internet history this week when "Grace," the first single from her upcoming album, Bitter, debuted on Web music service Spinner.com in advance of being aired on traditional radio.| The song is most prominently featured on Spinner.com's first-ever artist-focused channel, aptly named the All Me'Shell Channel, but is also being played on several of the site's other 125+ channels. Luddites will have to wait until after the album's Aug. 24 release to hear Ndegeocello's latest...

Dying to hear "New Day," the recently completed duet by Wyclef Jean and Bono? The song, which will benefit both NetAid and the Wyclef Jean Foundation for underprivileged children, will officially be unveiled on Sept. 8 -- twice. The first premiere will be at the United Nations, as part of the kickoff of the NetAid campaign to eradicate world poverty. Alternately, for $1,000 (benefiting the Wyclef Jean Foundation), you can experience it at a tony dinner at the Copacabana Club in New York. An invite to the soiree promises "An evening of dinner, dance and performances by Wyclef and friends, including the worldwide premiere of 'New Day,' a duet by Wyclef and Bono." Whether that means Clef and the U2 frontman will perform together or merely that the song and/or video will play during dessert has yet to be revealed. A spokesperson for Jean at Columbia Records said the list of "friends" was still being worked out . . .

"Sing Me Back Home" was a No. 1 hit for Merle Haggard on the country charts back in 1967. Unfortunately, this week Haggard did sing himself back home. Undeterred by a recent spell of bronchitis, Haggard had kept up his rigorous touring and recording schedule to the point that he contracted pneumonia, forcing the honky tonk legend to cancel his remaining eleven August shows and head home to Palo Cedro, Calif. "He just basically got run down," says Haggard's booking agent, Bobby Roberts. "The doctors felt he needed to take some time off and rest. It's serious from a standpoint that he is ill, but it's not life threatening." Roberts expects Haggard to be ready to go again Sept. 9 in Warrensburg, Mo., and plans are to reschedule the cancelled shows . . .

It looks likes David Bowie might have a date for New Year's Eve, after all. According to the New Zealand Star Herald, both Bowie and Split Enz are being courted by Frontier Touring, which is staging a millennial event at Bastion Pt., Auckland, on Maori land overlooking Hauraki Gulf. The location can hold up to 35,000 people, and organizers plan to serve up a twelve-hour concert. So far, Portishead have confirmed, and Ian Magan, an agent for Splitz Enz, told the paper that both the Enz and Bowie are close to signing on. Tickets are going for $330 and $150, but priority areas in front of the stage are being set aside for the 750 who bought tickets for the Gisbourne event . . .

BILL CRANDALL, JENNY ELISCU, BLAIR R. FISCHER, RICHARD SKANSE and JAAN UHELSZKI
(August 12, 1999)