P.O.D. earned three nominations for the Gospel Music Association's 2002 Dove Awards, which are set for April 25th in Nashville . . . No Doubt, Weezer and Offspring will play a benefit for the Recording Artists Coalition on February 26th at the Long Beach Arena in California . . . Chicago art-rockers Oh My God will release their second album, The Action Album!, on February 12th . . . A New Mexico judge issued an arrest warrant for Carlene Carter after she failed to show up to her December arraignment. Carter and Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers bassist Howie Epstein were arrested in June for heroin possession; Epstein was not charged in the case . . .

Nelly Furtado will make a guest appearance on "Fine Line," a track on Jarvis Church's debut album, Shake It Off, due this spring . . . 'N Sync have lined up the first six dates for a spring tour that will kick off on March 3rd in Portland, Oregon . . . While Phish remain on hiatus, the group did convene to add their voices to an episode of The Simpsons, that will air in April . . . Neil Diamond has extended the tour behind his latest album, Three Chord Opera, through March 10th . . . Medeski Martin And Wood will release their new album, Uninvisible, on April 9th; Col. Bruce Hampton and DJ Olive are among those who make guest appearances . . . The Saw Doctors will release their new album, Villains? on February 5th, followed by a U.S. tour that will kick off on February 16th in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida . . .

Ja Rule and Metallica have collaborated on "We Did It Again," a track on Ghetto Stories, a new hip-hop compilation by Ruff Ryders producer Swizz Beatz . . . 'N Sync has been added to the lineup of performers for the Grammy Awards on February 27th in Los Angeles . . . Carlos Santana will kick off a nine-date U.S. tour in Tampa, Florida on March 21st . . . Former Velocity Girl member Sarah Shannon, will kick off a U.S. tour in support of her self-titled debut on February 28th in San Francisco . . . Marcia Ball earned five nominations for the twenty-third-annual W.C. Handy Blues Awards to lead all acts. John Hammond and B.B. King are among other nominees for the event, scheduled for May 23rd in Memphis . . . The Dismemberment Plan and Death Cab For Cutie will hit the road this spring beginning February 17th in Grinnell, Iowa . . .

Members of Remy Zero, Mogwai, Jimmy Eat World and other groups are taking part in the Neverending White Lights project, a new collaborative album due in late 2002 . . . Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society will release their new album, 1919 Eternal, on March 5th . . . Project/Object will take Frank Zappa's former vocalists Ike Willis and Napoleon Murphy Brock out on a six-week tour, starting February 12th in Albany, New York . . . Kasey Chambers will hit the road for a seven-date tour behind her new album, Barricades and Brickwalls, on February 11th in New York City . . . Kenny Chesney will kick off his twenty-three date, No Shoes No Shirt No Problem Tour on January 31st in West Palm Beach, Florida . . . Elton John will make a cameo appearance in Ryan Adams' upcoming video for "Answering Bell" . . .

Mary J. Blige will release an expanded version of her latest album, No More Drama, on January 29th; the album will feature a new song with Ja Rule and a remix by Sean "P. Diddy" Combs . . . The Foo Fighters will perform at a benefit for the Musicians Assistance Program, a nonprofit organization that provides treatment for musicians addicted to drugs and alcohol, on February 7th in Los Angeles . . . Alanis Morissette, Papa Roach, Korn and Roger Waters have been tapped to appear at the Caracas Pop Festival in Venezuela in mid-March . . . Reebok kicked off its "Sounds and the Rhythm of Sport" ad campaign last night; the television ads feature guest spots by R. Kelly and Jadakiss . . . Los Lobos and Yolanda Adams will perform at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's centennial and Green L.A. benefit at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on February 10th . . .

The posthumous re-release of George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" topped the U.K. singles charts last week, a feat the song accomplished more than thirty years ago . . . The Wu-Tang Clan will begin a twenty-seven date tour behind Iron Flag on February 13th in Washington, D.C.; they will also appear tonight on Last Call With Carson Daly on NBC . . . Former Screaming Trees drummer Barrett Martin's project, Tuatara, which includes Peter Buck, Scott McCaughey and others, released a new album, Cinemathique, on Fast Horse Recordings this week . . . Country blues legend John Jackson died on January 20th of complications from liver cancer; he was seventy-six . . . Jazz/pop singer Peggy Lee, who recorded hits including "Big Spender" and "Golden Earrings," died of a heart attack in Los Angeles on January 21st; she was eighty-one . . .

(January 24, 2002)