Lionel Richie and Quincy Jones are to re-record charity single 'We Are the World’.

The duo – who were behind the original 1985 single – are working on a new version of the track for its 25th anniversary, with all proceeds going toward aid relief for victims of the two devastating earthquakes which have hit Haiti in the last ten days.

The single and accompanying video will be recorded at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles on February 1, the day after Grammy awards, and the cast list is expected to include artists nominated and performing at the event.

A source said: 'We expect that, as with the original, everyone will leave their egos at the door. Most of the Grammy nominees are expected to stay for an extra day after the show to record the single, and some are expected to fly in especially for it.'

Usher and John Legend have already been asked to take part, and are expected to be joined by other singing stars including Wyclef Jean, Sting, Fergie, Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys and Justin Timberlake.

The original 1985 single was the brainchild of Quincy, Lionel and Michael Jackson and featured performers including Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Cyndi Lauper and Billy Joel.

The single is also expected to pay tribute to the late 'King of Pop’, who died suddenly in June last year, and he may even appear on the final record, as he had hoped to include 'We Are The World’ in his 'This Is It’ comeback shows and a version of it was reportedly recorded in rehearsals for the show.

Reality TV mogul Simon Cowell is also planning a single in aid of Haiti, and U2 have recorded a song with Jay-Z which they are hoping to release to raise funds for aid in the disaster stricken state.

Source music-news

Hoping to hear a full-scale rendition of In The Cage when Genesis is inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in March? Sorry to dash your hopes, but Peter Gabriel says it isn't going to happen.

Not only that, but he's pretty darn sure he isn't going to perform any songs with the band. "As far as I know, I'm definitely not going to sing," Gabriel told Rolling Stone. "I learned at our last reunion [in 1982] that you can't just get up there. You have to rehearse."

Beyond performing, Gabriel isn't even certain he'll be able to attend the induction ceremony, which takes place 15 March in New York City, as he'll be rehearsing for a European solo tour. "I'm trying to find a way to do it," he said. "It's not easy. If I can work it out, I'll go."

The idea of a classic Genesis reunion - Phil Collins, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford, Steve Hackett and Gabriel - almost became a reality five years ago when the group got together to discuss the possibility of staging their much-adored 1974 prog-rock opus The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.

"Initially I was open to it," Gabriel said. "But then it seemed to be growing. I know what it's like once you're in it - these things tend to expand. I always describe it as going back to school, since this was a school group for me. It's a fun place to visit and see your old friends, but its not a place you want to live."

Source musicradar

Aerosmith have revealed that they are set to hold auditions next month for a replacement for singer Steven Tyler.

Tyler recently checked into rehab to get treatment for painkiller addiction. He insisted he still planned to work with the band, but now guitarist Joe Perry has said that another frontman will be sought soon.

Perry told news agency QMI that they were going to "start having some auditions, making some phone calls. Hopefully, we'll have found a new singer by the summer, and Aerosmith will be able to go back out on the road".

Perry said that the move wouldn't necessarily mean that Tyler would not return to the band.

"He [Tyler] has to have leg surgery and foot surgery and it's basically going to take him out of the picture for about a year, year and a half," he explained. "So, in the meantime, the rest of the band wants to play. And I want to play with the other guys in Aerosmith. So the four of us are just making our plans. We're gonna find somebody to get in there and fill that spot."

Source NME

THEY WERE UNDOUBTEDLY one of the most extreme acts to emerge from the New York No Wave scene, forming in 1982 and remaining productive until 1997. Now, after a 13-year absence, founder member Michael Gira has confirmed that SWANS have returned.

Rumours of his decision to re-boot the band began to surface on January 9 with a posting on the band's MySpace page - SWANS ARE NOT DEAD - which announced the addition of a new song entitled Jim to the playlist section of the site and which mentioned that the band were set to issue a limited edition handmade CD entitled I Am Not Insane in order to raise funds for a new SWANS album.

Gira confirmed the reunion on January 19 issuing an official statement that reads as follows:

"I have decided to focus my energy on Swans once again. I'm reactivating that project. A new album is in the works, and touring will follow in fall of 2010. In order to help raise funds / help defray the considerable costs of recording and promoting the new album, I have made a special CD/DVD limited edition handmade package called I Am Not Insane available exclusively at the YGR website. You can read about the CD/DVD, and my decision to reactivate Swans at this link.

Gira, who has spent the last decade running his own label, Young God Records, as well as performing with his band Angels Of Light, has made a virtue of his bespoke approach to making records, literally creating the artwork himself. He is also keen to distance SWANS from the current spate of rock reformations.

"One thing I want to point out right now: THIS IS NOT A REUNION. It's not some dumb-ass nostalgia act. It is not repeating the past. After 5 Angels Of Light albums, I needed a way to move FORWARD, in a new direction, and it just so happens that revivifying the idea of Swans is allowing me to do that. I'll be using what I learned in the last several years to inform the way this new material develops, while carrying forward from where Swans left off with its final album Soundtracks For The Blind, and in particular, Swans Are Dead. If you have expectations about how Swans should be, that's your business, but it would be a disservice to both of us if I were to make music with your needs in mind, and the music would certainly suffer as a result. In any event, I certainly never thought this day would arrive, but it's inevitable, it's here, it's fate, so I'm succumbing to it."

In celebration of SWANS return, here's two clips - the first A Screw (Holy Money) from 1986, followed by an excerpt from a 1997 Czech documentary, in which Gira shares SWANS' modus operandi...

Source MOJO

Country singer Carl Smith has passed away at his home in Tennessee at the age of 82.

Smith, the former husband of June Carter Cash, died on January 16 while at home in Nashville, reports BBC News.

As a musician, Smith had a plethora of hits from the '50s, including 'Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way' (1952) and 'You Are The One' (1957). His 1953 hit 'Hey Joe' is considered by some to be an inspiration for the track of the same name later made famous by Jimi Hendrix.

In the '60s, Smith turned to acting, appearing in a number of westerns and hosting nearly 200 episodes of TV show 'Carl Smith's Country Music Hall'.

He married Carter Cash 1952, and the couple had one child together, Carlene Carter, before they divorced in 1956. The following year, Smith married country singer Goldie Hill, whom he remained with until her death in 2005.

Smith retired from music in the late '70s, and was inducted into the Country Music Hall Of Fame in 2003.

Source UNCUT

Singer/songwriter Bobby Charles has died aged 71 in his native Louisiana.

Charles penned a host of classic songs such as 'Small Town Talk' (with The Band's Rick Danko), Fats Domino's 'Walking To New Orleans' and Bill Haley And The Comets' 'See You Later, Alligator'. He passed away after collapsing his home in Abbeville on Thursday (January 14).

His song '(I Don't Know Why I Love You) But I Do', which was a major hit in the '50s for Clarence 'Frogman' Henry, also featured on the soundtrack to 1994 movie Forrest Gump.

Charles rarely performed, but did release albums occasionally throughout his career. He had recently completed work on 'Timeless', a collection of mostly new songs dedicated to Fats Domino, which he produced with his longtime friend and associate Dr. John. The album is scheduled to be released next month.

The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame inducted Charles in September 2007 for his contribution to local music.

Source UNCUT