Playlist

Scandal, drama and betrayal....and no, this isn't Chapter 77 for "Trapped in the Closet." Apparently, in addition to losing a member of the 'Double Up' Tour (keep your head up Ne-Yo), he's also lost his long-time publicist, Regina Smith. Her statement read, in part....

“Friends and Colleagues – After careful consideration and counsel, I have decided to formally announce my resignation as publicist for R&B artist R. Kelly.
My resignation was effective as of August 28, 2007. Throughout the course of my 25 years as a publicist, I have prided myself on loyalty, respect and professionalism. It saddens me that I was not always shown those same courtesies during my 14 year tenure as Mr. Kelly’s publicist. Though I have a great appreciation for Mr. Kelly as an artist, there are some lines that should never be crossed professionally or personally. Mr. Kelly crossed a line that forever altered the scope of our relationship. ....

The very Men In Trees John Gorka (Ann Marsden)

In other folkie news ... Minnesota folk artist John Gorka (a not-too-hard-on-the-eyes folk artist, too, if I may) performs Saturday at Jefferson Freedom Cafe, another acoustic coffeehouse mainstay.

• Story: John Gorka keeps coffeehouses filled to the brim
• Also online: Dallas/Fort Worth-area church coffeehouses

To tha beat, y'all (fortunecity.com)

That got me to wondering about where else in the vast dub-dub-dub is good listening. Do you, fellow blog user (those of you who listen to computer radio, anyway), have a favorite? What sites do you use?

First Victoria Beckham was so freaked about the first show (this Sunday) that she didn't want hubby David Beckham to attend. Now she just better pray a nasty case of shingles doesn't sideline the concert altogether.

More: Chicken pox threatens Spice Girls tour

Keeping that head of hair upright for three days straight — now that's a feat.(AP)

Amy Winehouse, the British R&B/soul/jazz singer with the deliciously rugged vocal cords but a mean problem with the drink, stayed up for three nights in a row and now can't fulfill her performance obligations. Her husband's in the clink, and she's reportedly upset to the point of marathon insomnia over it.

So, who's your favorite F.T. today? "Favorite" meaning "makes me feel exceptionally functional," that is.

More: Amy Winehouse calling off rest of British tour for sleep

Nooooo ... not again (CBS)

• More: Victoria Beckham bans husband David from seeing Spice Girls' first show

MSNBC.com's story, Britney Spears: ‘Predictably unpredictable’ reports

Spears’ problems at best stem from deep issues with fame, or at worst, indicate a serious drug or mental health problem.

What do you think is causing the star's weird behavior?

First, Oprah Winfrey props up country that isn't country (Rascal Flatts; see Mario's entry below) for the nation's shepherded and brainwashed housewives. Now she props up opera that isn't opera for them, too.

Not that I have anything against Josh Groban; the guy's a phenomenal tenor. And I do respect his ability to own the niche that he's all but dug out for himself: keeping the tradition of opera alive by translating it into new-age adult contemporary pop. But thanks to his appearance on Oprah last week, his holiday album, Noel, sold another 405,000 copies and became the first holiday album to reach No. 1 since another Oprah fave -- Kenny G. -- grabbed the top spot with Miracles in 1994.

More salient, though, is the fact that the highest debut album on Billboard's 200 album chart was American Idol winner Jordin Sparks' self-titled debut, which bowed at No. 10. That's embarrasingly low: the album only sold 119,000 copies, which didn't even outpace former AI champ Carrie Underwood's Carnival Ride (141K sold), which is well beyond its sales peak. Is the AI franchise finally dying a slow death, or does America just not care since everyone's focused on the holidays already?

Commenter Okkervil River, below (are you a fan of Okkervil River or, like, actually part of the band? Curious), reminded me of a big bit of music news we didn't blog about. We covered the death of Casey Calvert on the website and in the band's event record (they were going to perform here Monday), but didn't make mention of it here. But I'm curious — who was planning to attend the HH concert next week?

Well what d'ya know: the reunited Van Halen really does dig Dallas.

On the heels of mostly shining reviews and what's got to be tempered contentiousness between Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth thanks to age and mortality, Van Halen's expanded its reunion tour to include a stop at Dallas' American Airlines Center on Jan. 26. Showtime is tentatively set at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets, which run (gulp!) from $49.50 to $149.50, go on sale on Dec. 1 at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster.

Or so Jermaine Jackson told BBC Radio Monday. Read the story here.

(And before you ask, yes. Michael Jackson would join Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and younger brother Randy on the road.)

What do you think? Should the Jackson Five reunite?

Two bits of news from 1980s hair band land.

— Kevin Dubrow, lead singer for Quiet Riot, was found dead at his Las Vegas home. He was only 52. No cause of death yet. Read the story here. Share your favorite Quiet Riot memories and songs with us.

— Mötley Crüe's Nikki Sixx signs copies of his new book, The Heroin Diaries, at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 7, at the Borders in West Village. Word is that the collection of diary entries, which focuses on his drug addiction, is supposed to be a pretty telling tome. There is also a companion CD that he'll be selling/signing, too (read Mike's previous post about it here). Just don't bring memorabilia/paraphernalia/previously-bought CDs for Nikki to sign. Call the bookstore for more details.

Billy Joe Shaver (Allison V. Smith / DMN)

For those of you asking, "Billy Joe who?" ... His honky-tonk, athentico country influenced the likes of Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard back in the '70s. Without Billy Joe, there might not have been the Willie-as-we-know-him-today. Which would have been a terrible thing.

How was the songbird's show at Nokia Theatre Saturday night?

Did hometown girl Kelly Clarkson rock Nokia Theatre? Let us know.

Last week, I took advantage of the Dallas Museum of Art's free-after-5 p.m. Thursday extended hours to check out the "Phil Collins: the world won't listen" exhibit. British artist Phil "Not the Guy from Genesis" Collins filmed Smiths fans in Bogota, Colombia; Istanbul, Turkey; and Jakarta, Indonesia, singing tracks from the Smiths' 1986 album, The World Won't Listen. Three screens in three connected rooms show three performances of the same song simultaneously. For example: During "London," on one screen, a brash guy screams out the lyrics and jumps around. On another, a shy fellow self consciously tries out his Morrissey impersonation. Contrast and compare.

Neil Diamond has revealed that Caroline Kennedy, JFK's daughter, was his inspiration for his hit, "Sweet Caroline."

Now that's that mystery's solved, we want to know which other music mysteries do you want solved? We'll start: Who is so vain, and what was Billy Joe McAllister throwing off the Tallahatchee Bridge?

You knew it'd happen. Bruce Springsteen's bringing the E Street gang to Dallas for a concert on April 13. The venue's not set yet, but judging from the sites listed for his tour's second leg, it'll be a big arena and not a mid-sized spot such as Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie.

What still bums me out: Van Halen still hasn't added Dallas to its ongoing reunion tour. Houston is now on the docket (Jan. 28 at the Toyota Center; tickets go on sale Dec. 1), as is Oklahoma City (Jan. 22 at Ford Center; tickets will be available on Dec. 8), but nothing here. Looks like if you're hot for teacher, you'll have to road trip it.