Playlist

Kenny Rogers, who recently turned 70, shares his festivities with Cracker Barrel. Hey, the food's good. Anyway, Kenny Rogers: 50 Years, a compilation of hits such as "The Gambler," "Lucille" and "Coward of the County," is on sale now exclusively at Cracker Barrel Country Store. The disc also includes three new songs -- "She'll Believe In You," "Something's Wrong in Vegas" and "Only Time Will Tell" -- all produced by the renowned Tony Brown. Kenny Rogers: 50 Years, selling for $11.99, joins exclusive Cracker Barrel titles by Josh Turner, Ricky Skaggs, Aaron Tippin and Alison Krauss & Union Station, among others.

Photo: Kenny Rogers: 50 Years cover courtesy of www.crackerbarrel.com.

MTV.com is reporting that 20-year-old Andre Young Jr., son of legendary rapper and producer Dr. Dre, was found dead at his home in Woodland Hills on Saturday morning.

Andre Young Jr. was found when his mother went to check on him around 10 a.m. The 20-year-old man was unresponsive, prompting his mother to call 911.

The cause of death is unknown, pending completion of a toxicology report.

Andre Young Sr. - better known as "Dr. Dre" - is an award winning producer who gained fame and notoriety as a part of the influential gangsta rap group NWA. He later becoming co-owner of West Coast record label Death Row records. Dr. Dre is currently working on Detox, an album reputed to be his last.

The constant replay of Olympics medal ceremonies for the USA, Nike's ad campaign for the Redeem Team and Mario's earlier post had me rating renditions of the national anthem. There's the gold standard: Whitney Houston and Marvin Gaye. There's some hot-on-their-heels silver: Beyonce, Jimi Hendrix and Boyz II Men. And there are too many to name and/or count in the bronze category: NSync and the Dixie Chicks come to mind.

There are also a lot of versions that should have been disqualified, such as Carl Lewis' version and Roseanne Barr's version. Marvin's version, while universally admired, begs the question of how much the arrangement of the Star-Spangled Banner should be toyed with. Marvin's arrangement turned the anthem into a smooth operation, without any of the bombast that anthems of any sort deserve. A small problem to have, though, when it still grooves all these years later.

(Photo: Business Wire)

According to Access Hollywood, Oscar-winning actress and singer Jennifer Hudson will perform the National Anthem Thursday at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. She'll do it at the request of Senator Barack Obama when he formally accepts the party's nomination for president, said a press release from Access Hollywood. Ms. Hudson's long-awaited debut CD, a self-titled project, will be released Sept. 30. Her next movie, The Secret Life of Bees, comes out Oct. 17. The film also stars Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys and Dakota Fanning.

Photo: Jennifer Hudson at the Oscars in February (Valerie Macon).