Playlist

Nas' untitled album just took over the top spot on Billboard's Top 200. It seems as if the controversy over the album's original n-word title didn't hurt. (Or could it be that everyone already has Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III? Just wondering ...) God's Son sits atop the charts after selling 187,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, for his fifth No. 1.

Don't count Weezy out, though. He's still selling over 100,000 per week ... if you remember, Tha Carter III sold a million in the first week of release. And he's held the top spot for three non-consecutive weeks. Guess hip-hop isn't so dead after all ...

Nas, supported by Talib Kweli, Jay Electronica and DJ Green Lantern, will appear at Dallas' House of Blues on The Jones Experiece Tour on Aug. 26.

Single-disc rereleases and deluxe editions of U2's first three albums — War, Boy and October — just came out (read Thor's review of them here). Are you U2 fan enough to go buy them? Tell us which of the three albums is the best, or at least your favorite U2 album overall.

It's New Music Tuesday again, and Mario says that Candlebox has made a robust return with Into the Sun. What do you think? Check here for that CD review and others by Eliza Carthy and Sugarland, along with a report on how the album of controversial French first lady Carla Bruni is doing. Then come back and give us your insight.

Amazing! Just amazing! Lindale's Miranda Lambert finally notches a Top 10 hit single on Billboard's country chart with the fiery "Gunpowder & Lead," a story song about domestic abuse and eventual revenge. The track currently sits at No. 9. It took way too long for mainstream country radio to align on her side. But let's not complain because they did it with the best tune on 2007's marvelous Crazy Ex-Girlfriend CD.

Amazing! Just amazing!

Photo: Miranda Lambert all wrapped up in goodness (Courtesy of Columbia Nashville).

The first line of Stephen's story explains why I just might check out a little flick called The Wackness coming out tomorrow. The hip-hop soundtrack list alone at the bottom of the story is like, "It was all a dream! I used to read Word Up magazine!"

(Courtesy photo: Notorious B.I.G.)

Spain's La Oreja de Van Gogh, the quintet with the dreamy, rhythmic folk-pop sound, has switched lead singers. The angelic-voiced Amaia Montero has departed, and in her place is Leire Martínez. Ms. Martínez makes her debut on La Oreja de Van Gogh's still-untitled upcoming CD, scheduled to be released stateside Sept. 30. Here's hoping Ms. Martínez can help maintain the gorgeous sound the group had on 2006's stunning Guapa, a Latin Grammy-winning opus. The first single from the new disc is "El Ultimo Vals," which hits radio Aug. 12.

Photo: La Oreja de Van Gogh in 2005 with Amaia Montero (Montserrat Velando).

Country icon Willie Nelson's jazzy collaboration with respected trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, a CD titled Two Men With the Blues, becomes his highest debuting disc since 1982's Always On My Mind. Two Men, released on Blue Note Records, entered Billboard's pop albums chart at No. 20, selling 21,650 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. For Mr. Marsalis, this number is his career best...period. Before this, he reached No. 90 on the same list with 1984's Hot House Flowers.

Photo courtesy of Blue Note Records.

For those of us who came of age listening to Jackson Browne, word of a new album is pretty exciting. And this time, it won't be a solo acoustic live album, like the last two. Mr. Browne's 17th album will be released Sept. 23, but it marks the first time his own label (Inside Recordings) has featured a Jackson Browne studio album, presumably with his full and very able band backing him up. His last album for long-time label Elektra was The Very Best of Jackson Browne, a compilation released in 2004. His last album of new material for Elektra was The Naked Ride Home, released in 2002. Since then, he has recorded Solo Acoustic, Vol. 1 and Solo Acoustic, Vol. 2 for Inside Recordings, the label he founded. He was, of course, part of the original stable of artists on Asylum Records, which was co-founded by the legendary David Geffen in 1971. Mr. Browne then moved on to Elektra, which merged the Asylum artists into its own portfolio. In its heyday, the Asylum lineup was nothing short of amazing. In addition to Mr. Browne, other name acts included the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits and Warren Zevon, and these were all young performers when Asylum began recording them. Mr. Browne's new record is titled Time the Conqueror. So, does the title have anything to do with the fact that he turns 60 later this year?

Photo: Jackson Browne performing at Music City Texas Theater in Linden

Old 97's bassist Murry Hammond unveils his first solo CD nationally Aug. 18 on his own record label. I Don't Know Where I'm Going But I'm On My Way was recorded in 2007 in San Diego with producer Mark Neill. It supposedly boasts a rootsy sound owing heavily to the legendary works of the Carter Family, Johnny Cash and Hank Williams. And yet, you'll hear the moody spirit of, say, Brian Eno, too. The disc employs only acoustic instruments and even sports "cowboy poetry-style spoken word." Sounds like O Brother, Where Art Thou? meets the arty West.

Photo: Murry Hammond at Granada Theater in 2004 (Jason Janik/Special to DMN).

That little ol' band from Texas has signed a contract with Rick Rubin's respected and successful American Recordings label, according to billboard.com. ZZ Top will take to the studio with the celebrated Mr. Rubin producing what promises to be a new CD with a '70s La Grange kind of sound, not the slicker '80s style of Eliminator. With any luck Mr. Rubin can do for the Top what he did for Neil Diamond and the late Johnny Cash -- recharge the band's career both critically and commercially. No word yet on a prospective release date for the upcoming disc.

Photo: ZZ Top's Frank Beard, Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill (Chapman Baehler).

Hey, y'all! Take a peek at our New Music Tuesday disc debuts before they hit the paper tomorrow. We've got Big Blue Ball by various artists, Los Lonely Boys, Earlimart and Shinedown.

Sugar Hill Records, the respected imprint for bluegrass and old-time roots music, continues its Americana Masters Series with the releases of Ricky Skaggs: Best of the Sugar Hill Years and Doc Watson: Best of the Sugar Hill Years, both in stores July 8. Each CD features radio hits, fan favorites and frequent concert tracks.

Photo: Ricky Skaggs (Mark Humphrey).

Patti LaBelle, Sarah Dash and Nona Hendryx -- better known as electrifying R&B trio Labelle in the '70s -- are back together again and ready to record as well as perform onstage. The always innovative and explosive group will take the Essence Music Festival platform Saturday, July 5, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. Also, Labelle's first studio album in 33 years will be released Sept. 23 on Verve Records. Producing are Lenny Kravitz and the legendary team of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff. Gamble and Huff worked with Labelle during the making of Laura Nyro's 1971 album, Gonna Take a Miracle, which features the trio adding their vocals to the respected singer-songwriter's tunes. Miss Patti also collaborated with Gamble and Huff during her solo tenure at Philadelphia International Records in the early '80s.

Photo: The cover of 1974's Nightbirds, Labelle's most successful album (Courtesy of amazon.com)

San Angelo's Los Lonely Boys lead the pack of new CDs in stores Tuesday with Forgiven, the three brothers' third studio album. Also on tap is a live album from John Mayer, Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles, Vanessa Hudgens' Identified, Alkaline Trio's Agony & Irony, My Chemical Romance's The Black Parade Is Dead, Relient K's The Bird and the Bee Sides, and a new studio disc by Night Ranger, Hole In the Sun.

Photo courtesy of amazon.com.

Just an innocent observation from my gloriously twisted musical mind:

Britney Spears' comeback album was titled Blackout. Miley Cyrus' upcoming "I'm growing up now" album (due out July 22) is titled Breakout. Coincidence? I theorize not ... after all, both became brunettes for their respective transformations ... hehe.

(Photo: Bill Kostroun, AP)

Alabama lead singer Randy Owen will pen his memoirs with scribe Allen Rucker. Born Country chronicles Mr. Owen's life from poverty and share cropping in northeast Alabama to forming Wild Country, the group that would later become the long-running, influential Alabama. Without a doubt, Alabama is the most successful, most enduring country group in the genre's history. Born Country will be in stores Nov. 11, the same day that One On One, Mr. Owen's solo debut CD, hits the shelves.

Photo: Randy Owen (Courtesy of allmusic.com)

Jewel, Jessica Simpson, Bon Jovi ... Mario takes a look at pop and rock artists who are making the leap to country or who have dabbled with the switch in the past, and I'm interested about what you think. Is it diluting the value of good country music, or is it opening it up to more audiences? Also, tell us of any pop/rock-to-country cases we didn't mention. Here's one to start off: Darius Rucker from Hootie and the Blowfish has a country single, "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" and has a self-titled album for Capitol coming out this year.

• Also online: Jessica Simpson winning over country music listeners

So the publicist for Sony Legacy, the reissue arm of Sony Music Entertainment, sent a super-hyped press release trumping the reissue of the late Dennis Wilson's Pacific Ocean Blue. The two-CD set gathers the Beach Boys founder's solo debut, Pacific Ocean Blue, as well as tracks from Bambu, the second solo effort that was never finished. Here's how the release begins:

# 4 ROCK RELEASE ON AMAZON.COM DAY OF RELEASE!
# 8 DEBUT ON BILLBOARD'S CATALOG CHART!
# 2 BEST SELLER AT AMEOBA RECORDS IN LOS ANGELES!
# 16 DEBUT ON THE UK ALBUM CHART!

I admit I need to listen to my copy of Pacific Ocean Blue. So has anybody heard it? Is it that special?

Photo courtesy of pacificoceanblue.net.

That Ol Possum George Jones did a little summer cleaning on his musical playhouse and uncovered 12 duet performances never released before. Most of them were originally recorded for either 1991's Friends in High Places or 1994's The Bradley Barn Sessions. So come Aug. 19, Nashville's Bandit Records will issue Burn Your Playhouse Down: The Unreleased Duets. Included in the disc are: "Rockin' Years" with Dolly Parton, "Selfishness In Man" with Vince Gill, "When the Grass Grows Over Me" with Mark Chesnutt, "I Always Get It Right With You" with Shelby Lynne, "Lovin' You, Lovin' Me" with ex-wife, the late Tammy Wynette, and "You and Me and Time" with daughter Georgette Jones, among others. These recordings span from the mid 1970s to 2007.

Photo: George Jones at Bass Performance Hall (Louis DeLuca/DMN)

Rascal Flatts, Faith Hill, Brad Paisley, Alison Krauss and Little Big Town take on songs by Disney films Dumbo, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King and CARS on Country Sings Disney, a 15-song CD to be released July 8 on Nashville's Lyric Street Records. Also on the disc are: Phil Stacey singing "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," Bucky Covington interpreting "You'll Be In My Heart" and Trisha Yearwood crooning "Blue Beyond."

Photo courtesy of Lyric Street Records.

For those who regarded the Osmonds as nothing more than a chirpy little pop group, thanks in no small part to the huge hit "One Bad Apple," 1973's The Plan has probably been forgotten. That's a shame. Still available on CD, domestically on Curb Records even, The Plan is an ambitious record written, performed and produced by the brothers - namely Alan, Merrill and Wayne Osmond. It's a concept album about religion, but it poses thought-provoking spiritual and societal questions that transcend any particular denomination. Musically, it's quite impressive. Think soaring pop, progressive rock and even some arty, theatrical sonic touches. I've got the disc, bought it a good while ago and was spinning it recently. Very impressive, folks. It wasn't very successful when it was first released - for obvious reasons. But 35 years later, The Plan deserves a second listen.

Photo courtesy of cduniverse.com

U2's first three albums - 1980's Boy, 1981's October and 1983's War - will be reissued in both physical and digital formats July 22. Each title has been remastered from the original audio tapes and will be released in three versions, as a single CD, as a two-CD set including a second disc of B-sides, live tracks and rarities, and also as an LP pressed on 180 gram virgin vinyl. All of the packaging has been restored and embellished, of course, with all sorts of nifty photos and song lyrics. The Irish band's influential landmark The Joshua Tree from 1987 was remastered in similar fashion last November.

Photo courtesy of cduniverse.com