Amy Winehouse doesn't have emphysema, spokeswoman says

LONDON - A discrepancy regarding the health of Amy Winehouse arose Monday after the Grammy-winning singer's father said she had early stage emphysema brought on by smoking crack cocaine and cigarettes.

A publicist for Winehouse later said he had misspoken "out of his concern for her."

"She is not diagnosed with full-blown emphysema, but instead has early signs of what could lead to emphysema," Tracey Miller, her U.S.-based representative, told The Associated Press on Monday.

In an interview published Sunday by the Daily Mail of London, Mitch Winehouse said that his daughter's crack and cigarette smoking had led to early-stage emphysema, and that the singer had an irregular heartbeat. He said she had been warned that she will have to wear an oxygen mask unless she stops smoking drugs.

"The doctors have told her if she goes back to smoking drugs, it won't just ruin her voice, it will kill her," Mitch Winehouse was quoted as saying. "There are nodules around the chest and dark marks. She has 70 per cent lung capacity."

However, in an interview later with BBC Radio 1, he appeared to downplay his dire statements, and said: "Amy really hasn't got emphysema, there's traces of emphysema. Obviously, if she doesn't quit smoking, it's going to get worse, like everyone else ... with patience her lungs will recover completely."

He added that she was covered in nicotine patches and is "flourishing" in response to treatments.

Emphysema is a lung disease caused primarily by smoking. It takes years to develop and is mostly seen in people over 45.

The 24-year-old soul diva collapsed at her north London home Monday after signing autographs for a group of fans and was taken to a London hospital for tests. She remained there all week.

She is still scheduled to sing at a concert in London on Friday celebrating the 90th birthday of Nelson Mandela and plans to take part in the Glastonbury music festival the following day.

Mitch Winehouse said it would be good for his daughter to perform.

"When she's been inactive work-wise then that's when the problems really start. The doctors have said that medically there isn't any reason why she can't do Glastonbury," the paper quoted him as saying.

He also pleaded with her drug-taking friends to stay away from her.

"What hope does she have if people are taking drugs around her," he said.

Miller said Winehouse still has hopes to perform at the Mandela concert.

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Los CRUDOS

   
Artist: Los CRUDOS

   Genre(s): 
Rock: Punk-Rock
   Hardcore
   

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Discography:


   
 Canciones Para Liberar Nuestra

   Year: 1996   
Tracks: 17


   
 Crudos - 7 inch

   Year:    
Tracks: 4

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Chicago-based hardcore-punk grouping Los Crudos break open into the john Rock panorama in the early '90s, playing at the Latin neighbourhood of Pilsen. Led by Uruguayan vocaliser Martín Sorrondeguy, this four-piece move started as a fancy to direct social issues commonly related to the Latin community, especially youth people. To release their records, Los Crudos created their possess label, called Lengua Armada, issuance a few singles and the albums Canciones Para Liberar Nuestras Fronteras and 1991-1995 Los Primeros Gritos. The band stone-broke up later on hexad long time of performing in South, Central, and North America.

David Bowie - The Things They Say 8310

"(I sneaked) out of the house to see a DAVID BOWIE concert and it charged my life. I was grounded for the summer... It was so worth it." MADONNA credits DAVID BOWIE with changing her life.

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• Thriller added to US National Recording Registry
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• Gig review: Elton John in Auckland (+pics)

Michael Nyman and Ute Lemper

   
Artist: Michael Nyman and Ute Lemper

   Genre(s): 
Other
   

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Discography:


   
 Songbook

   Year: 1991   
Tracks: 12

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Spears thrilled with TV guest spot

Britney Spears has spoken of her happiness at working as a guest star on the US comedy series 'How I Met Your Mother'.
Reuters reports that Spears is playing a dermatologist's secretary called Abby on the show.
In a statement released by the show's makers CBS, Spears said: Working at 'How I Met Your Mother' has been so terrific. Everyone, including the cast, the crew and the producers, has been wonderful and Abby is such a fun girl to play. I'm having a blast!"
The episode guest starring Spears is expected to air on US TV on 24 March.

Damnation A.D.

   
Artist: Damnation A.D.

   Genre(s): 
Rock
   

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Discography:


   
 In This Life Or The Next

   Year: 2007   
Tracks: 12

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Straight in the deep end

Touring singer k.d. lang talks protest, Buddhism and other zen matters with Russell Baillie
If k.d. lang has a lower profile these days than she once did, nobody's told Australia.The Canadian singer took the place by storm as she started her international touring for new album Watershed - her first batch of original songs in eight years - across the Tasman before hitting New Zealand this week.First Watershed went to number one in the Aussie charts as the sell-out signs went up on her shows.Then she started generating headlines. A practising Buddhist, she turned up in support of pro-Tibet activists as the Olympic torch made its way through Canberra.Then, when a Melbourne cop gave her car an unauthorised VIP escort to the Rove show after a delayed flight from Perth, the ensuing kerfuffle sparking a police internal inquiry.A phone call finds her in Sydney, sounding quite amused by it all - and pleased at the reaction to Watershed, arguably her best album since her touchstone set Ingenue - which it sometimes echoes in its blend of country, torch pop, bossa nova and heartache.




It sure sounds like you've hit town in a big way - number one album, motorcycle escorts and a protest rally ... I didn't even premeditate the protest but when I realised the torch was going to be in Canberra I really had to go. I'm on the board of directors for the American Foundation for Tibetan Cultural Preservation. It's part of my job - it's actually a bigger part of my job than the music industry so I really had to go and be present.Well you are a torch singer.That's funny.And this tour isn't going to China, is it?No I guess probably not going to China. Not for a while.Over your career you've been known for representing causes, other than just making music. Is this another chapter?It just seems things pop up. I don't represent things that I don't truly live and breathe. I've been a vegetarian for 26 years or something; I've been a lesbian my whole life and I've been a Buddhist practitioner for eight years ... I am in the position I can make social commentary on a major stage and so I do.I don't consider myself a political person, funnily enough. It just so happens that's what happens in this lifetime.Makes you wonder what you did in your previous life.Yeah, I have no idea. It's probably better that I don't remember.The last time you toured in these parts it was on the Hymns album [a covers collection of Canadian artists] with an orchestral backing. This time it's a little more minimal isn't it?It's a five-piece band and myself so it's a more traditional k.d. lang sound. But having played the orchestra it has altered the way I am on stage, just like making country records has altered the way I am, or singing with Tony Bennett. It all adds up.

Richard Hammond talks about depression

'Top Gear' star Richard Hammond has revealed that he has suffered from depression since being involved in a high-speed car smash in 2006.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, the television presenter said: "I damaged all the complicated bits of the brain to do with processing and emotional control."
"[I was] prey to every single emotion that swept over me and I couldn't deal with it. I had to relearn things from scratch."
Hammond also said: "I'll still have a week when I'm freaking out about something and I'll realise it's because I'm encountering a new emotional state and I have to evolve a new strategy to cope with it."
"My memory is a lot better but the other day I forgot the PIN numbers to all my cards. All of them. Completely gone."
The star suffered a "significant" brain injury in September 2006 when the jet-powered dragster he was driving went off a track and crashed at a speed of 288mph.

Kelly Rowland - Rowland Madonna Is Allowed To Be A Diva

Singer KELLY ROWLAND has hit out at British festival organisers who have blasted MADONNA's outrageous backstage demands - insisting she is allowed to be a diva.
The ...

Radiohead 'Creep'ed out by Prince cover

WASHINGTON - After word spread that Prince covered Radiohead’s “Creep” at the Coachella music festival, the tens of thousands who couldn’t be there ran to YouTube for a peek. Everyone was quickly denied - even Radiohead.
All videos of Prince’s unique rendition of Radiohead’s early hit were quickly taken down, leaving only a message that his label, NPG Records, had removed the clips, claiming a copyright violation. But the posted videos were shot by fans and, obviously, the song isn’t Prince’s.
In a recent interview, Thom Yorke said he heard about Prince’s performance from a text message and thought it was “hilarious.” Yorke laughed when his Radiohead band mate, guitarist Ed O’Brien, said the blocking had prevented him from seeing Prince’s version of their song.



“Really? He’s blocked it?” asked Yorke, who figured it was their song to block or not. “Surely we should block it. Hang on a moment.”
Yorke added: “Well, tell him to unblock it. It’s our . . . . song.”
YouTube prohibits the posting of copyrighted material. If the site receives a complaint from a copyright owner, it will in most cases remove the video(s). Whether the same could be done for a company not holding a copyright is less clear, but Yorke’s argument seems to bear credence according to YouTube’s policies. YouTube, which is owned by Google, declined to comment. Prince also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The dispute was an interesting twist in debates about digital ownership, held between two major acts with differing views on music and the Internet. Radiohead famously released its most recent album, “In Rainbows,” as a digital download with optional pricing. They also have a channel on YouTube.
When Prince performed at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 26, he prohibited the standard arrangement of allowing photographers to shoot near the stage during the first three songs of his set. Instead, he had a camera crew filming his performance.
Prince fans have organized to urge him to relent in his legal fights to control images and photographs of himself. As of Thursday, the most popular YouTube clip about Prince playing “Creep” is an expletive-laden rant from Sam Conti Jr., who describes himself as a “former Prince fan.”

Barack Obama leads field in campaign songs

Candidate songs have taken off on YouTube





NEW YORK -- Barack Obama is closing in on the Democratic nomination for president, but he clinched the race for the best campaign soundtrack long ago -- no superdelegates needed.
John McCain and Hillary Clinton also have plenty of musical support in the first presidential election of the YouTube era. But from will.i.am's star-studded viral hit "Yes We Can" to amateur odes folk to Spanish-language tunes and even a Jamaican reggae tribute, Obama is the leader in what observers are calling a new form of political campaigning.
"Songs about candidates have really taken off," said Steve Grove, head of YouTube's news and politics division. "They've found a new way to support their candidates. ... it stretches from regular average voters all the way up to somebody like will.i.am in terms of being kind of like a new, broader trend in political video."
Annie Palovcik is one of those regular people. She penned the prideful folk tune "Illinois Boy" for Obama when he first came to national prominence a few years back -- then put it on the Web when Obama became a serious presidential contender this year.
"The concepts of his character and the place of Illinois filtered through my mind into this allegorical country song," said Palovcik, a songwriter and manager of two musicians.
"He is energizing those around him, daring them to look for a new way to dream," she said.
Not that Obama has a lock on musical inspiration. McCain has had songs penned for him, such as "Lead the Way" by a lawyer named Judd Kessler. Clinton has inspired numerous tuneful tributes -- no less than Sir Elton John gave her a benefit concert in April -- and "Stuck on Huck" was recorded for Mike Huckabee. Even Republican long shot Ron Paul had a song about him that got 60,000 views on YouTube.
Obama has strong support among young people, which may explain some of his Internet music presence. While Grove said there's no specific statistical data to prove it, just on YouTube alone "it seems that (Obama) has really garnered a lot of songs. I think the early success of the Obama girl music video (the song by a scantily clad woman that became a national sensation last year) probably had something to do with that."


Even Dulce Maria Gonzalez, a musician who supports Clinton, notices an Obama imbalance: "When I started to write a song for her, I noticed that there weren't that many on YouTube, and then I saw a lot of them, but they're just not as popular as the Obama songs."
She's hoping her "We Need A Woman" will help reverse the trend. Featuring Gonzalez crooning about Clinton's feminine power, the midtempo tune has garnered about 5,000 views on YouTube (will.i.am's "Yes We Can," in comparison, has gotten more than five million).
"I wanted to do something special for her, and let her know that she did have a Latin vote, and a young vote as well, and give her this song as a gift," said the resident of Brownsville, Texas.
It's not just musicians writing songs to show their support for Obama. Rolling Stone put him on the cover when endorsing him for president, Bruce Springsteen has announced his support, while performers like OK Go and Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz have performed for his benefit. Jay-Z has been taking time out on stage during his tour to flash a picture of Obama and tell the audience, "It's time for a change."
"Musicians generally do not like authority, establishment or bureaucracy. Obama is the first candidate in my lifetime, certainly in memory, that represents any kind of new wave of change," said Craig Wedren of the rock group Shudder to Think, which was part of an indie-rock bill, including OK Go, that recently gave a concert for Obama.
It's hard to pinpoint whether the popularity of songs translates into any particular voting surge. will.i.am released "We Are The Ones" a few days before the Ohio and Texas primaries, but Clinton won both states.
But there has been record turnout in many states this year. will.i.am said he specifically used music to support Obama instead of just lending his celebrity because "people are tired of that."
His song "is driven by inspiration and it's creative and it's love, it isn't anything else," he said.
That's what makes the majority of these songs so key, especially for Obama, Grove said.
"The dream scenario, by the way, is what the Obama campaign has basically landed, which is to inspire a group of supporters to do this on their own without any real top-down campaign control," he said.
And if candidates can move the songwriter, they may be able to move the nation as well.
"I keep wondering, if (Obama) is inspiring so much creativity for songwriters," asked Palovcik, "what is he doing for farmers?"