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Timothy White, Billboard editor in chief since 1991, died suddenly of an apparent heart attack June 27, just as the magazine was going to press. He was 50. Timothy collapsed in an elevator in the Billboard offices at 770 Broadway in New York and was rushed to St. Vincent’s Hospital, where he succumbed. Timothy is survived by his wife Judy Garlan, his 10-year-old twins Christopher and Alexander, and seven siblings. Born on Jan. 25, 1952, in Paterson, N.J., to John Alexander and Gloria White, Timothy had a boundless passion for music and its creators that filled the pages of Billboard.… Read more »

Thousands of music fans have begun the annual pilgrimage to the Glastonbury Music Festival, parking caravans and pitching tents on Michael Eavis’s sprawling farmland ahead of the party’s official kick-off Friday. The grounds were thrown open Wednesday night and by Thursday a few eager thousand had already settled in for a weekend orgy of rock, pop, dance, folk and reggae music. Coldplay, Spiritualized, Mercury Rev and Canadian singer Nelly Furtado were among the diverse array of top acts who will open this year’s festival Friday afternoon. The Charlatans, The Beta Band and a surprise special guest were scheduled for Saturday… Read more »

A Wisconsin senator took aim at radio and concert-promotion giants on Thursday with legislation that seeks to curb alleged anti-competitive practices in the recently deregulated industries. Pointing to a decline in local ownership of radio stations, escalating ticket prices, and strong-arm promotion tactics, Democratic Sen. Russell Feingold said his bill would rein in the worst abuses of an industry that has undergone rapid consolidation since ownership caps were relaxed in 1996. “I think it is time for Congress to make a strong statement on this,” Feingold said. The 1996 Telecommunications ( news – external web site) Act eased restrictions on… Read more »

The government seemed to side with Internet broadcasters when establishing a royalty rate Thursday, and although the new fees were lower than a proposal rejected last month, the costs may force several independent Net radio stations out of business. The U.S. Copyright Office settled on a rate of 0.07 cent per listener per song for both Internet-only stations and conventional stations that simulcast their programming on the Web, according to a government spokesperson. The rate is exactly half of what the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel (CARP), a three-member board appointed by the Copyright Office, suggested in February that Internet-only stations… Read more »

The Strokes may be the “it” band of the moment, but don’t expect them to be lining up studio sessions with “it” producers like Glen Ballard or the Neptunes. When the New York garage-rockers begin recording their second album later this summer, Is This It producer Gordon Raphael will again be behind the boards. “It’s not gonna be like, ‘Oh, now that we’re successful, we’re gonna work with all these super-producer guys that are going to make us a top-selling hit,’ ” singer Julian Casablancas said backstage at Saturday’s KROQ Weenie Roast. “That’s never been the goal for us. We… Read more »

Courtney Love, Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic continue to bump heads about a lot of things, but attorneys for both sides say all three musicians think the unreleased Nirvana song “You Know You’re Right” should be in the hands of the band’s fans. They’re aiming to issue it on a Nirvana best-of collection by the end of the year, and the compilation will be followed by a box set of rarities, then a single best-of-the-box CD. That’s if all goes well. If all does not go well, we may not get anything, as efforts to release the material could be… Read more »

Linkin Park’s Reanimation is one step closer to coming to life. The album, consisting mainly of new versions of tracks from the group’smultiplatinum 2000 debut, Hybrid Theory, has gone through the mastering stage, and a final track list has been settled upon, according to the band’s manager. The 20-track LP is due July 30. Linkin Park are the prototypical rap-rock hybrid (in fact, the group’s original name was Hybrid Theory), and Reanimation doesn’t do anything to change their stance on crossbreeding genres. While Hybrid Theory employed looped beats, scratching and other DJ techniques, courtesy of Joseph Hahn, Reanimation puts a… Read more »

In a decision criticized by both Webcasters and the recording industry, a government official Thursday ruled that Internet radio stations must pay royalty rates that are 50 percent less than proposed by a federal panel. Librarian of Congress James H. Billington has ruled that all Webcasters will have to pay 0.07 cents per song per performance, compared with the 0.14 cents per song per performance recommended by a federal arbitration panel in February. But Billington stunned Webcasters by flatly rejecting their call for royalty rates that are based on a percentage of revenues. While the recording industry said Billington’s decision… Read more »

Transcending her tumultuous teen character in “Crossroads,” a self-assured Britney Spears will live life in the fast lane for her next movie. Spears has inked a deal with NASCAR to develop and produce a feature film based on the world’s fastest sport, according to her publicist. In the film, Spears will portray the daughter of a NASCAR team owner who inspires a retired track veteran to return to the circuit. Although casting has yet to be completed, NASCAR drivers are expected to appear in the flick. James V. Hart, who has scripted the screenplays for “Contact” (1997) and “Muppets Treasure… Read more »

Even if he doesn’t ever say, “This is the first song off our new album” in concert, believe it or not, Ozzy Osbourne still has something in common with Robin Zander. Like Zander’s Cheap Trick before him, Osbourne recorded his performance at Tokyo’s Budokan Arena and will title the resulting live LP Live at the Budokan (though Cheap Trick’s legendary 1979 release was titled Live at Budokan, for those scoring at home). The 13-track album, boosted with bonus CD-ROM video footage, is due June 25, according to Osbourne’s Web site. A home video, issued on both VHS and DVD formats,… Read more »