Winehouse Too Messed Up for 007 Tune?

Britain's favorite bad girl vying to land new movie's theme song

(NEWSER) - Though her head-butting skills may be as valuable to 007 as her pipes, Amy Winehouse is auditioning to be the theme-song girl, not Bond girl, of the upcoming pic Quantum of Solace. Producer Mark Ronson said there are no guarantees her track will be used, though he adds, “The demo sounds like a James Bond theme.” More»

Queen of 'retro soul' not just cribbing from the past, says Frere-Jones

(NEWSER) - It's tempting to chalk up the popularity of singer Amy Winehouse to her headline-grabbing bent for self-destruction, writes Sasha Frere-Jones in the New Yorker. But that would be a mistake. He takes a closer look at Back to Black, with its "perfect" single "Rehab," and finds much to treasure. What might initially come off as mere imitation of classic soul and R&B is actually a novel evolution, he argues. More»

Barry won five Oscars and a Grammy for his soundtracks

(NEWSER) - John Barry, the soundtrack composer famous for scoring 11 James Bond films and winning five Academy Awards, died yesterday of a heart attack. His first Oscars came in 1967 for Born Free, earning him best score and best song, followed by best score for The Lion in Winter, Out of Africa and Dances with Wolves (for which he also won a Grammy). "He saw himself as much a dramatist as a composer and his music was inextricably linked to the stories told on the screen," said Barry's son-in-law to the BBC . More»

Amy Winehouse and Blink-182 are back, plus more hot releases

(NEWSER) - Forget Susan Boyle and Taylor Swift: This year promises to be a great one for music, with comebacks by big names and exciting follow-ups from breakthrough artists. MTV takes a look at the most anticipated albums of 2010:

• Amy Winehouse : The troubled singer will, supposedly, finally complete the sequel to her Grammy-winning Back to Black.
• Katy Perry : She’s worked with Rivers Cuomo of Weezer as well as a Rihanna collaborator on her follow-up to One of the Boys.

Soothing classical sounds improve accuracy, doctor says

(NEWSER) - Just like on TV, real surgeons listen to music in the operating room—and it may make them better sawbones. Research by a Massachusetts doc suggests that some soothing Mozart improves accuracy when a surgeon repeats a surgical task. Silence ain’t bad, either—but hearing German folk music issue from one ear and death metal from the other, unsurprisingly appears less than helpful. More»