THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with THE ROLLING STONES!  Here's a selection of live, semi-live, and undead clips of less-obvious tracks from the band's heyday: "Mercy, Mercy"; "Heart of Stone," "The Last Time"; "Ruby Tuesday," "Paint It Black"; "Honky Tonk Women"; and "Dead Flowers."  I always tend to think of this period of the Stones at this time of year for biographical reasons, as these songs (and last friday's Talking Heads) tended to soundtrack the preparations for my high school's Russian banquet.

HOSPITALITY dropped by the Cutting Room Studios in NYC to play an upbeat live set for KEXP. The band gets a profile at Blurt.

VERONICA FALLS bring their underwater vintage sounds to the KEXP studio for an energetic live set.

CASS McCOMBS plays a threefer for World Cafe.

KEVIN KINNEY & ANTON FIER: Leaders of Drivin N' Cryin and The Golden Palominos go country at World Cafe.

THE BANGLES: It's getting almost impossible to find this version of their cover of "Hazy Shade of Winter," but worth it.

SLEIGH BELLS are the March/April SPIN cover story.

CAROLINA CHOCOLATE DROPS singer and fiddler Rhiannon Giddens talks to PopMatters about string music and storytelling.

BETH JEANS HOUGHTON talks to The Independent about leaving her past and excitable pride at releasing an album.

THE TOP 25 INDIE LOVE SONGS, according to IGN.

CUTOUT BIN: From the Monkees to Earth Wind & Fire, from Billy Bragg to the Partridge Family, from Nina Simone to Big Country, plus the Beatles, ELO, Modern Lovers, Edison Lighthouse and more  -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING:This weekend's wide releases are: The Lorax, currently scoring 62 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and Project X, scoring 23 percent.

JUSTIN BIEBER turned 18 in style with a Fisker Karma – the highly coveted, ultra-exclusive plug-in hybrid luxury sports sedan. He's reportedly buying mega-mansions for himself and his mother.

DEMI MOORE has checked out of rehab at Utah's Cirque Lodge.

BRITNEY SPEARS settled a lawsuit filed by a former bodyguard who claimed Britney was a sex-crazed maniac who came on to him and flashed him.

KATE BECKINSALE talked to Parade about her Hunger Games obsession, working with her husband on the set of Total Recall, and relating to her daughter’s difficult teen years.

JOHNNY DEPP has started work on The Lone Ranger.

CHRISTINA HENDRICKS, in leather, brandishing a weapon. Call it Gratuitous Friday.

NORTH KOREA agreed to suspend its nuclear weapons program in exchange for food aid from the US. In the past, North Korea has made similar promises.

TERROR in TURKEY: A remote-controlled bomb mounted on a motorbike exploded as it passed close to the Istanbul headquarters of Turkey's ruling AK Party, injuring 10 people. Kurdish separatist groups as well as Islamist militants have carried out similar bomb attacks in Turkey in the past.

SYRIA: The Free Syrian Army retreated from the Bab Amr neighborhood in Homs. The civilian Syrian National Council and the military Free Syrian Army set up a joint command center. A Free Syrian Army commander said Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah brigades were fighting alongside the Syrian army.

AfPAK: The US military's top transport commander says overland cargo routes through Pakistan must be reopened to NATO for the United States to complete its pullout from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

SLEEPING HUMMINGBIRD snores in Peru.

GIANT "TREE LOBSTER" BUGS rediscovered on the remote island of Bell's Pyramid.

FEMALE BONOBOS "advertise" their homosexual activity to important audiences, say scientists.

SNAKE in a rental car.

DAVY JONES, the former child actor who became a star with the 60s pop group the Monkees, has died after a heart attack, aged 66. His former bandmates react. His highlight may be the John Stewart-penned "Daydream Believer," but I liked him on Boyce & Hart's "Valleri," as well as "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)" and "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You," both written by Neil Diamond. TIME collects still more video, including from his Brady Bunch cameo.

REAL ESTATE stopped by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set.

LAURA GIBSON also stopped by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set.

THE DEL FUEGOS stopped by WFUV's Studio A for a chat (including Replacements war stories) and some songs.

CEREMONY is advance streaming Zoo.

TITUS ANDRONICUS frontman Patrick Stickles unveiled new band and solo songs on WFMU.

BOW WOW WOW are reforming for 12 UK shows this spring. I think you know what I want.

DIE KREUZEN is also reuniting for a one-off event.

ST. VINCENT: Annie Clark talks to Drowned In Sound about technology, Tom Waits, and Strange Mercy.

FANFARLO: Simon Balthazar and Cathy Lewis talk to DIY about branching out on their new LP. (Thx, Chromewaves.)

BOB MOULD talks to Billboard about the endurance of "Copper Blue," the '90s revival and the return of his "loud" guitars.

THE TOP 10 INDIE BUZZ BANDS you may have forgotten. (Thx, LHB.)

THE AVENGERS has a new trailer online that's much better than the one I saw at the theater last weekend.

JENNIFER GARNER & BEN AFFLECK welcomed their third child, a baby boy.

SNOOKI is indeed pregnant and has plans to bankroll her mommy-to-be status into becoming "the next Kourtney Kardashian"?

WHITNEY HOUSTON's sudden death on Feb. 11 is expected to be officially ruled an accident.

TIM TEBOW and... Taylor Swift

EDDIE MURPHY and... Toni Braxton?

LINDSAY LOHAN tells Matt Lauer that she is "clean and sober" and she wants "to continue to move forward and in the right direction."  Apparently, that direction includes facial fillers.

TATUM O'NEAL, otoh, has voluntarily checked back into rehab after having a full-fledged cocaine relapse last month, reports RadarOnline.

BRADGELINA had an imaginary fight that stopped their imaginary wedding.

GEORGE CLOONEY talks about Brad Pitt, gay rumors and more.

IRAN's underground nuclear sites are not immune to US bunker-busters, experts say.

IRAQ: A senior Iraqi security official on Wednesday hailed improving security ties with neighbouring Saudi Arabia amid a tentative rapprochement between the two countries in recent weeks.

AFGHANISTAN must act quickly to tackle infiltration of its security forces or another fatal attack on Western forces could undermine ties with NATO, a senior Afghan defense ministry official said on Wednesday, in a rare admission of the threat within.

BABY SLOTHS take a bath.

AN ORLANDO MAN was arrested for allegedly punching and injuring a police horse during the All-Star weekend. The man is not named Mongo.

GRAVE-DISTURBING BADGERS: Swindon is powerless to stop them.

DOGS may be allowed in outdoor dining areas of L.A. eateries.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND palyed "We Take Care of Our Own" and "Wrecking Ball" for Fallon.

TENNIS stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

ISLANDS played World Cafe Live; you can stream the whole gig on demand.

POND, an Aussie psych-rock power-trio Pond sharing two members with Tame Impala, are streaming Beard, Wives, Denim.

RADIOHEAD debut "Identikit" and "Cut A Hole" on tour.

BOB DYLAN & THE BAND, Live in Oakland circa 1974.

THE POLICE: "It's Alright For You." Almost forgot this little gem.

SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS: Alejandra Deheza talks tarot cards at SPIN.

GREG DULLI  talks to The Quietus and SPIN about the Afghan Whigs reunion.

MARK LANEGAN: Somehow, I missed this list of his favorite albums.

POP STARS who get the internet.

NATALIE PORTMAN and Benjamin Millepied were indeed sporting wedding bands when they attended Sunday's Academy Awards in Hollywood, according to a jeweler.

UMA THURMAN is indeed pregnant again.

SEAN YOUNG wants the Academy to apologize for her post-Oscars arrest.

BRADLEY COOPER & ZOE SALDANA made out madly at the Weinstein Company's star-studded annual pre-Oscars bash.

ROBERT PATTINSON & KRISTEN STEWART also canoodled, albeit at WME's pre-Oscars party.

JULIA ROBERTS talks Young Hollywood at Vanity Fair.

FREIDA PINTO is the Esquire UK cover girl.

ANNASOPHIA ROBB has been cast as the lead in the pilot "The Carrie Diaries," the prequel to the wildly successful HBO comedy "Sex and the City."

JAMES SPADER is leaving The Office early.

YEMEN: The Yemeni military reportedly gave al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula one week to leave the cities of Zinjibar and Jaar or face an assault.

SYRIA: Tunisia said it was ready to grant asylum to Assad. The political leadership for the Palestinian group Hamas left Syria for Egypt and Qatar.

IRAN: Amnesty International said Iran had escalated a crackdown on dissent in the run-up to this week's election for parliament.

ENGLISH BULLDOG PUPPIES learn to walk.

DOG-HEADED PIG MONSTER terrorizes northern Namibia.

FLATWORMS are forever.

A DEER rescues a woman from an attacker in Oxford, OH.

GIRLS' latest video is for "My Ma."

NEW RELEASES from School of Seven Bells, Memoryhouse, Little Barrie, Wooden Sky, Beth Jeans Houghton, New Multitudes, Plants & Animals, Tiny Victories and more are streaming this week at Spinner.

BOWERBIRDS are advance streaming The Clearing.

SHEARWATER stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

NOW, NOW also stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

REAL ESTATE drops "In My Car" for Record Store Day flexi-disc.

REGINA SPEKTOR drops "All The Rowboats" ahead of What We Saw From The Cheap Seats.

THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS: "Fall" and "Sleep Comes Down" for Twofer Tuesday.

KATHLEEN EDWARDS talks to the Scotsman about Voyageur, perhaps her most personal album.

ANDREW BIRD talks to Drowned In Sound about the shift towards a communicativeness and vulnerability in his songwriting.

THE SEX PISTOLS have made arrangements with Universal Music Catalogue UK to issue a special 35th anniversary edition of Never Mind The Bollocks. Do you feel cheated?

THE WORST SONGS of the NINETIES, according to NME.

THE RAZZIE AWARDS nominations went to these folks. Congrats?

SEAN YOUNG was placed under citizen's arrest for battery at the official Oscars afterparty.

WHITNEY HOUSTON's mother Cissy is seeking closure by revisiting the late singer's final hotel room.

NATALIE PORTMAN: Secretly married?

JENNIFER ANISTON headed toward the altar?

UMA THURMAN: Pregnant again?

STAR TREK: Set pics from the sequel, possibly spoilery.

YEMEN: Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters whipped five people in Jaar for drinking alcohol. President Saleh reportedly will go in exile in Ethiopia. The youth activists who spearheaded the uprising that ended Saleh's 33-year rule are now grappling with internal divisions, as politics and competing visions weaken one of the Arab world's most dynamic revolts of the past year.

SYRIA: A 718-page digital document obtained by Mother Jones contains names, phone numbers, neighborhoods, and alleged activities of thousands of dissidents apparently targeted by the Syrian government. Syrian government forces began a massive assault on the city of Homs.

EGYPT: In the final tally, Islamists won 80 percent of the seats in the country's upper house of parliament, and 65 percent of the seats in the lower house.

IRAN: How Israel might attack Iran's nuclear program... and why it might not.  Also, Iran is still relying on old technology to expand its nuclear program, in what may be a sign it is having difficulties developing modern machines that could speed up production of potential bomb material.

DOG vs POLICE CAR: Who you got?

ARMED MAN vs CAGED RACCOON: Who you got?

A DRUNKEN ELK hides a family's swing set in the woods.

MONKEYS taught about money quickly invent monkey prostitution.

BEIRUT drops a retro video for "Vagabond."

ANDREW BIRD is advance streaming Break It Yourself.

MAGNETIC FIELDS are advance streaming Love at the Bottom of the Sea.

WHITE RABBITS are advance streaming Milk Famous.

THE CRANBERRIES played a Tiny Desk Concert at the offices of NPR.

DEATH drops "Relief," their first new song since 1976.

MASON WILLIAMS starts your week with "Classical Gas."

ST. VINCENT: Annie Clark explains her stage name to the New Zealand Herald and her musical inspirations to The Guardian. (Thx, LHB.)

SLEIGH BELLS are also profiled by The Guardian.

AMERICANA MAY BE COUNTRY... but country is rarely Americana.

JEFF MANGUM makes his fans delirious.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Act of Valor tops the box office with 24.7 million, a bit of a surprise to critics and pundits who continually seem surprised when a movie brings more conservatives to the cineplex.  The production budget was only 12 million, but the distribution and marketing pushes the total cost here to roghly 40 million, so the Navy SEALs will need another good weekend to ensure a profit.  Tyler Perry's Good Deeds places with 16 million, which follows the basic Perry pattern: those with Medea open above 20 million, those without open in the mid-teens.  Journey 2: The Mysterious Island shows with 13.5 million, a leggy performance as the family flick nears breaking even with its production budget domestically.  Safe House, alst week's topper, tumbles to fourth with 11.4 million, but has a 98.1 million total against an 85 million budget (Denzel's best showing since American Gangster, iirc).  The Vow rounds out the Top 5 with 10 million, dropping more than expected, but becoming Screen Gems' first 100 million movie in the process.  Below the fold, Wanderlust debuts at No. 8 with 6.6 million against a 32 million budget, which can't be good for Paul Rudd or Jennifer Ansiton, while Gone fared even worse in ninth with a 5 million debut against a 28 million budget.

WANDERLUST, directed by David Wain, is no Wet Hot American Summer, and not the Albert Brooks classic Lost In America, which mined similar themes.  But the script has plenty of funny moments, well executed by Jennifer Aniston, Justin Theroux and particularly Paul Rudd, making it the equal of Wain's Role Models.  Not essential, but I did not feel cheated, either.

THE OSCARS went to these folks. Congrats, although really... Meryl Streep? Again?

THE INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS went to these folks.  A big night for The Artist, another win for Christopher Lambert and a deserved screenplay award for 50/50's Will Reiser.

GERARD BULTLER left the Betty Ford clinic early Friday, after three weeks of treatment.

KATHY IRELAND is the world's richest supermodel.

STEPHEN HAWKING is somewhat of a regular at a Devore, California sex club, according to RadarOnline.

ISLAMISM in the USA: A Pennsylvania judge sided with the assailant and dismissed the harassment case of a parade marcher dressed as a "zombie Muhammad" who had been attacked by an irate Muslim.

YEMEN: Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula claimed credit for a suicide attack that killed 26 people, including 20 soldiers, at the presidential compound in Mukalla.

SYRIA: At least 31 Syrian civilians and soldiers were killed on Sunday in fighting over Syria's future that coincided with a vote on a new constitution that could keep President Bashar al-Assad in power until 2028.

EGYPT: The steady stream of delegations driving up the hill to the Muslim Brotherhood's new headquarters on a plateau overlooking central Cairo testifies to the fact that Western states, foreign businesses and international institutions are already courting the group as a government-in-waiting.

IRAN failed to co-operate with UN nuclear officials during two sets of talks in Tehran over the past month, the UN's watchdog has said in a report. The agency also said Iran had stepped up uranium enrichment in recent months.

THE GRASSHOPPER MOUSE: Howls like a wolf, bites like a tiger.

PUDDING the CAT saved his diabetic owner just hours after being adopted.

ARIZONA MAN arrested after rescuing and adopting drowning raccoon.

MAINE'S BIGGEST LOBSTER EVER, a 27-pounder with claws tough enough to snap a man's arm, was released back into the ocean on Thursday.