THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with THE ENGLISH BEAT!  Why? Mostly because they cranked out great ska-pop.  My personal fave may still be "Best Friend," but you might prefer more signature songs like "Mirror in the Bathroom,"  "Save It For Later."  "I Confess" or "Doors of Your Heart." Or their adaptations of covers like Smokey's "Tears Of A Clown" and the Andy Williams number "Can't Get Used To Losing You."

SHEARWATER stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set you can stream on demand via MPR.

SILVER JEWS: David Berman talks to Paste and says something very politically incorrect about the shelf life of rock musicians.

LOS LOBOS features songs from their 2006 concept album, The Town and the City, in a concert from Disney Hall now streaming via NPR.

PRIMAL SCREAM: Bobby Gillespie does not talk to the Times of London about lyrics, but does talk about chemistry and such.

PEARL JAM & ACE FREHLEY:  Ooh... "Black Diamond."

CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN: Victor Krummenacher and Jonathan Segel answer five questions for the San Francisco Chronicle.

GLASTONBURY 2008:  You can download a free sampler of artists playing the big British fest via the Guardian.

PHISH officially addresses those reunion rumors.

CUTOUT BIN: Carl Douglas leads this Friday's fortuitous finds, which include Sly & the Family Stone, John Lennon, Glen Campbell, the Yardbirds, Cheap Trick, the Posies, Thin Lizzy and more -- all of which can be jukeboxed or streamed separately via the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING:  This weekends wide releases are Pixar's WALL-E, currnetly scoring a stunning 97 percent on the ol' Tomatometer, and the Jolie-led action flick Wanted, which is scoring a still-impressive 73 percent.  Projections have Wall-E at 52-57 million (between Cars & Ratatouille), Wanted at 36-41 million (possibly all-time best R-rated June opening).

GYLLENSPOON: Us Weekly reports in its latest issue that Gyllenhaal has quietly moved into Witherspoon's 5 million L.A. home and is already part of her fiercely guarded family.

MADONNA & GUY RITCHIE: Fiona Shackleton, the divorce lawyer who ensured that Sir Paul McCartney retained all but £24.3 million of his £825 million fortune, has been lined up by Madge, according to the Times of London.

BILL MURRAY and his wife Jennifer have quietly - and officially - divorced, sans the drama we heard about a month ago.

CAMERON DIAZ has fueled engagement rumors by sporting a huge ring on her wedding finger.

THE DARK KNIGHT: Christian Bale says he misses co-star Heath Ledger deeply, and that he hopes their movie - the very last one Ledger completed - will be a celebration of his friend's life and work.  Early reviews have popped up at Aint-It-Cool and Rolling Stone.

THE SCREEN ACTORS GUILD may strike next week, throwing major film and television studios into chaos.

NANOPAPER: Made of wood, stronger than iron.

IRAQ: An Iraqi intelligence report said over 2000 Mahdi Army fighters were killed during fighting over the past several months. The US military named al Qaeda's leader in Mosul who was killed during a raid on June 24.  Bombs killed at least 40 people in Iraq on Thursday, including 20 at a tribal council meeting in Anbar province just days before the US military transfers control of security for the vast western region to Iraqi forces.  PR. "Sons of Iraq" patrols are set up in Sadr City. Anti-US Arab Sunni combatants in Salaheddin have been given 10 days to surrender to coalition forces as Iraq extended its crackdown on militias around the country. Just as we have seen the use of a military surge in Iraq, we need also to see a job surge and a democracy surge, according to a new report by an international think-tank.

YOUR FORECAST FOR PADUCAH, KY: Overcast, with chicken.

DOLPHINS vacationing at the New Jersey shore are doing what many tourists do -- splashing around in the waves with the kids and feasting on seafood.

A COW that escaped from its farm two weeks ago has been making the rounds on the north side of Fredericton in Canada.

ROBOT SNAKES made of aluminium are being designed to inspect and clean complicated industrial pipe systems that are typically narrow and inaccessible to humans.

IT'S A MADHOUSE: Spain's parliament voiced its support for the rights of great apes to life and freedom. Keeping apes for circuses, television commercials or filming will be forbidden. Keeping an estimated 315 apes in Spanish zoos will not be illegal, but supporters of the bill say conditions will need to improve drastically.  Spanish bulls think this is bull.  BTW, don't expect the apes to return the favor.