THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with THE SPENCER DAVIS GROUP: Not just their best-known "Gimme Some Lovin'", but a live set from Beat! Beat! Beat! circa 1966 that includes "Keep o­n Running," "Sittin' and Thinkin'", "Please Do Something" and "Somebody Help Me." For the sake of completeness, I add this clip of "I'm A Man" -- a great song, but terribly miked.

CULT of the iPod: In London's Observer, Sean O'Hagan makes a mixtape the old skool way and wonders whether "music no longer occup(ies) the space in our increasingly overcrowded lives that it o­nce did despite - or because of - the fact that it is easily attainable, ubiquitous.." ALSO: Between the Lines lists five reasons why Steve Jobs has come out against digital rights management (download copy-protection).

ELENI MANDELL lists a few of her favorite things for Harp magazine. You can visit HerSpace to hear a few tracks.

SxSW has released the preliminary, yet extensive lineup for this March's musicfest. Estimable blogger and NPR song-picker Kathryn Yu has posted an updated SxSW FAQ. Austin American-Statesman blogger Matthew Odam talks to Austinist music writer Tom Thornton and Robert Duffy, editor of DoneWaiting.com about blog coverage of the fest and more.

THE AUTUMN DEFENSE: In the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, John Stirratt (also the bassist-vocalist for Wilco) cites Love's Forever Changes by Love, plus the Zombies and Colin Blunstone, as influences. As usual you can stream a few from TheirSpace.

WHO SELLS OUT: At NPR, an audio feature that uses the Spinto Band's licensing of "Oh, Mandy" to Sears to fund a European tour as a springboard to discuss the intersection of art and commerce. Other recent indie-scored ads include a The Cloud Room's "Hey Now Now" for Pepsi ( here's the whole thing.)and The Go! Team's "Huddle Formation" for Honda (here's the whole thing.) Not to mention The Human League for Chips Ahoy (wouldn't the Hold Steady oblige them?).

PHIL SPECTOR: The "Wall of Sound" record producer's murder trial could get the "Wall of Coverage" TV treatment.

AMY WINEHOUSE has the makings of an incredible musician... and perhaps the makings of a sad, short story. the WaPo worries about her drinking, but could she match Robert Pollard? You can see her sing three songs at London's Bloomsbury Ballroom via 3x3, or four unplugged (plus interview) via the DL.

PETE DOHERTY-KATE MOSS UPDATE: The supposedly sober supermodel reportedly banned the troubled singer from attending the Brit Awards because she is paranoid about his budding friendship with Lily Allen.

THE CUTOUT BIN: This Friday's fortuitous finds o­n the ol' HM include: Ritchie Valens - Come o­n, Let's Go; Marlena Shaw - California Soul; The Jackson 5 - I Want You Back; Patti Smith - When Doves Cry; The Crystals - He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss); The Pipettes - I Think We're Alone Now; The Decemberists - The Sporting Life; The Rolling Stones - Rice Krispies Jingle; David Bowie - Rebel Rebel; Brownsville Station - Smokin' In The Boys Room; Count Five - Psychotic Reaction; Elton John - Way To Blue (Nick Drake); Cornershop - Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown); Split Enz - I Got You; Supertramp - The Logical Song; and Jason & The Scorchers - Ruby, Don't Take Your Love To Town.

ANNA NICOLE SMITH, the former stripper, Guess model and Playboy playmate whose bizarre life careened from marrying an octogenarian billionaire to the untimely death of her son, died at 39 after collapsing at the Seminole Hard Rock Cafe Hotel and Casino in southern Florida. Access Hollywood reports that a "credible source" is saying that Smith took what was referred to as a "children's sedative," and choked o­n her own vomit. Attorney-possible father Howard K. Stern has already assumed the title of "legal guardian" of her 5-month-old daughter. Splash news has a ghoulish picture of her passed out that I don't think is of this incident (along with other old photos, some NSFW), and promises video of Smith getting CPR o­n Tuesday, after their exclusive deal with Entertainment Tonight expires.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are Eddie Murphy's Norbit, scoring a mere 16 percent o­n the Tomatometer, and the prequel Hannibal Rising, whicch does marginally better with 21 percent.

THE OSCARS: If you're the type who likes to see all the nominated pictures before the statues are handed out, I note that AMC is screening all five Best Picture nominees, with free popcorn and drinks for thirty bucks the day before the big show in a number of cities.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE MOVIES? High ticket prices and poor film selections, according to a new Zogby Interactive poll.

KIM KARDASHIAN plans to sue to try to prevent the release of an X-rated tape featuring Kardashian and her former boyfriend, singer Ray J. At least the nastiest part has been cut from the planned commercial release.

BRITNEY SPEARS vehemently denied allegations she is into pr0n and has for years enjoyed lesbian orgies. NTTAWWT. Page Six reports that the "train-wreck pop tart... continued her club-hopping tour of Manhattan Tuesday night when she indulged in a frenzy of drinking, dancing and making out."

O.J. SIMPSON has been barred from spending the advance for his aborted book If I Did It about the murders of his ex-wife and her friend... at least for now. Poor baby.

RYAN O'NEAL reportedly got into that fight with his son Griffin after Griffin chained his brother Redmond to a staircase in his home like a dog.

MISCHA BARTON: Cisco Adler denies she dumped him, but Barton's rep confirms she did. The boyfriend is always the last to know.

I... AM... IRON MAN: Okay, so I'm not, but the movie cast just got even better with the addition of Jeff Bridges.

KEIRA KNIGHTLEY may take a break from acting, which might do wonders for her self-esteem: "You start off thinking you're okay, then you have to go to some event and you remember you have a weird mouth, a broken nose and horrible legs."

LEBANON: At the Counterterrorism Blog, Olivier Guitta suggests that Hezbollah may be preparing for a civil war in Beirut.

IRAN: Iranian.com has video of Pres. Ahmadinejad being confronted by Tehran's Amir Kabir University students. The L.A. Times has a piece o­n the mounting, open criticism of Ahmadinejad's defiance of the Bush Admin. and the UN Security Council. It does not appear to have eroded Iran's determination to maintain an active nuclear program, while Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatens that Iran will strike against US interests worldwide if attacked.

IRAQ: Iraqi and US forces in Baghdad arrested the country's deputy health minister o­n suspicion of providing significant help to Shia militia groups. This is a sign the Iraqi gov't is taking the new security plan seriously, as the Mahdi Army had turned morgues and hospitals into places where death squads operate freely. Iraqi papers are claiming that Iraqi insurgents are now in possession of a new generation of SA-7 "Strela" anti-aircraft missiles to down US helicopters. I'd take that with a grain of salt. The Jawa Report argues that the new security plan is also focusing o­n al Qaeda in Iraq and may be closing in o­n its current leader. The WSJ has the story of how a Marine officer in Iraq, a small network-design company in California, a nonprofit troop-support group, blogger Bill Roggio and others designed a handheld insurgent-identification device, built it, shipped it and deployed it in Anbar province... in 30 days.

WHITE TIGER TRIPLETS debuted at the Buenos Aires zoo o­n Thursday. A baby rhino and a baby elephant debuted at Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire, England. Three tiny Otago skinks were born this week at the Wellington Zoo. Awww... some photos at the links.

MISSY the PIT BULL PUP ate her owner's wedding ring. Fortunately, it was not o­n her owner's finger at the time.

HUNDREDS OF BULL SHARKS and LEMON SHARKS have been seen swimming along the surf in Palm Beach, FL. Just when you thought it was safe.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Dorothy, the California skunk who hitched a ride aboard a commercial truck to Canada in late December, is finally going home after a fantastic whirlwind tour.

THE PIZZA PIT in Iowa City deposited marijuana at the local bank. Now Pate fans know why they were still hungry after polishing off a pie.