SMASHING PUMPKINS play a new tune titled  "For God and Country" at the Grand Rex in Paris.  You can find more from the gig on the Tube.

WILCO:  Entertainment Weekly says that Sky Blue Sky may be "the best Eagles album the Eagles never made."  Frontman Jeff Tweedy says, "Those are fighting words..."

THE PHIL SPECTOR TRIAL:  The music producer's driver wrapped up four days of testimony by firmly holding to his account that he saw Spector emerge from his Alhambra mansion moments after actress Lana Clarkson was shot, a gun in his bloody hand, and heard Spector tell him, "I think I killed somebody."  Also, the trial judge ruled that that famous criminalist Henry Lee withheld evidence from prosecutors, and that the jury could consider that in weighing his credibility as a defense expert.

THE HOLD STEADY:  Heather Browne got geared up to see the band by streaming some rarities, including a cover of Bob Seger's "Against The Wind."

PRINCE has signed up for a seven-week residency at the historic Roosevelt Hotel in L.A., starting in mid-June.  He reportedly will make three million from various sponsors, plus free room and board.

SONIC YOUTH:  The band's classic Daydream Nation will be re-issued by Geffen Records in a two-disc Deluxe Edition with bonus tracks, new liner notes, and unseen band photos on June 12, 2007 and on a super-special 4-disc vinyl set issued by the band's own Goofin' Records.  More details at the link.

SIR PAUL McCARTNEY talks to Pitchfork about his new album, "Yesterday," 9/11, and more.  The Cute One's new video, "Dance Tonight," is directed by Michel Gondry.  The ghost of Natalie Portman has a cameo.

BILLY JOEL gets a note in his pay envelope at McSweeney's Internet Tendency.

VOXTROT talks to the Austin American-Statesman about the upside and downside of the Internet.  Sean Moeller has posted a short essay on the band, along with free songs from an SxSW session, at Daytrotter.

THE DAP-KINGS give Spinner the lowdown on touring with Amy Winehouse.  Spinner also has a free download of the new Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings single.

SPOON:  GvsB claims that "The Underdog" will be the new LP's first true single, which (imho) makes a lot more sense than "The Ghost of You Lingers," the first video (posted with other Spoon leaks on Monday).

LINDSAY LOHAN:  As her parents battle over visitation rights, Star magazine reports that the reason for the screamfest with bf Callum Best that got Li-Lo tossed from an NYC hotel was that he checked into the hotel with another woman.  The story also has the allegedly rehabbed starlet partying until 1.30am before collapsing in the hotel lobby, writhing on the floor such that everyone could see that she wasn't wearing any panties.  BONUS:  Lohan has lined up Svedka vodka to sponsor her 21st birthday blowout in Las Vegas, which she will be paid at least 200 grand to attend.

TOM-KAT UPDATE:  Cruise and Holmes are planning a sequel to the Tom-Kitten, according to the ever-reliable Life & Style magazine.

NICOLE RICHIE is denying a joint report from the National Enquirer and Star magazine that she re-entered rehab at Beau Monde on May 11 to fight anorexia and a painkiller addiction.  The report was that she entered rehab on an outpatient basis, so that may be a very carefully-worded denial.

OPRAH WINFREY is "shocked" and "disappointed" that she had to hear it from the NY Daily News that her 74-year-old pop, Vernon, is writing a book about her.

KATE BECKINSALE says her hubby's workload directing Live Free Or Die Hard has left them no personal time and she's planning on making him her sex slave for four weeks when the film's finished.

GWYNETH PALTROW took a page out of the Jacko playbook the other day, throwing a long black veil over her daughter Apple's head to thwart the paparazzi from getting good pictures.  Ironically, the snappers say it made their shots more valuable.

ROBERT RODRIGUEZ, who had been looking at family-friendly projects after Grindhouse, is reportedly set to direct the remake of Barbarella, for a 2008 Universal release.  Now that he and Rose McGowan are a public couple, maybe she'll take the lead.

ELIZABETH TAYLOR can keep a Van Gogh painting that may have been seized by the Nazis during World War II, a US appeals court has ruled.

MIKE MYERS is attached to The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, the long-in-the works remake of the 1947 Danny Kaye classic.

ROSEANNE BARR says she is "probably not right" to replace Rosie O' Donnell on The View.  Barr claims that Rosie told her the show is looking for "someone they can control."

ROSIE O'DONNELL, otoh, was well out of control with Elisabeth Hasselbeck on The View.  Rosie plays the victim card, interrupts and avoids answering Hasselback's questions -- a measure of how little Rosie thinks, as it's not like Hasselback will be joining Mensa anytime soon.  Hasselback later said the fight was no big deal, unaware that O'Donnell decided to skip work today.  An added twist is that today was supposed to be 9/11 conspiracy day on the show -- but that seems unlikely now.

JESSICA ALBA may be dating Cash Warren, she admits to a crush on former Tennessee congressman Harold Ford Jr.

TERROR in the US:  Newsweek reports on the worrisome trend of copycat jihadist cells that spring up inside the US without any concrete connection to Qaeda central or other foreign terror organizations.  And the story predates the new Pew poll finding that 26 percent of young US Muslims say suicide bombings to defend their religion are acceptable in some circumstances.  "It is a hair-raising number," said Radwan Masmoudi, president of the Washington-based Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy.  Apparently not to USA Today, the IHT/NYT, the BBC or the WaPo, all of which headlined the non-news that most US Muslims are assimilated -- and moreso than in Europe.  But terrorism tends to take root with a younger generation, so the fact that there are roughly 100000 young US Muslims sypathetic to jihad is not great news.  And by a margin of 48 to 35 percent, all US Muslims think it was wrong to take action against the Taliban in Afghanistan after 9/11, probably because 40 percent do not believe Arabs carried out the 9/11 attacks.

IRAN is making progress in perfecting its uranium enrichment tech, while the UN nuclear watchdog's knowledge on Iran's nuclear program is diminishing.  Tehran is also refusing to provide the UN nuclear watchdog with design information on its heavy water plant at Arak, or responding to requests to clarify uranium contamination at a research center, Iran's acquisition of centrifuge technology or a document in Iran's possession showing how to cast uranium metal into hemispheres - a technology employed in nuclear bomb building.  And like ABC the other today, CBS News decided to potentially blow covert ops to sabotage the Iranian nuke program.  Another set of kudos to the press for making a non-military option less workable.

IRAQ:  There are unconfirmed reports that the bodies of the missing US soldiers have been found.  The Sadrist parliamentary bloc and the Iraqi List (of ex-Interim Premier Iyad Allawi) are trying to muster support for a timetable for the withdrawal of Coalition forces from Iraq, a top-ranking Sadrist political official told Aswat al-Iraq.  The Sadrists may also withdraw confidence from the gov't if the the mandate of the Multinational Forces is renewed.  Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih said that Iraq still hopes for agreement based on the oil law draft this month, thus allowing the Parliament to pass it soon.

...AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT:  A cat with wings.  It's an X-Cat!

...AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT: A seven-foot-tall Great Dane.  Not a hoax this time, I hope.

...AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT: Ferocious Thai insects that devour fish.

PET HOARDING:  An Orange Park, FL man had a dog, a rat, a tarantula and an 8-foot python snake in his apartment... plus a baby alligator in the toilet tank.  We can only hope  the Ty-D-Bowl man got out in time.

SHARK'S VIRGIN BIRTH stuns scientists, who brought the newborn shark gold, frankinsense and myrrh.