Guardian Music — Michael Stipe, Patti Smith and others pay tribute at memorial to melancholic singer-songwriter who died on Christmas dayA memorial service has been held for the American musician Vic Chesnutt, who has died aged 45. Chesnutt, described by REM's Michae... more info

All About Jazz — VIC CHESNUTT 1964 - 2009 Delta Spirit Singer, songwriter, guitarist Vic Chesnut died on Christmas Day, December 25, 2009. According to Twitter reports from Chesnutt's close friend Kristin Hersh, Chesnutt slipped into a coma after attempting to com... more info

Undercover, Australia — REM singer Michael Stipe and singer songwriter Patti Smith have paid tribute to the late Vic Chesnutt who committed suicide this week. more info

Rolling Stone — Vic Chesnutt, the Georgia-based singer-songwriter known for his darkly comic songs, died yesterday in Athens, Georgia, after spending several days in a coma caused by an overdose of muscle relaxers. Chesnutt, who was confined to a wheelchair after a ... more info

Brooklyn Vegan — "We have lost one of our great ones." -Michael Stipe, Dec 25, 2009 Vic Chesnutt (November 12, 1964 - December 25, 2009) was a singer-songwriter living in Athens, Georgia. He had been writing songs since he was five years old.... more info

Live Daily — Frank Black [ tickets ], Bob Mould [ tickets ], Bobby McFerrin [ tickets ], Living Colour [ tickets ], Robyn Hitchcock [ tickets ] and The Smithereens [ tickets ] will be among the artists honoring the music of The Who [ tickets ] at a March 2 tribut... more info

Spinner.com — In the iTunes age, the importance of album artwork has basically been relegated to the obsessive fans and CD purists. Any feature of a physical copy certainly won't be the focal point of a band's marketing push -- unless, of course, the album's bookl... more info

Rolling Stone — • News Ticker: Broken Bells, Pavement • Stooges, Genesis, ABBA Make the Rock Hall • Lil Wayne Sentencing Set for Feb. 9th • Chris Brown Deletes Twitter After Rant • 2009 Readers’ Poll: Pearl Jam, Lambert Win • U2, McCartney Earn Golden ... more info

Jam! Showbiz Music, Canada — Bill Berry has returned to R.E.M. for the band's 2009 Christmas single, which was recorded for fan club members. more info

Rolling Stone — R.E.M. fans got a rare surprise for their annual Christmas gift from the band this year: former drummer Bill Berry, who retired from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group in 1997, made a rare appearance with one of his old Murmur bandmates on one of t... more info