News & Notes

GOOD VIBRATIONS

Promoters are calling Knebworth 1990 ''the greatest concert ever to be staged.'' That, of course, is the kind of hype you expect in rock & roll, but the June 30 charity show outside London promises a long list of major British rockers, including Paul McCartney, Phil Collins, Eric Clapton, Elton John, George Michael, Pink Floyd, Mark Knopfler, and Tears for Fears. About 120,000 are expected at the 10-hour concert, which could raise $10 million from ticket revenues, broadcast rights, a live album, and a concert video. The show's primary beneficiaries are Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy, a program in the U.K. and U.S. that uses music to help children with mental, physical, and emotional disabilities, and the proposed BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology to be built south of London. The Westwood One radio network will air the concert live and MTV will show five hours of excerpts on July 14. Charitable souls in the U.S. can support Nordoff-Robbins by calling 900-860-HITS to hear recorded messages by McCartney, John, and others — a share of the phone revenues will help fund the organization's American programs.

THAT RHYTHM, THOSE BLUES

Robert Cray is known for his seamless blend of blues and R&B, but his next album, tentatively called Midnight Stroll, will emphasize the distinctive qualities of those two musical styles. ''We get down into some real gut-bucket music,'' he says. ''There's some serious blues, similar to Howlin' Wolf, and other songs have almost an Otis Redding-type feel.'' The new album, scheduled for September, was recorded after Cray played three all-star blues dates in London with Eric Clapton and Chicago blues guitarist Buddy Guy. Those February shows, which featured vocals by all three, whetted Cray's appetite for live performing. ''I'm itchy,'' he says. ''It's time to get out on the road. We've got a kick-butt band.'' Cray's group will do several dates now before joining Eric Clapton for a few shows in late August.

TWO BY TWO

Emmylou Harris likes to record albums by the numbers. In 1987 she, Dolly Parton, and Linda Ronstadt shared vocals on Trio. Now there's Duets, due next month, comprised of songs Harris has done with the late Roy Orbison, Neil Young, George Jones, the Band, and Ricky Skaggs. Though most of the tracks have been released before, two, including ''Gulf Coast Highway'' with Willie Nelson, are new. Harris will be touring into the fall with her new acoustic band, the Nash Ramblers.

THE BEAT GOES ON

You may not think of Jack Kerouac, the Beat Generation author of On the Road and other novels, as a recording artist. But he put out three records in his lifetime: two readings of his poetry with accompaniment by such well-known jazz men as Zoot Sims, and one on which he read excerpts from his published prose. Now Rhino Records is releasing The Jack Kerouac Collection, a three-CD (or four-LP or -cassette) boxed set that includes all of Kerouac's previously released performances, plus several selections from such varied sources as a Steve Allen TV show and a panel discussion at New York's Hunter College. Accompanying the set is a 40-page booklet with extensive liner notes, rare photos, and tributes by Kerouac's daughter Jan, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, and Jerry Garcia, among others.