Jazz saxophonist Sonny Rollins and composer Steve Reich receive the 2007 Polar Music Prize on May 21. His Majesty King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden will hand out the prize at a gala ceremony at the Stockholm Concert Hall. The late Stig "Stikkan" Anderson, lyricist and manager of the Swedish pop group ABBA, founded the Polar Music Prize in 1989. Previous recipients include Elton John, Paul McCartney, Ray Charles, Bruce Springsteen, Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones and Stevie Wonder, among others. Polar Music Prize winners receive one million Swedish krona, which is equivalent to about $148,000 U.S. dollars.
On May 22, A&M/Octone Records will release Maroon 5's new album The album includes the band's recent Number One single "Makes Me Wonder," which set a new record for the biggest single-week jump to the top of Billboard's Hot 100 chart. Fueled my sales of more than 243,000 digital downloads, the song rocketed from Number 64 to Number One. Maroon 5's last album, 2002's , sold more than four million copies in the U.S.
Ozzy Osbourne's first new studio album in six years will be released on May 22. The songs on "Black Rain" were inspired by current events. Osbourne says, "Haven't we all learned that violence achieves nothing? I'm a worrier. I'm a sponge for bad news. And it's going to come out in my songs." On May 27, Osbourne will be in Moscow to play the first of 17 international concerts. He'll wrap up his overseas shows on June 30 in Milan, Italy. His 2007 OzzFest, which is free to the public this year, begins on July 12 in Auburn, Washington.
On May 23, singer-songwriter Paul Simon will receive the inaugural Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The prize recognizes "the profound and positive effect of popular music on the world's culture." A diverse group of artists will perform at the event, which takes place at the Warner Theater in Washington, D.C. They include Art Garfunkel, James Taylor, Marc Anthony, Stephen Marley, Alison Krauss, Buckwheat Zydeco and Yolanda Adams, among others. The show will be taped for a PBS special to air on June 27.
One of this year's contestants never made it past the audition round due to the show's age limit. He's 64-year-old Sherman Pore. At his tryout in Los Angeles, Sherman told the judges he was there to honor his "lady love," Melissa, who died of ovarian cancer two days earlier. Sherman says, "As far back as I can remember, people have been telling me I should do something with my singing. But, there is no way, no way on earth, I could have done it if it weren't for Melissa. She convinced me I was good enough." On May 22, Z-Entertainment will release Sherman's debut album, "For My Lady Love." The collection of classic love songs includes his versions of "Unforgettable," "When I Fall In Love" and "The Way You Look Tonight." He'll donate a portion of the proceeds from sales of the album to City Of Hope, which works to fight cancer. In related news, there's currently an online petition to bring Sherman back for the "American Idol" finale on May 23.
Speaking of the finale, 17-year-old Jordin Sparks and 25-year-old Blake Lewis will battle it out for the 6th annual title. After viewers cast some 60 million votes, 29-year-old former backup singer Melinda Doolittle was sent home on May 16.
New albums scheduled for release on May 22 include: "Delles" by Celine Dion, "Breakfast In Bed" by Joan Osborne, "Hip Hop Lives" by KRS-One, "Lies For The Liars" by The Used and "Light At The End Of The World" by Erasure.
The 30th annual Atlanta Jazz Festival will take place May 26-28. This year's headliners include Herbie Hancock, Chieli Minucci and Special EFX, Flora Purim & Airto Moreira, The Pete Escovedo Orchestra and Monty Alexander. The festival is regarded as one of the largest free jazz events in the U.S.