White Rabbits' new album sees the US experimentalists pushing boundaries – and listening to Beyoncé. Gillian Orr meets them

The Sex Pistols turned down an invitation to perform at the Olympics’ opening ceremony because the organisers wanted to censor one of their most famous songs, John Lydon has revealed.

Buyers of homes worth more than £2m are going to be hit with a massive stamp duty rise from today, with a new 7 per cent stamp duty land tax charged. Until yesterday, only a 5 per cent charge was levied on homes sold for overa £1m.

Try this out in your workplace. Inspire a discussion about any matter of political importance, like, for instance, the euro crisis or reforms in the National Health Service. Some people will have deep convictions and strong views but I would guess that, by and large, you will be surprised by a lack of general engagement in these issues of great moment.

Who knew Barack Obama could be a one-man stimulus package for a beleaguered music industry? When the US President belted out a couple of lines of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together" at a fundraiser last month, sales of the track soared by almost 500 per cent. Now the blues classic "Sweet Home Chicago" can expect a boost after Obama confirmed his singing chops with an impromptu performance at the White House.

French-owned Universal pays £1.2bn for UK's last remaining major record company

The Atlantic Records boss Ahmet Ertegun liked Ray Charles so much, he signed him twice. He tells Pierre Perrone the new biopic is broadly right - though the singer didn't call him 'Omelette'

Reports that singer Joss Stone is at odds with her parents over her £4.5m earnings have an all-too familiar ring. Cahal Milmo reports

Bobby Womack is tender. He's tough. He's a man. In fact he's so confident in his masculinity he can rasp and lisp at the same time. But he has endured his fair share of tragedy, of drugs, of betrayal. His is the unbreakable voice of experience - and the last original soul voice is far from finished. Phil Johnson came to worship at the shrine...