For Heroes, Willie Nelson both delves into the past, with songs from country music's Forties prehistory, and the present day, with covers of material by Tom Waits, Pearl Jam and Coldplay.

This Canadian songstress had existed with moderate success on the fringes of the Americana scene for nearly a decade. But last year a rather explosive episode in her private life took the, normally emotionally-charged, singer’s approach to another level and thrust her into the arms - both professionally and personally - of Justin Vernon, the front man of Bon Iver.

Bob Dylan, Jack White and Norah Jones have recorded previously unreleased Hank Williams songs.

Recorded live in hometown Woodstock, Helm and his excellent band apply themselves to a dozen tunes from recent solo outings, the Band's back catalogue and the top end of the R&B canon.

Almost 40 years after his death, Jim Morrison could finally be allowed to rest in peace after the Governor of Florida said he was willing to consider a posthumous pardon of The Doors singer, who was sentenced to jail in 1969 for indecent exposure and profanity at a concert in Miami.

A new online lesson service will be able to stockpile lessons from any secondary school in the country – which can then be accessed by teachers and students anywhere.

When Sheryl Crow walks into this intimate Camden venue, there's a moment's frisson at seeing such American movie-star beauty close up. But the sweaty excitement she must have hoped for by returning to club-size venues is icily absent. No one seems particularly pleased to be here. Instead, Crow has to chivvy and guilt-trip the crowd into reacting at all. She must wonder why she bothered; and if the problem is them, or her.

The music publisher Chrysalis saw a rise in its third-quarter revenue figures thanks to the use of its songs in commercials for Halifax bank and Apple's iPad.

Crow's most recent foray into the spotlight came not with a hit record, but with her pronouncement that we ought to use just one sheet of toilet paper per visit.

100 Miles from Memphis heralds a shift in Sheryl Crow's approach, from bland country-tinged singer-songwriter to blue-eyed soul diva, a move she struggles to carry off with any conviction.

It would be hard, if not impossible, for this sixth volume of Johnny Cash's American series to equal the pinnacular standard of its predecessor A Hundred Highways, which at the time was believed to be the final batch of songs stockpiled by the producer Rick Rubin before Cash's death.