How Jackson's "Thriller" changed the music business (Reuters)
Reuters - In early 1984, when Epic Records executives presented their slate of upcoming releases at the convention in Hawaii of parent company CBS Records, they couldn't resist playing up the success they were experiencing. So between the pitches for new albums, Epic inserted stock footage of semi trucks and a voice-over that thunderously announced, "There goes another load of Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' albums!"

Jackson Memorial Set for Staples Center, Funeral Plans Falling Into Place (E! Online)

E! Online - UPDATE: E! News has learned exclusively that AEG Live will make next Tuesday's memorial service for Michael Jackson free to the public.

Michael Jackson bringing Neverland to U.K. (Yahoo! Music)
Yahoo! Music - Michael Jackson is set to turn the Kent house he'll be renting during his London O2 Arena residency into a replica of his Neverland Ranch.

Powerful sedative found in Michael Jackson's home (AP)

AP - Questions about Michael Jackson's use of prescription drugs are intensifying after a powerful sedative was found inside his home.

The Killers announce plans to release covers album (Yahoo! Music)
Yahoo! Music - The Killers' Brandon Flowers and Ronnie Vanucci have told NME.COM that the band are planning to record an album of covers before the end of the year.

ABBA's Andersson shoots down London reunion talk (AP)
AP - Forget those reports that Swedish supergroup ABBA will be reuniting to cover Michael Jackson's sold-out concert dates.

Pixies planning Hollywood-themed new album (Yahoo! Music)
Yahoo! Music - Pixies frontman Black Francis has revealed that he is planning to record the band's first new album since 1991's Trompe Le Monde with a Hollywood film director.

Cuba's Fidel Castro honored with a reggaeton song (Reuters)

Reuters - Since he swept into power 50 years ago, Cuba's Fidel Castro has been honored in poems, movies and paintings and now in reggaeton, a form of music widely popular among Cuban youth but not island leaders.

Massive demand for Jackson memorial tickets (Reuters)

Reuters - More than half a million fans from around the world applied for 17,500 free tickets to Michael Jackson's public memorial service next week, organizers said on Friday as a massive security operation got underway.

Stone Temple Pilots accentuate old faves (Reuters)

Reuters - For a reunited band bent on having a future, Stone Temple Pilots spent most of its House of Blues show Wednesday visiting the past -- the distant past.