FEATURES
62 SUM 41
Between rounds of high-octane cocktails and threats to paint a Manhattan cab
with puke, Canadian pop-punkers Sum 41 are busy kicking their new album out
the door and saving rock & roll with the power of obnoxiousness. "Being
a brat is a liberating experience!" they squeak.
68 Toni Braxton
The R&B queen discusses her new album, her bounce back from bankruptcy and
the alleged failure of her implants. "Nothing exploded! And anyway, it
was saline, not silicone!' Oh....
70 33 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT CARLOS SANTANA
He watched his guitar dance like a snake at Woodstock. He knows the songs that
make female dancers strip. He gets his tennis tips from John McEnroe. And 30
more incredible facts.
76 PEARL JAM
They've gone from being the biggest band in the world at the peak of grungemania
to being ... survivors. The release of their new album, Riot Act, finds Eddie
Vedder in a strange state: He's actually happy. Who knew?
82 GIRL-GROUP GOMORRAH!
Lisa Lopes torches her boyfriend's house. The Shangri-Las try their hand at
kidnapping. The Runaways cause men to masturbate. And don't even get us started
on the Go-Go's....
90 MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER
It's always Christmas Eve in Omaha, Nebraska, where Chip Davis, founder of New
Age perennial Mannheim Steamroller, runs a multimillion-dollar business selling
candles, tea and twinkly music to your great-aunt. And no, he cannot be stopped.
96 BLENDER'S HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE
A cheap-ass plasma TV. A big-ass MP3 system. A kick-ass geetar. All the new
toys you're praying to see under the tree.
102 THE 50 GREATEST ALBUMS OF 2002
You've got your Beck, you've got your Clipse, you've got your Hives and you've
got your Nelly. OK, no more hints!
124 Christina Aguilera
Pierced nipples? Talk about a 180! Christina Aguilera's new album, Stripped,
faces down a childhood scarred by abuse and gives the finger to all those who
have pissed her off: former managers, former boyfriends and a former pop star
named ... Christina.
REGULARS
14 EDITOR'S LETTER
18 LETTERS
28 BURNER
Is CNN really going hip-hop? "Fa shizzle!" Also: Korn and Disturbed's
dirty pix, Snoop in the doghouse — it's all part of life's rich pageant!
32 THE NEXT BIG THING!
The Polyphonic Spree; Charli Baltimore
52 ASK BLENDER
Led Zeppelin's lineup that wasn't, Eddie Vedder's life preserver, G.G. Allin's
disgusting death and more.
54 THE GREATEST SONGS EVER!
It took a few tragedies to immortalize Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird!'
56 DEAR SUPERSTAR Justin Timberlake owns 800 pairs of sneakers. He puts his money on 'N Sync's
Chris Kirkpatrick in a
punch-up with Eminem. And ladies, take note: He's an "ass mare ...
192 WHO DOES Kelly Clarkson THINK SHE IS?
She's the American Idol champion who doesn't swear, won't drink, frets about
her big butt and prefers not to have on underwear "I am commando girl"
she confides. Yes!
THE GUIDE
136 NEW RELEASES
Audioslave, LL Cool J, Faith Hill, David Gray, George Harrison and more
158 CHART 160 REISSUES
Nirvana, Bob Dylan, They Might Be Giants and more
172 BACK CATALOG
Stevie Wonder
176 LIVE!
The Rolling Stones; Coldplay
180 MY MUSIC
In the home stretch as Minnesota's rebellious governor, Jesse Ventura is running
against the wind and rockin' out to Hendrix and Zeppelin — and mix tapes
made by Hunter Thompson.
182 MOVIES
184 DVDS
186 BOOKS
188 GAMES
190 CROSSWORD
