There has been strong interest in the composition and it will go on a separate live tour later in the year. Neanderthal man existed side by side with early homo sapiens before becoming extinct some 30,000 years ago. Despite having a reputation for lacking intelligence, recent research suggests the Neanderthals were a lot more resourceful and innovative than was first thought. Thorne said: "Given that Neanderthal man's brain was about the same size as ours, and much of our brain is given over to language, then you can assume they probably had language too. Every culture has language and music, so we can probably assume that they had some kind of music too."
Sold Out (1) - Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant was the big winner at the Grammys, taking home five prizes for his collaboration with bluegrass singer Alison Krauss. The duo took the showpiece album of the year prize for Raising Sand along with record of the year for their single Please Read The Letter. Plant led an array of British winners at the Los Angeles ceremony. Coldplay, Adele, Duffy, Radiohead and Peter Gabriel were among other UK stars to see success in Los Angeles. "I'd like to say I'm bewildered," Plant told the audience. "In the old days we would have called this selling out. But it's a good way to spend a Sunday."
Sold Out (2) - This summer's Glastonbury festival has sold out, nearly five months ahead of time and with no headliners confirmed. Organisers launched an early ticket deposit scheme in October 2008 and say the majority of fans completed their payments by the deadline of 1 February. Emily Eavis, who runs Glastonbury with her father Michael, said: "We're chuffed to bits, especially when you look at the weather outside. It's shaping up to be another vintage year with a brilliant line up to be unveiled in June." Headliners for the event, which runs from 26-28 June at Worthy Farm in Somerset, are rumoured to include Bruce Springsteen and recently re-formed Britpop band Blur.
Sweet Charity - Singer songwriter Neil Diamond has been honoured for his charity work by organisers of the Grammy Awards. The 68-year-old was named the MusiCares Person of the Year at a gala dinner in honour of his 50-year career and his charitable donations over the years.
Adios - Buena Vista Social Club founding member Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez has died in Cuba aged 76. Lopez became a worldwide sensation as part of the group of elderly musicians who were living quietly in Cuba before being brought together in 1996. He was considered to be Buena Vista's "heartbeat" in the band's mix of traditional Cuban rhythms. "It is a great loss for the group and for Cuban music because he was a superb bassist and a brilliant band mate," said Manuel "Guajiro" Mirabal, the group's trumpeter. "He was an excellent person and the quality of his music was, honestly, unparalleled."
(Jim Evans)
