The first leg of Alanis Morissette’s world tour starts January 30th in New Orleans. So far, there are 33 U.S. dates with stops in virtually every region of the country. Liz Phair will open the first eight nights of the tour, ending some of the mystery surrounding her plans, which have changed often in the past few months. Then Garbage will pick up the opening act duties from February 15th through April 11th (even though the announced dates only go up to April 7th). This is just the first stage of Morissette’s 1999 tour plans. Before the year is through, she plans on touring Europe, Canada, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and the Far East.

Veteran pop star Elton John had the highest grossing U.S. tour of 1998, according to tour-industry trade magazine, Pollstar. The Dave Matthews Band, which played more shows than John but charged less for tickets, came in second. This is the first time in John’s three-decade career that he’s topped the Pollstar list, according to editor Gary Bongiovanni. The piano man grossed $46.2 million in 63 shows. "I was surprised until I looked at the data," Bongiovanni said. "When you think of the big tours, you think Celine Dion, the Rolling Stones and Janet Jackson. But Elton worked enough dates at a high ticket price to end up grossing the most." Jam rockers the Dave Matthews Band grabbed the #2 slot with more shows and lower ticket prices; in all, they grossed $40.1 million in 85 shows. Other rockers who made the touring top 10 were guitar legend Eric Clapton, who grossed $33.6 million to hit #6, and veterans the Rolling Stones, whose $31.8 million in grosses was good enough for #10. Jimmy Buffett, with $30.9 million, came in at #11. Worldwide, the Stones were #1 in 1998, with nearly $200 million in concert grosses, according to another industry trade magazine, Amusement Business. Overall, the U.S. concert industry took in $1.3 billion in 1998, about the same as it made in 1997, according to Pollstar. It was, according to Bongiovanni, an "unspectacular" year. "By and large it was not a year where concert promoters were crowing about how great business was," he said. "But they also weren’t whining about how bad it was." Also in the top 20 were Aerosmith (#14, $25.8 million), Page and Plant (#15, $24.9 million), Metallica (#16, $24.7 million), Phish (#17, $23.3 million) and the Spice Girls (#20, $20.9 million). Bongiovanni said 1999 will be highlighted by several mega-tours, including a reunion tour by blue-collar rocker Bruce Springsteen and his E Street Band, yet another swing by the Stones - this time in arenas - and a possible tour by dance diva Madonna.

Pop music appears to be on the verge of a dynamic year, with industrial rockers Nine Inch Nails, hip-hoppers Ice Cube and Nas, punk trio Sleater-Kinney, the rock combo Wilco and punk-folk artist Ani DiFranco among the major artists planning to release albums. Also ringing in the new year are jailed rapper Keith Murray and rapper Foxy Brown with her sophomore offering, Chyna Doll, Jan. 26. And heating up record stores in the spring and summer are British grunge-rockers Bush. Former Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell’s debut solo album , and the third effort by folk-rockers the Wallflowers. And Beck intends to release a new album in the summer. Gravel-voiced avant-garde crooner Tom Waits is eyeing a late March/early April release date . Grunge-rock godfather Neil Young is hunkered down at his home, finishing up his 29th studio LP for a late March/early April release. Paul Westerberg and Tom Petty, who have shared a few concert bills in the past, also figure to be a part of the ’99. Another highly anticipated release may well be the February issue of No Exit, by the reunited new-wave band Blondie. Fans have been waiting for it since the group’s 1982 break-up. The 14-song collection features four original bandmembers, singer Deborah Harry, guitarist Chris Stein, drummer Clem Burke and keyboardist Jimmy Destri. Twenty years after British rockers The Cure released their debut LP, they’ll return with a June release.

Jesse "The Body" Ventura is used to getting what he wants and his choice of musicians for his inauguration as governor of Minnesota is no exception. The Guv wanted Jonny Lang to play his party on January 15th but the young blues guitarist was already booked in Atlanta on that day. No problem. Thanks to the NBA, or lack thereof, the previously-booked Target Center became available for the 16th and Ventura moved his party just to accomodate Lang. He will fly the band in on a private jet for the party and then back to Florida where it will resume its tour January 17th.

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