Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends” hangs tough at No. 1 for a second week, as the entire Top 3 held off new releases from Motley Crue and Three 6 Mafia.
    “Viva La Vida” managed another 249,000 sales last week, enough to stay ahead of Lil Wayne’s “Tha Carter III,” which rings up another 209,000 in sales to stay at No. 2, and the Jonas Brothers-fueled “Camp Rock” soundtrack, which sold another 169,000 to stand at No. 3.
    The Crue opened at No. 4, with 99,000 sales of “Saints of Los Angeles.” And everyone’s favorite Oscar-winning rappers Three 6 Mafia debuted at No. 5 on 77,000 sales of “Last 2 Walk.”
    On the singles chart, Katy Perry hangs on to the top spot, as the Top 4 – Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl,” No. 2 Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop,” No. 3 Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love” and No. 4 Rihanna’s “Take a Bow” – remains static. But they should all watch out, as the Jonas Brothers’ new single “Burnin’ Up” (not the Madonna song) debuts at No. 5.

PHOTO: Coldplay -- Will Champion, Guy Berryman, Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland -- by Stephan Craneanscki for Capitol Records.

Here's the Backstage Pass playlist:

NOTES: (1) Yeah, the LCD Soundsystem song is kinda old, but it's received a new life thanks to the upcoming Will Ferrell movie. (2) We would've thrown Weezer's "Pork and Beans" in, but Geffen insists on blocking it on Imeem. Sorry, Rivers.

[Explicit Jay-Z language in the clip below.]

Jay-Z, "Wonderwall/99 Problems"

Not only did Chrisette Michele like Tyler Perry's TBS show "House of Payne" enough to write a new song, "Love Jones," promoting it, but the Patchogue singer-songwriter made up a new dance for it as well. [Click on pic for the video]

Jordan plays a free concert at Port Jefferson Free Library, 100 Thompson St., Port Jefferson, 631- 473-0022, at 6:30 p.m. Monday.

Johnnie Lee Jordan [MySpace]

PHOTO: Johnnie Lee Jordan

The album will top the charts next week on sales of 721,000, making it the year's second-biggest debut behind Lil Wayne's "Tha Carter III," which sold more than a million copies its first week and another 308,000 last week to land at No. 2. Coldplay will also be No. 1 in England, Japan, Australia, Canada, France and Germany.

The Jonas Brothers-filled soundtrack to "Camp Rock" debuted at No. 3, on sales of 188,000, and the "Now 28" compilation slips a notch to No. 4. With a 68 percent sales drop, Plies' "Definition of Real" slides from No. 2 to No. 5 in its second week.

With no massive releases set for this week, Coldplay should hang on for a second week at No. 1, but will it have enough staying power to outlast 50 Cent's G-Unit release on July 1 to make it three weeks at the top?

PHOTO: Chris Martin at Madison Square Garden on Monday by Ari Mintz for Newsday.

Blake Lewis is no longer on Arista, after the label declined to pick up the option for his next album. It's another sign of the deepening problems of the record industry, one where artists -- even ones that arrive with millions of already-passionate fans -- don't get a lot of time or resources if they don't start producing smashes right away. Lewis, runner-up on last year's "American Idol," lasted less than a year on the label. His exit leaves Clay Aiken, and this year's David Archuleta, as the only Idol runners-up with major-label deals.

"No biggy," Lewis wrote on his MySpace page this morning. "I'm still with 19 Recordings and I got a tour and new record on the way. Now, I'll I need is a home for my music. Some place warm and tropical.... seriously though... Got to be a place where they actually respect my craft and electronic music."

Lewis' announcement comes at an odd time. He played the Canal Room last night and his single "How Many Words" is currently climbing the dance charts. However, Lewis said the song's success wasn't really due to the label anyway. "Getting RCA to do remixes for my record was like pulling teeth AND I had friends do the mixes for next to nothing," Lewis wrote. "They turned out great and are rising on the Billboard charts. .. So freaking pumped. People been shakin there booties to some electro Brake.. hehe."

PHOTO: Blake Lewis for Arista

Anyway, check it out. Post some info and we'll see how it goes. And, in other housekeeping, The Long Island Sound column has moved to Sundays and you can still email us links to your MySpace or new MP3s at thelisound@gmail.com. This Sunday's installment will feature Patchogue up-and-comer Johnnie Lee Jordan.

Long Island Band Board

And, for no reason other than we feel bad we missed their show Saturday night, here's Nightmare of You's "My Name Is Trouble" video

With the start of his story arc on MTV's "The Real World" set to start tomorrow, Matthew Bair has unveiled the name of his new solo project. The singer-songwriter from Seaford, formerly of Bandcamp, is going to be known as The Sequel, which will serve as a sort of Dashboard Confessional, Secondhand Serenade kind of identity, where he's a solo artist, but can also be a band under the right circumstances.

Bair's new MySpace is here, which shows off the more Costello-edged "Tip of My Tongue" and "Cigarette Kisses."

PHOTO: Matthew Bair as The Sequel.

The Blue Jackets were "handpicked" by Coldplay to open the band's free concert at Madison Square Garden Monday night, giving the unsigned Long Island band a huge new audience for its blues-tinged indie rock.

In its half-hour set, the band introduced songs from its new EP "No Doubt About It," including the standout "Sneaky Pete," and singer PT Walkley made sure to correct WRXP DJ Matt Pinfield, who introduced them as a New York band. "We're from Long Island, New York," Walkley told the capacity Garden crowd.

The Blue Jackets have had some high-profile help before, landing on the soundtrack to the Edward Burns film "The Groomsmen" in 2006, as Walkley wrote "Four Cheers" for the movie's closing title sequence. However, landing the opening slot on one of the summer's hottest shows can only help to spread the word about their new songs, released to iTunes earlier this month.

Braininess doesn’t always translate well on record for rockers and Coldplay, who celebrated the release of their “Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends” album with a free concert for fans at Madison Square Garden Monday night, is no exception.
    For great performers, however, brain power and star power can be powerful allies and Coldplay, especially singer Chris Martin, is no exception to this either, as the band’s crafty 70-minute show not only erased some of the album’s more problematic issues, but highlighted some of the album’s subtler charms.
    Though Coldplay rolled through eight new songs, usually the kiss of death for arena shows, they handled it effortlessly through smart moves in pacing and staging, including playing on a mini-stage in the middle of the Garden floor and heading up to the balcony to deliver a moving, stripped-down version of “Yellow” surrounded by its fans.
    “Viva La Vida,” the band’s first No. 1 single and the song that will propel the album to No. 1 as well, was transformed from delicate pop number to an arena anthem by Martin’s bouncing performance and the crowd participation that unexpectedly built the little bridge of “oh ooh-woh-oh”s into something of Springsteenesque proportions.
    “Great singing, there,” said Martin, who seemed a bit shaken by the moment’s power.
    However, Coldplay pulled off some surprises of its own. By separating the  “Chinese Sleep Chant” from its boring medley partner “Yes” in the album version, the song was able to soar to its mid-‘80s U2-like glory. By cutting off the “Reign of Love” ending from the gorgeous “Lovers in Japan,” Coldplay found a worthy, upbeat show-stopper, complete with butterfly-shaped confetti to flutter in the light show.
    And Martin was, of course, quick-thinking enough to turn his flubbing of the lyrics to “Fix You” into the night’s most-memorable moment, turning the next verse into “When you embarrass yourself at MSG, but it doesn’t matter ‘cause you got in for free.”
    
SETLIST: Life in Technicolor / Violet Hill / Clocks / In My Place / Viva La Vida / Chinese Sleep Chant / God Put a Smile Upon Your Face / 42 / Square One / Trouble / Lost  / Strawberry Swing / Yellow / Death Will Never Conquer / Fix You / Lovers in Japan

PHOTO: Chris Martin and Will Champion during "Viva La Vida" by Ari Mintz for Newsday

MORE PHOTOS

Coldplay: At Madison Square Garden Monday.
Natasha Bedingfield: At Irving Plaza Wednesday.
Estelle: Just because.
Ledisi: At Le Poisson Rouge Wednesday.
Stevie Nicks: At Jones Beach Saturday.
Lyle Lovett: At Westbury Tuesday.
Seu Jorge: At Summerstage Thursday.
Ted Leo: At Madison Square Garden Tuesday.
Devo: At McCarren Park Pool Thursday.
Times New Viking: At Whitney Museum Friday.

Our Bob was in fine voice the entire evening and, seemingly, in equally fine spirits. (See the video below for the evening’s stage banter. He also introduced “Friday I’m in Love” by saying “Well, it’s a shock that we’d play this,” on, y’know, a Friday night.) And some of the new songs from the forthcoming album sounded pretty great, especially the lush opener “Underneath the Stars” and the first single “The Only One.”

The problem with the clunkers – especially “The Perfect Boy,” which sounds like The Cure doing a recent Bryan Adams cast-off, and “Baby Rag Dog Book,” which has Smith and the guys getting their Metallica on – is that they not only interrupt the flow of the show, but they do it in spectacular fashion. Then, once the interruptions become cumulative, it gets harder and harder to start up again, though, with The Cure’s outstanding back catalog, they were able to do it time and time again.

The gothic aura of “Pictures of You” followed by “Lullaby” followed by “Fascination Street” was gorgeous. The pure pop buzz of “Friday I’m in Love” followed by “Inbetween Days” followed by “Just Like Heaven” was a thrill, matched later in the encores of “Close to Me” and “Why Can’t I Be You.” If they carved the thing down to a tight, muscular two hours, it would have been an amazing show. Of course, it really wouldn’t really be the massive show of force that Robert Smith clearly wanted to create either. Nevertheless, I’m thinking the abridged version that aired live on Fuse Friday night as part of their “Fuse Rocks the Garden” series and will, no doubt, re-run many times over, may actually pack a more powerful wallop than the diluted version fans got at the show.

The Cure, "Baby Rag Dog Book" (Live at MSG)

SETLIST: Underneath the Stars / Prayers for Rain / A Night Like This / The End of the World / Lovesong / To Wish Impossible Things / Pictures of You / Lullaby / Fascination Street / From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea / The Perfect Boy / Hot Hot Hot! / The Only One / Wrong Number / The Walk / Sleep When I’m Dead / Push / Friday I’m in Love / Inbetween Days / Just Like Heaven / Primary / Shake Dog Shake / Charlotte Sometimes / 100 Years / Baby Rag Dog Book // ENCORE: If Only Tonight We Could Sleep / The Kiss // Freakshow / Close to Me / Why Can’t I Be You /// Boys Don’t Cry / Jumping Someone Else’s Train / Grinding Halt / 10:15 Saturday Night / Killing an Arab

Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" knocks off Lil Wayne's "Lollipop" to land the band its first No. 1 single in America, on sales of 246,000. The scarier prospect, though, is the rise of Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl," which jumps two slots to No. 2 leapfrogging "Lollipop" at No. 3. Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love" slips to No. 4 and Rihanna's "Take a Bow" holds at No. 5.

PHOTO: Coldplay -- Will Champion, Guy Berryman, Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland -- by Stephan Craneanscki for Capitol Records.