MORE BENEFIT: Healey isn’t the only one...

MORE BENEFIT: Healey isn’t the only one with ambitious musical charity efforts in mind. The planned album involving top British artists in support of child victims of the war in Bosnia is being considered in Great Britain the largest collective benefit effort since Live Aid. But unlike Healey’s three-year plan, this is coming together with amazing speed--all the recordings are supposed to be done Sept. 4, with the album in stores just five days later! (No U.S. release is planned.)

PJ Harvey and Therapy? are expected to join the announced lineup, which includes the Stone Roses, Blur, Oasis’ Noel Gallagher, Portishead, Radiohead, Paul Weller, the London Suede and the Boo Radleys.

Each will record either a new song, a favorite oldie or a new version of one of their own hits. Brian Eno is executive producer, with cover artwork from Stone Roses guitarist John Squire and liner notes by former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic. There’s talk of a concert to follow, but nothing has been confirmed.

One irony behind the project is that it unites Blur and Oasis in a common cause at the end of a week when the British media has been overrun with stories about a seemingly contrived confrontation between the two bands. Each released a new single on Aug. 14, prompting national news stories comparing the rivalry to that of the Beatles and Rolling Stones in the ‘60s.

The hype, however, was justified when the two singles entered the charts in the top two positions--Blur coming out better with its “Country House” at No. 1, ahead of Oasis’ “Roll With It.”