Benefit single reveals Stone’s musical muse

Sharon Stone, just back from the London set of “Basic Instinct 2: Risk Addiction,” was munching on a bagel last week and recounting a career moment when she was gripped with the worry that she had exposed herself too much and on too big a stage.

“I had a little cry-fest there for a few days; it was overwhelming. I had to sit down on the floor when I first saw it.” The “it” was not her image on a silver screen; it was her name in the song credits of “Come Together Now,” which hits stores Tuesday to raise money for Hurricane Katrina and tsunami relief.

There have been a number of high-profile and successful music fundraisers in the wake of the storm’s devastation in the Gulf states, and “Come Together Now” is an all-star chorus with more big names -- not to mention one of the most unlikely music moments of the year: who expected to hear the Game, in fast-flow mode and name-checking Dr. Dre, handing off a lyric to Celine Dion? Others contributing vocals included Wyclef Jean, Natalie Cole, Brian McKnight, Joss Stone, Ruben Studdard and Nick Carter.

So where does Stone fit in? The actress who starred in “The Muse” has in recent years been following her own creative inspiration into the songwriting field. That brought her together with the producing and songwriting tandem of Mark Feist and Damon Sharpe.

That “wonderful learning experience” led to a more focused effort after the tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia. Feist suggested to Stone that they could do something to help with a charity anthem in the mold of “We Are the World.” Stone agreed, and they set to work. The effort stretched out and when Katrina struck, all involved agreed that the timing pointed to the charity’s redirection closer to home.

Stone also tapped Denise Rich, who flew in from Aspen to help. Rich reportedly kicked in $300,000 toward the recording and video production. The single in stores includes a music video, a short documentary on the recording and the music. The song is already for sale on iTunes.

The New York Post recently printed rumors of a dust-up between Rich and Stone, but the actress said this project is pure altruism from top to bottom.

“No one is powerless and each person is powerful. The sound of this song is the sound of a hammer hitting a nail,” she said, referring to Habitat for Humanity, which, along with Angels’ Place, will benefit from the project.

Stone said she expects her next music project to be a bit more modest.

“My first song had 26 stars; that’s a little intimidating,” said Stone, who shares the writing credit with Feist, Sharpe and Rich. Maybe the Golden Globe winner could sing her charity song on stage somewhere with her all-star chorus? “Oh God! Yeah, right. That’s when everybody runs.”