WHITESNAKE frontman David Coverdale is putting the finishing touches on the vocals for the four new songs that the band will be adding to their upcoming double live album, tentatively due later in the year. The set is currently being assembled and the group are preparing to begin the mixing process. If all goes well, WHITESNAKE may even perform one of the songs on their upcoming tour, which is scheduled to kick off in early May in Japan. European dates will follow through early July. At the moment, no U.S. shows have been scheduled.

Commented Coverdale: "I am very happy with the new songs. Doug [Aldrich, guitar] and I specifically worked on ideas we felt we be fun to play live and would fit comfortably with the rest of the live material. So there are three 'balls-to-ze-walls' rockers and one mid-tempo power ballad. Perhaps we should call the mini-album 'Balls & Ballads' or 'Ride The Raunch'??? Hee Hee. It's close to the bone, boys and girls... I warn you!!! I will be recording the vocal for the last of the four songs [Monday] morning [April 3] with my ol' pal, Mikey Mac at the helm... I love singing at home (all the creature comforts this mere mortal could possibly desire under one roof). John X is coming up to [Lake] Tahoe [Coverdale's home base] this week to go over all the bits and pieces and will commence to mixing the live stuff first. Time is of the essence right now... making sure to stay in balance as much as possible with such a hectic schedule."

As previously reported, David Coverdale is tentatively planning on releasing a video compilation featuring all the WHITESNAKE clips, the COVERDALE/PAGE videos and as-yet-undisclosed "not-so-well-known" footage.

WHITESNAKE recently issued their first single-disc retrospective via Hip-O/Geffen/UMe. Entitled "The Definitive Collection", the CD spans nearly every studio album issued by WHITESNAKE, including their pre-U.S. fame LPs "Snakebite" (1978, with the band's first hit, "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City"), "Lovehunter" (1979, with "Walking in the Shadow of the Blues" and "We Wish You Well"), "Ready An' Willing" (1980, with the title track) and "Come An' Get It" (1981, with "Don't Break My Heart Again"). More information is available at this location.