Daniel Bedingfield was injured in a car crash today (Jan. 2) in Whangerei, New Zealand, according to news reports. The 24-year-old singer suffered "moderate injuries" according to The New Zealand Herald, while a representative from his U.K. label, Polydor, told the BBC that he broke no bones and his injuries were not serious.

Beddingfield, who was driving the vehicle, was treated and released from Whangerei Hospital, the Herald reports. The New Zealand born singer, now based in London, was vacationing in the area at the time of the accident.

Bedingfield needed to be cut from the mangled car, according to the spokesperson. His unidentified passenger escaped without injury.

-- Jason MacNeil, Toronto

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Damien Rice's Shortlist Music Prize-winning album, "O," will be re-released Jan. 27 in an expanded package. The 10-track Vector/Warner Bros. CD remains intact, while an additional DVD will feature live versions of the songs "Cannonball," "The Blower's Daughter" and "Volcano" as performed for "Sessons @ AOL."

Rice will kick off a European tour Feb. 11 in Glasgow. Following that leg's March 12 conclusion in Florence, the singer/songwriter will hit the road in North America. Dates are slated to begin March 23 in Boulder, Col., and wrap April 29 in St. Louis, Mo. For full details, visit Rice's official Web site.

Released in August, "O" reached No. 7 on Billboard's Heatseekers chart in October, shortly after the Shortlist Prize was awarded. It has sold 167,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan.

-- Barry A. Jeckell, N.Y.

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Singer/songwriter Mary Lou Lord will release her third studio album, "Baby Blue," March 9 via Rubric Records. Her second for the label and first following a three-year hiatus after the birth of her first child, the 12-track set features covers of Pink Floyd's "Fearless" and Badfinger's "Baby Blue."

Lord wrote one song, "Long Way From Tupelo," and co-wrote two, "43" and "Turn Me Around," with multi-instrumentalist Nick Saloman, principal member of lo-fi outfit the Bevis Frond. Saloman, who produced the album with engineer Colin Andrews, wrote six songs and contributes guitar, bass and harp to the recording.

Lord is expected to tour with a full band following the album's release.

-- Barry A. Jeckell, N.Y.