Sir Elton beat Celine Dion, who saw phenomenal success with her Titanic soundtrack, New Age artist Yanni and US rock act The Dave Matthews Band to head the list.

According to US trade publication Pollstar it was the first time Elton John had headed the list. The result came as a surprise.

"He wasn't even among Pollstar's five nominees for its honorary distinction as the year's top concert tour," said Gary Bongiovanni, Pollstar's editor. "But he has seen interest in his shows revived by his Candle in the Wind tribute to Princess Diana."

Last year's winners, the Rolling Stones, earned $31.8m in just 20 US shows. The veteran rockers spent most of their time outside the US, where they earned an estimated $161m during 1998.

Concert promoters are optimistic about 1999 when Bruce Springsteen is set to hit the road with his E Street Band. Madonna and Barbra Streisand are also expected to perform well next year.

Seized at UK customs

Titanic: Seized props donated to museum

Props featured in the movie Titanic made from endangered species which been seized by UK customs officers have gone on show at a museum in Liverpool.

The collection made up of over 30 items fashioned from parts of tortoises, elephants and even a hippopotamus were held at London's Heathrow Airport. They had been sent out of Britain without a valid import licence.

Twentieth Century Fox had used the genuine antiques, including a tortoiseshell hair clip worn by Kate Winslet in her nude modelling scene with Leonardo DiCaprio, to make the hit disaster movie.

"The items were sent out of this country without the relevant permit. This was discovered as they were coming back into Britain at Heathrow and they were subsequently confiscated, " said a Customs and Excise spokeswoman.

"The agent had applied for retrospective permits after the ivory had left the country but these were refused after it was found they had been knowingly sent out of Britain in the first place," she added.

The failure to obtain licences resulted in the props being forfeited to Customs and Excise and subsequently being donated to the Merseyside Maritime Museum in Liverpool.

They are now being shown in the museum's exhibition - Titanic and Lusitania - Floating Palaces of the Edwardian Age.

Unicef campaign adopted by Musicians

Robbie Williams and Ian Dury in Sri Lanka

Musicians across Britain are backing Unicef's campaign for war-traumatised children in 1999.

The Musicians Union has chosen Unicef's Children in Conflict campaign as its predominant charity, thanks to Robbie Williams and Ian Dury's visit to war-torn Sri Lanka, back in September.

Heart-throb Williams and punk rocker Dury went up to the front line of Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict to see a polio immunisation campaign on a "Day of Tranquillity" truce.

The cause is especially poignant for Ian Dury because childhood polio left him with a withered leg. He went on the trip despite undergoing constant medication in his battle against cancer.

"Musicians everywhere know the power of music, and those few moments in a classroom in northern Sri Lanka proved its universal appeal," said a spokesman for the union.

Classical music - a hit with children

Youngsters may grow up on a diet of pop and rock - but TV, films and adverts are helping to keep the classics alive for a new generation.

A chart which compiled for national radio station Classic FM will feature top classical tunes including a string of favourites drawn from the movies or as incidental music on TV.

It is topped by Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite, known to many as the theme from ads for Cadbury's Fruit And Nut chocolate bars.

The Classic FM chart includes excerpts from the Titanic and Star Wars soundtracks.

The station claims to have an audience of nearly 400,000 children each week, with 128,000 listening to Henry's show - making it the station's most popular programme among four to 14-year olds.

The Top 10:

1. The Nutcracker Suite - Pyotr Tchaikovsky

2. Jupiter from The Planets Suite - Gustav Holst

3. Carnival Of The Animals - Camille Saint-Saens

4. Flight Of The Bumble Bee - Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov

5. Titanic - James Horner

6. Four Seasons - Antonio Vivaldi

7. Hall Of The Mountain King - Edvard Grieg

8. Cat Duet - Gioachino Rossini

9. Star Wars Theme - John Williams

10. Sorcerer's Apprentice - Paul Dukas