Rock superstar John Mellencamp will join conductor Keith Lockhart and The Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra on the BOSTON POPS FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR, a new entertainment special to be broadcast live from the Charles River Esplanade in Boston, Wednesday, July 4 (10:00-11:00 PM, live ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network. 

          Craig Ferguson (CBS's "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson") will host the special.  

          Mellencamp will perform hits from his stellar list of recordings with The Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra under the direction of conductor Keith Lockhart.

         The concert will also feature its traditional piece, the Boston Pops rendition of the "1812 Overture."  The final 23 minutes of the telecast, featuring the fireworks display, will be presented commercial free by the Liberty Mutual Group.

         The Boston Pops, America's orchestra, performs in front of nearly 900,000 people annually in Boston, across the country and around the world, and reaches millions more through its recordings and television broadcasts.  The BOSTON POPS FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR is the orchestra's annual free outdoor Fourth of July concert sponsored by the Liberty Mutual Group.

            Earlier this year, John Mellencamp -- whose hits include "Small Town," "Hurts So Good," "Jack and Diane" and "Pink Houses" -- released "Freedom's Road," his first album of all new songs in over five years.  To preserve the music's authentic ambience, John and his band recorded the album's songs in the garage that serves as the rehearsal room of his Belmont Mall studio in Bloomington, Indiana.  Mellencamp's recording career dates back over 30 years and his catalog of 21 albums includes such best sellers as  "American Fool," "Scarecrow," "Uh-Huh," "The Lonesome Jubilee," "Human Wheels,"  "Cuttin' Heads" and his recent two-disc set, "Words & Music," which is a Platinum Award winner.  Mellencamp is an accomplished painter and has collaborated with Stephen King on a musical play entitled "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County."  In 1985, along with Willie Nelson and Neil Young, he founded Farm Aid, the family farmer support organization. Mellencamp received Billboard's Century Award in 2001 for distinguished creative achievement and the Woody Guthrie Award in 2003.

           Craig Ferguson joined the late-night television arena as host of THE LATE LATE SHOW in January 2005 following a career that encompassed film, television and the stage.  The Scottish-born actor, writer, director and producer, who is known for his role as Nigel Wick on "The Drew Carey Show," brings a fresh approach to late-night television which has quickly evolved into appointment television for America's nightly insomniacs. Each weeknight, Ferguson, a gifted conversationalist, goes one-on-one with guests from the worlds of film, television, sports and news. Additionally, THE LATE LATE SHOW continues to spotlight eclectic, edgy musical acts and rising stand-up comedians.  THE LATE LATE SHOW with CRAIG FERGUSON airs weeknights (12:37-1:37 AM, ET/PT) following broadcasts of the "Late Show with David Letterman" on CBS. On the web: www.cbs.com/latenight/latelate.

            Boston 4 Celebrations has produced this annual event for the past 34 years for which approximately 500,000 people pack Boston's Charles River Esplanade.  In addition, more than seven million people across the country and the globe join "America's Orchestra" through the annual televised broadcast, sponsored by the Liberty Mutual Group.

            THE BOSTON POPS FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR telecast and live event will be produced by Boston 4 Celebrations and White Cherry Entertainment, in collaboration with IMG Media.  Boston 4 Celebrations' David G. Mugar is executive producer.  Glenn Weiss and Ricky Kirshner will produce the national telecast; Michael Mathis of IMG Media and Sheryl Boursik of WBZ-TV will produce the local telecast seen on WBZ-TV  Boston.  Glenn Weiss will direct both the local and Network broadcasts.

RATING:  To Be Announced