Sep 22, 2007, 7:00 GMT
The Rolling Stones have been named the world's top earning musicians.
The veteran rockers topped the Forbes.com list after earning a staggering $88 million in the last year, mostly through their 'The Bigger Bang' world tour.
Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z, who is CEO of Def Jam Records, claimed second place with $83 million. The rapper, who owns a stake in the New Jersey Nets basketball team, also runs a profitable sports bar chain.
Madonna finished third in the list with $77 million, primarily thanks to her 'Confessions' world tour and collaboration with clothes store H+M.
Los Angeles entertainment attorney Chris Castle believes the Rolling Stones and Madonna continue to rake in money because they have managed to stay on top of their game - despite being in the industry for decades.
He said: "Earning that amount of money is not something that happens by accident, that's not something that happens overnight. That's something they work at. And they work at it because they want a long-term career."
Celine Dion was the only other woman who featured on the highly-regarded list, finishing sixth with $45 million.
The singer's career has gone from strength to strength following a series of Las Vegas shows, new album 'Taking Chances', and her perfume and jewellery ranges.
Rapper 50 Cent came eighth on the list, less than a week after he was rumoured to be quitting the music business after his album, 'Curtis' was outsold by rival Kanye West's 'Graduation'.
Justin Timberlake, 26, rounded off the list, after a very successful year which saw him earning $20 million - mainly down to his triumphant second solo album, 'Futuresex/LoveSounds'.
Forbes.com's Top-Earning musicians, 2006-7:
1) The Rolling Stones - $88 million
2) Jay-Z - $83 million
3) Madonna - $72 million
4) Bon Jovi - $67 million
5) Elton John - $53 million
6) Celine Dion - $45 million
7) Tim McGraw - $37 million
8) 50 Cent - $33 million
9) U2 - $30 million
10) Sean (P. Diddy) Combs - $23 million
11) Justin Timberlake - $20 million
(C) BANG Media International
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