Britney Spears, Larry Rudolph Return to Studio

Troubled pop singer Britney Spears returned to the recording studio this week with her former manager, Larry Rudolph. But it's nothing serious.

"We went into the studio, but it was just for fun - nothing more," Larry Rudolph said of their visits to a studio in Burbank, Calif., Monday and Tuesday.

"She just wanted to go in and tinker around," a source says. "She sat at a piano and got some ideas. She played the piano and sang a bit. She enjoyed herself."

Britney Spears, who used to be a pretty well-known recording artist, has not been in a recording studio, or pants, for much of the past year.

There, Spears played old and new tunes, the source says, adding, "she wanted to go in and get her creativity going. It was a really positive experience for her."

Spears and Rudolph, who produces MTV's Rock the Cradle, "are not at the stage where they are talking business," nor is this studio visit a start of a new project.

But stay tuned. In other Britney Spears news, she's got a hearing coming up May 6 that may allow her to regain some custody or visitation with her kiddies!