Having sworn off easy targets, I’ll just keep it to some drive.by observations…the relevance of the Grammies is currently under debate, as Neil Portnow has made some heroic efforts to broaden the nominated categories, but somehow, the house always wins…
There is perhaps, the makings of a seperate screed on Jay.Z & Lil' Wayne's moves towards rock stardom, now that they've 'conquered' their field, & not to get all Gallagher about it, but i'll stick w/
Rakim, and I don't have the brain power to cope with it at this point. As for Coldplay...sigh. Should i trust any band that actively campaigns for the highest office in the land?
The beauty of the show is always the personal moments, (Paul Simon’s ’76 acceptance speech thanking Stevie Wonder for not making a record that year being the runaway classic), and the performances (Outkast joined by the USC marching band is something you just don’t anticipate seeing on live TV anymore, and copied by
Radiohead this year…if it’s hip, I believe they call it an homage)
The Grammy police have kept a
tight grip on this clip; it disappears every time I see it posted, but I did manage to catch it once before it got pulled, thanks to the good folks @
KEXP, and it really works…
My favorite quote was from Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompson from the
Roots, pulled from his Twitter adventures as a guest, and I quote ‘They won’t allow me to Twit from rehearsals, but let me say that Radiohead is about to murder…”. Indeed.
It seemed like the performances/set pieces weigh outweighed the awards, and ratings were way up…coincidence?
Blink-182…I love the audience non.reaction at the ‘big reunion announcement’. Ouch! But do you think that will stop them...
Best compilation soundtrack to Juno! No matter what you thought of the movie, That was a soundtrack...
And please note the triumph of They Might Be Giants in the Childrens category w/’Here Come the 1…2…3’s’. Yes, it’s the sequel to ‘Here Come the A…B…C’s’. Consider this a tip to all my peers who should be getting that hard earned sleep instead of reading this...
Props to Al Green for rolling in as a sub w/no notice, and, well, being Al Green.
Adele bested Duffy in the battle of the UK, (a.k.a. Best New Artist) Not bad…anyone who knocks down the Jonas Bros has something going on, although one of the best pure songs I heard all year was the title track of Duffy’s ‘Rockferry’, an amazing retro blast of Dusty Springfield love…
On to the important stuff: Over the years, for some reason, one of the first categories I dig after the majors is…(drumroll please) Best Polka! Yes, once again Jimmy Sturr, (the Eagles of polka music...) outlasted Walter Ostenak, (picking up the Susan Lucci role from
Ed Blazonczyk. Which is to say aesthetically that it’s the pitched battle between the Pennsylvania ‘oompah’ sound, and the more hard driving ‘Chicago’ sound.
Jak Szie Masz to my old friend
Gene Martin, Mr. Polka!
Was the bigger suprise Arcade Fire taking the Record of the Year Grammy, (especially after losing to The Black Keys in the Alternative catagories), or the sound of thousands of hipsters gulping and realizing that there might be an iota of relevancy in those Grammys after all? Or perhaps all the pissed off mainstream types who didn't seem to be cognizant of a group that hit the top ten with it's second record and went #1 with it's third. Does that just speak more to how easily people can get lost in their own niche? A few amusing moments can be had with the Tumbler: 'Who Is Arcade Fire".
