“…the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences took a wait-and-see attitude toward artists … and never really caught up.”
No I don’t think they get it at all. The Grammy’s have been irrelevant for many years.
Like - Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals - Tony Bennett & Stevie Wonder? I didn’t know Stevie Wonder even put out a record last year or that Tony Bennett was still alive and how does this even qualify as pop?
How could John Mayer ever beat out Elvis Costello? And how does Mayer get to be a nominee for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance? Is he Pop or is he Rock? Well he must be both and therefore a Pop-Rock!
But then Dylan won for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance over fellow tired oldster retreads Tom Petty and Neil Young when Beck should have won hands down.
Best Urban/Alternative Performance – OK, I don’t know about anybody else but aren’t Urban and Alternative very different from one another?
But Gnarls Barkley wins Best Alternative Music Album and Best Urban/Alternative Performance? He sounds a lot more R&B to me. Ben Harper is more a lot more rock or alternative than Barkley.
Shouldn’t there be separate categories for Urban, Alternative, Adult Alternative and perhaps even Adult Urban Alternative? And since Rap isn’t really music in any sense at all – why is there even a category for that?
And so OK, I can understand that giving the Dixie Chicks some sort of award was the politically correct thing to do for that crowd, but Best Country Album should have gone to Little Big Town and they are a lot more Rock than John Mayer – BTW.
Given the sorry lot of nominees for Record and Song of the Year, it should have gone to “Put Your Records On” by Corinne Bailey Rae
And The Raconteurs should have won something.
Well at least Polka In Paradise by Jimmy Sturr And His Orchestra won Best Polka Album (sarcasm).
…And Shakira?– she’s a Latin, Columbian born, blonde haired yodeler who belly dances….That’s doesn’t fit any category – and probably shouldn’t.
I agree with all of your excellent points.
I don't do top40 or country, so I tune into the Grammys knowing I'll probably fall asleep. But last nights show had such a crusty feel to it. And given Tipper Gores involvement with PMRC, I found it funny to see the "music industry" embracing Al.
And wasn't it the Grammys that gave Jethro Tull an award for best heavy metal band?? LOL