Rock Hard Times: Ahhhhh, the Grammys

Today In Rock History

April 25th . . . 1918 - Legendary jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald is born in Newport News, VA . . . 1923 - Blues guitarist Albert King is born . . . 1933 - Jerry Leiber is born in Baltimore. With Mike Stoller, he’s written witty rock hits like “Yakety Yak” and “Jailhouse Rock” . . . 1945 - Bjorn Ulvaeus of Abba is born in Gothenburg, Sweden . . . 1945 - Stu Cook (Creedence Clearwater Revival) is born this day . . . 1950 - Steve Ferrone, drummer with the Average White Band and Eric Clapton, is born in Brighton, England . . . 1956 - Elvis Presley reaches top of US chart with Heartbreak Hotel, his first No. 1 . . . 1961 - Elvis Presley makes his last stage appearance for nearly eight years at Bloch Arena in Hawaii . . . 1964 - The Beatles have an amazing 14 singles on the American chart . . . 1967 - The Beatles perform “All You Need Is Love” during a global satellite broadcast . . . 1974 - Jim Morrison’s widow, Pam, dies in Hollywood at the age of 27. Police suspect heroin use may have played a part in her death . . . 1977 - Elvis Presley makes his last-known recordings during a live concert at the Saginaw (Mich.) Civic Center . . . 1981 - Wings break up after Denny Laine leaves the band. Paul McCartney says he will carry on as a solo artist . . . 1987 - Crowded House had their biggest U.S. hit when “Don’t Dream It’s Over” peaked at #2; U2 replace Beastie Boys at top of US LP chart with The Joshua Tree . . . 1990 - The Fender Stratocaster on which Jimi Hendrix played “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Woodstock sells at a London auction for $295,000 . . . 1994 - The Eagles played the first of two shows where they recorded their ‘Hell Freezes Over’ album . . . 1994 - A judge sentences Beastie Boy Adam Horowitz to 200 hours’ community service after he beats up a TV cameraman during River Phoenix’s funeral . . . 1994 - A judge determines that Michael Bolton’s “Love Is a Wonderful Thing” sounds a little too similar to the Isley Brothers’ “Love Is a Wonderful Thing.” Ya think? . . . 1997 - Warren Haynes and Allen Woody quit the Allman Brothers Band to tend to their careers as Gov’t Mule . . . 1999 - Funk star Roger Troutman, 47, dies in a hospital in Dayton, Ohio, after being shot several times . . . 2000 - Eric Clapton is reunited on a TV stage in London with his former Derek & the Dominos keyboard player Bobby Whitlock, for their first performance together in 29 years . . . 2002 - Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, the effervescent, sometimes volatile rapping member of the Grammy-winning R&B trio TLC, is killed in a car crash in Honduras . . . 2003 - The late jazz great Nina Simone is laid to rest in Carry-Le-Rouet, France . . . 2004 - Piano man Billy Joel drives his car into a house in Long Island. Nobody is seriously injured. It’s his third car crash in two years . . . 2007 - American singer Bobby “Boris” Pickett died of leukemia at the age of 69. He scored the Halloween anthem ‘The Monster Mash’ in 1962 . . .

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Ahhhhh, the Grammys

Let's get this out of the way right now - I am not a music expert. Unlike some of my other fellow bloggers, I haven't put in the time to truly call myself an aficionado. That being said, I think I can hold my own with the Grammy nomination committee any day of the week. Every year when the nominations are released, I wonder what planet those people are from. OK, I know, sometimes they get it right - but most of the time I wonder -WTF?

Case in point, 2009's nomination lineup.

Let's start with Coldplay. Yeah, I kinda liked their earlier albums (Parachutes, Rush of Blood to the Head) but of late their music just makes me want to turn the channel. Grammy likes 'em though. Coldplay is nominated for Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Rock Performance, Best Rock Album, and God knows what else. Here's what MSN's review said about Coldplay's album - "Gone are Chris Martin's piano recitals and gone are the washes of meticulously majestic guitar, replaced by orchestrations of sound, sometimes literally consisting of strings but usually a tapestry of synthesizers, percussion, organs, electronics, and guitars that avoid playing riffs." In short, everything that was good about Coldplay is out and techno, electro, bullcrappo is in. Here's your Grammy.

Robert Plant and Allison Krause have 27 nominations this year for "Raising Sand." Don't get me wrong, I loved this album. Who knew? It's as likely a complimentary combination as Chubby Checker and Johnny Paycheck - but it worked. So what's my beef? They already won a Grammy for a song from this album last year. And now, they can win more in 2009? BTW, if you know the technicality that permits them to win two years in a row, please drown yourself in a toilet before you tell anyone because no one cares. Oh yeah, and Paul McCartney is nominated this year for Best Solo Rock Performance - "I Saw Her Standing There" - Go figure.

Best new artist - Jonas Brothers. Are they really "artists?" I love that new "artist" Hannah Montana. Oh well, JB will probably be beat by Lady Antebellum . . . . who will be playing at Hillsboro's Festival of the Bells this year . . . . . . unless they win the Grammy.

Best Pop Album - James Taylor, "Covers." Uh, the songs are covers. Should an album entirely made up of songs someone else made famous first win the Grammy? Rod Stewart thinks its OK. Here's your Grammy.

Rock nominations??? How about Kid Rock, Radiohead, Coldplay and the new Eagles. Rock On!! A Walmart release album has never won a Grammy - think AC/DC cares? Here's your Grammy.

Judas Priest is nominated this year for a song named "Nostradamus" - who could have predicted that one?

Lil' Wayne - 8 nominations. I told you he was the next Stevie Wonder.

Eric Benet. ha. Here's your Grammy.

Metallica was robbed by Jethro Tull when the Heavy Metal category was founded. Maybe they get a mulligan and win this year - nah, Coldplay again. Who knows and who cares. Will I watch? Yeah, but only because the Pro Bowl sucks even more.