Breaking down The Grammy Awards 2012.

To many music fans the annual Grammy Awards garner a love/hate reaction.
The show often features the best and the worst trends of the music industry.

To the cultured eye they can also reveal which artists are actually building/sustaining careers vs. those who are, as David Lee Roth is fond of saying, “here today, gone later today”. 

This year’s Grammys had a bit of both. As someone who plays music, buys music, and works within the industry I thought I’d share my observations on this years show.

Disclaimer: By no means do I present myself as an expert, or some authority figure on what is “good” music and what “bad” music is. That’s up to you to decide. These are my observations on the show, and all that it entailed.

1. Bruce has too many ppl onstage. I want a “lean, rocking” EStreet, not the “Up With People” EStreet, especially for this song.

2. Bruno Mars. Ok, we’re doing the updated Motown throwback right? So it’s cool but very safe. The kid’s got spunk, swagger and does a good approximation of Jackie Robinson in his prime. Could be worse I guess. 
BTW - in the “retro/throwback” category I prefer Janelle Monae and her take on Motown & James Brown. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzFHYbQqdM0)

3. The Foos. Rock’s last great hope? Good on Dave for selling the merits of people writing and playing music, recording to analog, recording in your garage, etc…makes me want to bust out my Tascam 424, plug in an SM57 and turn the amps up to “11”.
Best part of the Foos records & live was that they ditched the Mesa Boogie backline. Vox & Fender all the way.
How abut Butch “fucking” Vig. How many top 10 rock albums & Grammy winners has he produced the past 5-10 years. He’s the stealth bomber of producers. No ego, no bs, just does his thing and delivers.

4. True Story! My 6 yr. old daughter is getting ready for school this AM. I’m watching the Grammy’s and Rhianna comes on. My daughter starts singing “We Found Love” along with her at the top of her lungs while getting her snowpants on . She knows every word. My wife asks her, “how do you know that?” My daughter says, “oh I heard it on the bus, the driver has the radio on sometimes.” 
Boom! New marketing idea! Paying school districts money to pump top 40 playlists into buses & create a whole new genration of pop music buyers in the process.

5. Coldplay needs to take a break.

6. The Beach Boys segment was awkward, espec. the Ryan Seacrest interruption to wheel Brian out. 
a) I give Maroon 5 a pass because Adam can sing. 
b) Foster the People were way out of place on that stage. Funny to watch them play while there’s a whole band of pro’s behind them singing and playing. Which do you think we really heard in the mix? 
c) looks like it’s Brian’s touring band is backing the “Boys” now?
d) Overall the one band I don’t want to see return is The Beach Boys. Part of that is my dislike of Mike Love and all he represents. The other part is based on the fact that 
Brian’s work in the past 5 years really capped their career in a very appropriate way.
He toured with a band that recreated the albums perfectly and without all drama of the past.
Add to that they release of the original “Smile” and there’s nothing left to say.

7. Macca can do whatever the fuck he wants. He’s a Beatle, and that means he gets a pass…ok, maybe not for “Say, Say, Say”.

8. Gil Scott Heron won a lifetime Grammy. Couldn’t fucking believe it. Better late than never eh? But the revolution is still not being televised. It’s being webcast, or posted on YouTube, at least until the gov’t silences that as well with SOPA/PIPA.

9. Taylor Swift. Voice sounds better. Fine song, bizarre looking set though and that dance/lean thing at the bridge was awkward. The constant closeups are aesthetically painful to watch. 
I’d tell her that if you want to tell someone to “fuck off”? Don’t mug for the camera. Makes you look like more of a kid than you are.
It would have been nice to see her do that song the way they presented Adele. Black dress, muted background, etc…
Guitar nerd point: she’s playing banjo with open guitar chords and that banjo is not in the mix.

10. Katy Perry is over. You heard it here first. 

11. Adele. Again, the Brits steal our music (blues, gospel, jazz) because we are too busy pushing low hanging fruit like Katy Perry & Taylor Swift. 
Compare the US/UK top selling female artists from the past few years:
Winehouse, Duffy, Adele.
vs.
Swift, Perry, Gaga, etc…

See the difference? 
The Brits make soul music for all ages.
The Americans make pop music for tweens.

Which leads me to…

We always hear, “Where’s the next great artist that’s going to save the industry?”
What I think we really should be asking is, “Where’s the next great A&R/executive/label pres./producer that’s going to save the industry?”
Wheres’s the next Jac Holzman? Where’s the next Ahmet Ertegun?
Where’s the generation of guys and gals who know how to support and guide artists?
Who have great ears, patience and aren’t afraid to make great music that may seem out of the norm but is still rooted in the traditions of blue/jazz/country/rock music?
Without them the artists & the business cannot grow and flourish. 

12. I love Glen Campbell. Member of the Wrecking Crew. Solo star. Crazy drug addict. Rhinestone Cowboy. “as he slowly walked by, a weeping willow would cry”. ‘nuff said. (who’s the hot blonde on the banjo behind Blake Shelton? woof!)

13. Bon Iver bigs up Eau Claire, WI! Take that Silver Lake and the Palisades! 

14. Jennifer Hudson made me cry. She got her start singing at funerals and I’m sorry to see her drafted in to do it one more time.

15. EDM mashup? Looks like every night in the tents at Coachella. The Foos again? WTF? Oh yeah, the Deadmau5 remix of “Rope”. Ok, that sort of worked. 
One thing is for sure, the crowd in that tent is way more excited to be there than the crowd in the Staples.

16. Minaj trying to be Madonna, circa ‘91. Fail.

17. Adele wins Album of the Year. 
Did anyone notice who stood behind her during her speech? 
Dan Wilson. He’s from Minneapolis.
He wrote “Rolling in the Deep” with her. 
If you’ve been around awhile you might know his previous work.
Trip Shakespeare? 
How about Semisonic’s “Closing Time”. 
Yeah, he was the lead singer of Semisonic.
Amazing huh?
What a journey he is on.
Well done Dan.

18. Macca encore. Again, he’s a Beatle. Straight up OG. Can do no wrong, but I think we’re going to have to start realizing he’s not going to to be with us forever.
See him while you still can.

Peace

BTW - you’ll notice I didn’t link to any audio or video in this post. That was on purpose, to highlight the fact that if internet censorship laws like SOPA & PIPA ever pass you will never see a YouTube video or audio file linked to on a blog like this again.