Rock Euphoria

LOS ANGELES, CA — 50th Annual Grammy Awards are on…..feel free to discuss! I will be updating this post with my quirky commentary throughout the telecast.

The telecast opens with Alicia Keyes singing a duet with Frank Sinatra, singing along with her as he appears from a television set. “From the moment you first fall in love with making music you dream of being a part of this show,” said Keyes as she opened the show. 

Musicians from yesterday and today gathered at the Staples Center in Los Angeles tonight to celebrate yet another year of music, despite previous fears the show would not go on due to the writers’ strike. 

Last years best new artist winner, Carrie Underwood, performs “Before He Cheats,” a song that although overplayed, still gets my attention long enough to stare at the television through the entire 4 minutes. 

Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
* Mary J. Blige, “Just Fine”
* Fantasia, “When I See You”
* Chrisette Michele, “If I Have My Way”
* Jill Scott, “Hate on Me”
WINNER: Alicia Keys, “No One”

Rihanna pops open her “Umbrella” as I cringe at the thought of having to hear that song for the millionth time. Halfway through, she turns her performance into “Please Don’t Stop the Music,” which seems to me like a rip off of Miami Sound Machine. 

Cirque Du Soleil’s “Love” performs the Beatles, followed by a little boy who sings “Let It Be” – no word on who he is. Despite this, audiences rise to their feet. 

Best New Artist
* Feist
* Ledisi
* Paramore
* Taylor Swift
WINNER: Amy Winehouse

Amy Winehouse, Lauper says, is not present to receive her award but will later perform via satellite from London. Audiences were expecting her to perform since rumors said she was getting a visa to the US after her recent rehab stay – I guess she never got that ontime. 

Kanye West is glowing in the dark, fire erupts from the stage as his glasses light up. I start to feel like I am at some show at Epcot Center. However, he makes up for the startling performing by performing “Hey Mama” as a tribute for his late mother. Some audience members are brought to tears.

Fergie bored everyone to tears as she tried to sing some heart-felt song with John Legend. I don’t think anyone cares about Fergie anymore unless she’s rapping and peeing her pants.

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media
* Across the Universe
* Dreamgirls
* Hairspray
* Once
WINNER: Love

Beyonce looks like some type of Tinkerbel as she joins Tina Turner to sing an array of songs, but as I sing along to “What’s Love Got To Do With It”, I just keep wondering if I will get to see Beyonce will fall from the stage again.

Song of the Year
* Carrie Underwood, “Before He Cheats”
* Plain White T’s, “Hey There Delilah”
* Corinne Bailey Rae, “Like a Star”
* Rihanna, “Umbrella”
WINNER: Amy Winehouse, “Rehab”

Alas!! Is that rock music that I hear?? The Foo Fighters take the stage with the winner of My Grammy Moment contest, Anne Marie Calhoun, to sing “The Pretender.” I find myself waking up from all the boredom that the Grammys has been so far….now why can’t all acts be this cool, I wonder?

Brad Praisley was beyond painful to watch, but maybe I was just too pumped up from seeing the Foos perform. 

Best Rap Album
* Common, Finding Forever
* Jay-Z, Kingdom Come
* Nas, Hip Hop Is Dead
* T.I., T.I. vs T.I.P.
WINNER: Kanye West, Graduation

“It will be on good taste to stop the music then,” said Kanye West as he attempts to thank his mother after winning his award and the producers are trying to get him off the stage. 

I stare at the clock and only 43 minutes have gone by….I still have about an hour and 15 minutes to go. Am I going to be able to make it? Oh wait, I just remembered Kid Rock is going to be presenting an award. I guess I will wait just a little longer. 

Wait, why does it look like the audience is literally falling asleep by this point? They don’t even play along with the presenters when asked (i.e. Ludacris).

Aretha Franklin and Bebe Winans perform. I know Aretha is a legend and everything but yawn. I really think I am starting to loose my attention span at this point. 

Is it just me or are these people not funny? I haven’t laughed at a single joke at this telecast. Maybe CBS is hurting from the writers being on strike, despite best efforts to come up for material. 

Feist, up and coming artist from Canada performs. The song catches my attention, although it feels like something that should be playing during a tv commercial. 

Keely Smith, winner of the first Grammy award for Best Performance By A Vocal Group in 1959 performs with Kid Row, and later introduce nominees for the Best Rock Album nominee. 

Best Rock Album
* Daughtry, Daughtry
* John Fogerty, Revival
* Bruce Springsteen, Magic
* Wilco, Sky Blue Sky 
WINNER* Foo Fighters, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

The Foos just won. I think I about pissed my pants with excitement.

There is Alicia Keyes again with that irritating song that just makes me think of the theme to “Laguna Beach.” Where’s Lauren Conrad? Oh wait, there’s John Mayer playing guitar. 

Best Country Album
* Dierks Bentley, Long Trip Alone
* Tim McGraw, Let It Go
* Brad Paisley, 5th Gear
* George Strait, It Just Comes Natural
WINNER Vince Gill, These Days

Vince Gill gets his award from Ringo Star. “I just had my award handed to me by a Beatle,” he says starstruck. “Have you had that happen yet Kanye?” he says. Someone got told (after Kanye’s acceptance speech arrogantly said how his new home were the Grammys). 

Who is the presenter that looks like Steve Carell?

Best Rap/Song Collaboration
* I Wanna Love You, Akon feat. Snoop Dog
* Kiss, Kiss, Chris Brown & T-Pain
* Let It Go, Keyshia Cole feat Missy Elliott & Lil’ Kim
* Umbrella, Rihanna feat. Jay-Z
* Good Life, Kanye West feat. T-Pain
WINNER: Rihanna and Jay Z with Umbrella

Ah, finally. There’s Amy Winehouse singing “No Good” and “Rehab.” People were so hyped up about seeing Winehouse performing tonight, but are you for real? Her performance looked effortless, like she’d rather be doing something else with her time - and you know exactly what’s on my mind, right people?

Record of the Year
* Beyoncé, “Irreplaceable”
* Foo Fighters, “The Pretender”
* Rihanna, “Umbrella”
* Justin Timberlake, “What Goes Around…Comes Around”
WINNER* Amy Winehouse, “Rehab”

Are you kidding me? Did you see her face when she won? That was not genuine, despite reading various blogs that say it was the most “honest speech” of the night. It looked real fake to me, and trust me I have nothing against the girl. Either way, my husband starts singing “Gonna make Amy Winehouse go to rehab,” which sends me to a laughing fit that lasts longer than the commercial break.

Josh Groban and Andrea Borcelli play a heart-felt tribute to the late Luciano Pavarotti during a tearful montage to artists that died this past year.

Rock N’ Roll veterans and former Grammy winners, John Fogerty, Jerry Lee Lewis and Little Richard play an homage to rock and roll, including “Great Balls of Fire.” Kinda wishing Jerry Lee Lewis would go crazy jumping on the piano like on the good old days.

Album of the Year
* Foo Fighters, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace
* Vince Gill, These Days
* Kanye West, Graduation
* Amy Winehouse, Back to Black
WINNER* Herbie Hancock, River: The Joni Letters

I think the audience is surprised, but pleasantly applauses. “It’s been 43 yrs since the first and only time that a jazz artist won for the album of the year award,” Hancock said. “I’d like to thank the academy for courageously breaking the mold this time.”

Photo by © Getty Images/AFP/Robyn Beck