The Grammys summed up nicely in a tweet

8 months ago by Jeff Woods | February 2, 2010 10:37 am

They say if you don’t have anything good to say, than don’t.   Is that don’t say anything or don’t say anything good?  

I had nothing good to say about the Grammy’s yesterday so I said nothing. 

Suddenly today I’m inspired.

Thing is, I tuned in Sunday night on the spur of the moment, in the haze of the weekend, having forgetten it was going to be on.  I watched with suspended prejudice, thinking that somehow it might be different/better/good.    My girl and I lasted 20 minutes and then simultaneously looked at one another and said, ’ that’s about enough’, and clicked on by.

This morning came the bit of inspiration to blog via Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, via his Twitter account over the weekend, which read:

 "Grammy asshole weekend in LA. Yuck… The Grammys = the old guard / old media propping up their puppets trying to convince the outside world (and each other) they’re relevant."

Nicely put.

Now, let’s consider the mandate of the annual awards spectacle.   According to The Grammys official website, The Grammys (as opposed to other awards shows i.e. the American Music Awards)  are there to "honour artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".      You can put that theory to the test by looking no further than the category of  ‘Album of the Year, with nominations including Black Eyed Peas, Beyonce, Lady Gaga, the Dave Matthews Band and Taylor Swift.   Guess who won it?  The latter – the one that sold the most.    

Of course, none of this is shocking.   The Grammys like most awards shows are simply a platform for bandwagoning, little more than a formality an industry in need of a night to put on their best duds and spill a little champagne in memory of the glory days.

In the New York Times last week, Neil Portnow, president of the Recording Academy, summed up the Grammys as  "Ultimately, it’s the amazing performances that are the trademark."

I didn’t see any of those in the 20 minutes that I lasted Sunday night, unless you count Elton John and Lady Gaga’s duet.    Like Madonna, she can’t sing either.  One thing will never change – in the absence of  "artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry", face paint and a nice ass  goes a long long way.  

 

 

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  • Lola
    February 2, 2010 at 11:48 am

    I saw about the same amount of the Grammys as you did. I really only tuned in to watch Lady Gaga (I really like her – sorry!) From your comment I see that you enjoyed the same part of her performance as my husband!

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  • Bill Townsend
    February 2, 2010 at 11:55 am

    Couldn’t agree more. It’s such a load of crap. How does Beyonce pass for “artistic achievement” or technical anything and come out of it with 6 awards? & Lady Gaga? how ’bout Lady “Ha Ha”? Is she even a lady?

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  • a
    February 2, 2010 at 2:23 pm

    Baaa-ha-ha-ha-ha!
    That is directed toward: 1) The “powers that be” at the Grammys; there’s got to be a high degree of delusion in the air they breathe. 2) You because that was a hilarious post. Thanks for the smile!

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  • Carolyn
    February 2, 2010 at 2:31 pm

    The only good part was the duet between Elton John and Lady Gaga. I love Mary J. Blige…do they know that the song Bridge Over Troubled Water is about drugs? Beyonce was way too much…self-indulgent. What the hell was Celine Dion wearing?????
    I didn’t get the Black-eyed Peas at all. Way too much country and not enough of the good stuff…blues, rock…

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  • johnny d
    February 2, 2010 at 5:04 pm

    I always figure that if one can close one’s eyes, listen to the music and enjoy it, then it is good. One doesn’t need to watch the show. Same thing as if a seeing-deprived(?) person goes to a concert and enjoys it, then all but the music is extraneous. Something like Lady GaGa’s outfit wouldn’t be such a big whoop. Long live radio!

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  • Vineca Gray
    February 2, 2010 at 6:39 pm

    Ditto everyone.

    And to add insult to injury…

    Neil Young gets his first Grammy – Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package.

    Says it all. I will never ever watch this shite again.

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  • Jim J
    February 2, 2010 at 10:21 pm

    Best part was Jeff Beck playing those Les Paul licks on Les Paul and Mary Ford’s hit song “How High the Moon”. One of the few guitarists who could pull it off so sweet and enjoy doing it so much.

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  • Babcock
    February 2, 2010 at 11:22 pm

    I don’t think Lady Gaga is half bad. It sure beats the Black Eyed Peas “tonight’s gonna be a good night” number.

    I was hoping to see Leonard Cohen though, someone actually deserving their Lifetime Achievement award and they get less screen time than Colbert’s Christmas album.

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  • Elaine
    February 3, 2010 at 8:32 am

    The Grammy’s have gone from celebrating individual/group talent to entertaining the masses and ratings. A fact of life these days.

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  • jon
    February 3, 2010 at 10:59 am

    Hey Jeff, the Beyonce… uhhh… ‘medley?’ was almost painful to watch let alone hear. The armored police? that escorted her onto the stage ouoghta escorted everyone out of that building and called it a night. Self-ingratiation festival…congratulations people, well done?

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  • jon
    February 3, 2010 at 11:06 am

    Sometimes I’m terribleee disappointed in our species… and from time to time even myself. Those looking for perfection or even consistency need not apply.

    Have a great day none the less…

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  • jon
    February 3, 2010 at 1:00 pm

    maybe I oughtta just stood in bed. And I agree she’s quite the talented voice… she’s been given a lot of great things. ;)

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  • Darryl
    February 5, 2010 at 11:44 pm

    I personally boycott all awards shows because of the gratuitous and flatuous nature of them and the complete irrelevency in my life. They’re almost as pertinent as those 5 Norwegian pinheads who give out peace prizes to presidents who are only setting up the entire world for war. On the other hand, it’s been a long while since a song really captured my attention and lately, two have really done so: Stranglehold by Ted Nugent and Creed by Petra. Fantastic music and/or lyrics in both. Not that the award givers would ever have noticed. A pox on pop culture.

    (Reply)

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