Even in Grammy’s darkest hours, CU brings its picking powers!
- Superhero television show about our blog from the 50′s.
We won’t be live-blogging this time around, but will be reacting to the show in a full post tomorrow, and welcome your reactions in comments on this post. The awards telecast starts at 8 pm Eastern, and I imagine there will be some red carpet action in the hour prior.
Record of the Year
Picks
Beyonce, “Halo” – Kevin
Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody” - Tara
Lady GaGa, “Poker Face” - Dan
Taylor Swift, “You Belong with Me”
Predictions
Beyonce, “Halo”
Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody” – Kevin, Dan, Tara
Lady GaGa, “Poker Face”
Taylor Swift, “You Belong with Me”
Kevin: Am I wrong for preferring Eric Cartman’s rendition of “Poker Face” over the original? This is a pretty lightweight slate of contenders. I really like “Halo”, but I suspect Kings of Leon will win, simply because it’s the only rock song in a lineup of pop hits.
Dan: “Poker Face” just feels very representative of popular music in 2009. I wouldn’t whine if it got passed over so that “Bad Romance” could take this award next year, though.
Tara: I would’ve pulled for “Single Ladies” in a heartbeat had it been submitted, but “Use Somebody” is just as deserving of this award. It’s a fantastic song even outside the context of its moment in pop culture, and it’s the kind of larger-than-life song that the voters have picked to win in the past.
Album of the Year
Picks
Beyonce, I Am…Sasha Fierce
Black Eyed Peas, The E.N.D.
Lady GaGa, The Fame – Kevin, Tara
Dave Matthews Band, Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King
Taylor Swift, Fearless - Dan
Predictions
Beyonce, I Am…Sasha Fierce
Black Eyed Peas, The E.N.D.
Lady GaGa, The Fame
Dave Matthews Band, Big Whiskey and the Groogrux King - Kevin
Taylor Swift, Fearless - Dan, Tara
Kevin: I’d like to see dance music get some respect in the big category, even if there are a half-dozen Madonna albums at this point that would’ve been worthier winners than The Fame. Again, I think the Top 40 votes are going to be split, leaving Dave Matthews Band the winners.
Dan: In little over a year, Fearless has grown from success story to cultural artifact. It’s that rare pop album that seems to have a personality all its own, like Jagged Little Pill in a yellow sundress (and sung about as well). I could see anyone but the Peas taking this, but I think Swift’s support in both Nashville and the Top 40 crowd will take her to the top.
Tara: I have to say I was fairly shocked to see Swift’s truckload of Grammy nominations, so I’m having a little trouble wrapping my mind around the Academy’s thought process – but, I suppose a Swift win in this category is inevitable. However, I fully back Lady GaGa, who is the perfect storm of creativity, vision, swagger and raw vocal talent (remember that, pop world?). (more…)
Since this was a solo blog, doing a Grammy Wish List has been an annual tradition. I’m not too excited about this year’s Grammys, to be honest. 2009 was a weak year in my opinion, and the shortened 11-month eligibility period didn’t help matters. But a tradition is a tradition, so here are my picks in the eleven categories that I care about this year:
* denotes my personal wish:
Record of the Year
Beyoncé, “Halo” *
The Black Eyed Peas, “I Gotta Feeling”
Kings of Leon, “Use Somebody”
Lady Gaga, “Poker Face”
Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”
It’s always nice to see a country radio hit in there, but I honestly can’t stand “You Belong With Me.” I dig the Kings of Leon song, but the record that I enjoy the most here is “Halo.” Some pundits have suggested that Beyoncé threw her chances at this trophy by submitting “Halo” instead of “Single Ladies”, but I like that song even less than “You Belong With Me.” Love “Halo”, though.
Song of the Year
Lady Gaga & RedOne, “Poker Face”
Hod David & Musze, “Pretty Wings”
Thaddis Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)”
Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill & Nathan Followill, “Use Somebody” *
Liz Rose & Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”
Great to see Liz Rose in there, too, but I still can’t stand the song. I think “Use Somebody” is a great composition that could easily be a hit in other formats if the right artist covered it. Are you listening, Sugarland?
Best New Artist
Zac Brown Band *
Keri Hilson
MGMT
Silversun Pickups
The Ting Tings
Zac Brown Band don’t quite live up to the hype, but they come a lot closer than last year’s nominee, Lady Antebellum.
Best Country Album
Zac Brown Band, The Foundation
George Strait, Twang *
Taylor Swift, Fearless
Keith Urban, Defying Gravity
Lee Ann Womack, Call Me Crazy
There isn’t an album here that is built for more than cherry-picking. Strait’s set has the most cherries.
Best Female Country Vocal Performance
Miranda Lambert, “Dead Flowers”
Martina McBride, “I Just Call You Mine”
Taylor Swift, “White Horse”
Carrie Underwood, “Just a Dream” *
Lee Ann Womack, “Solitary Thinkin’”
The only women who brought their A-game to this category are Swift and Underwood. “White Horse” might be the better song, but Underwood’s is the better vocal performance by a country mile.
Best Male Country Vocal Performance
Trace Adkins, “All I Ask For Anymore”
Billy Currington, “People Are Crazy”
Jamey Johnson, “High Cost of Living”
George Strait, “Living For the Night” *
Keith Urban, “Sweet Thing”
I love the Strait song, so it’s my pick, but this is one of the only strong categories this year and I wouldn’t mind seeing any of these five win.
Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals
Brooks & Dunn, “Cowgirls Don’t Cry”
Zac Brown Band, “Chicken Fried”
Lady Antebellum, “I Run to You”
Rascal Flatts, “Here Comes Goodbye”
Sugarland, “It Happens” *
No A-game here, but Sugarland’s B-game is better than the rest.
Best Country Vocal Collaboration
Dierks Bentley & Patty Griffin, “Beautiful World”
Kenny Chesney & Mac McAnally, “Down the Road”
Brad Paisley & Keith Urban, “Start a Band”
Carrie Underwood & Randy Travis, “I Told You So” *
Lee Ann Womack & George Strait, “Everything But Quits”
Some amazing pairings here, but Underwood and Travis are the only ones with the material to match the talent.
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
Adele, “Hometown Glory”
Beyoncé, “Halo”
Katy Perry, “Hot N Cold”
Pink, “Sober” *
Taylor Swift, “You Belong With Me”
Pink is an awesome songwriter, and easily the most substantial female pop star to come along in the last decade. “Sober” is one of her best.
Best Pop Vocal Album
The Black Eyed Peas, The End
Colbie Caillat, The Breakthrough
Kelly Clarkson, All I Ever Wanted
The Fray, The Fray
Pink, Funhouse *
It’s not quite as good as I’m Not Dead, but it comes close.
Best Dance Recording
The Black Eyed Peas, “Boom Boom Pow”
David Guetta and Kelly Rowland, “When Love Takes Over”
This one’s certain to be a big hit, so you might as well pick it up cheap. Today’s Amazon special is the new Lady Antebellum album Need You Now for $3.99.
Once applauded for her introspective songs and uniquely intriguing voice, it is disappointing to hear that both strengths are imperceptible in this trainwreck of a song. As a result, “embarrassing” is the only word that aptly describes Jewel’s latest single, “Stay Here Forever.”
Produced by Nathan Chapman (yes, Taylor Swift), “Stay Here Forever” sounds like a Swift castoff. In other words, it sounds as though it is purposely reaching to be like a Swift song, but still manages to miss the mark by not sounding nearly as credible. Sure, the bouncy guitar riff, the “oohs” “ahs”, and exaggerated, childish nasal voice are all there, but it just doesn’t sound natural coming from a thirty-six year-old woman whose music career first consisted of a well-respected album full of much more mature material than lyrics such as “’Cause if you wanna go/Baby, let’s go/If you wanna rock/
I’m ready to roll.”
While it is nice that Jewel has chosen to continue courting the country market after her first country album was only marginally successful, it is a shame that she is pursuing it in this way. Not only has it met with cringeworthy results, but it is a waste of good talent that we happen to already know exists, which is the real kicker.
Gilbert O’Sullivan spent six weeks at #1 in 1972 with “Alone Again (Naturally)”, a song that is so sad it should’ve been a country song a long time ago:
There’s only one artist that could improve on this, and that’s Alison Krauss. She’d be a perfect fit for a song that starts with a man being stood up at his own wedding, ends with him mourning both of his parents, and finds him doubting God’s mercy, God’s very existence.
I’m sure we’ve discussed this before, but it’s been a while:
What classic pop song would you like to hear covered by a country artist?
The debut country offering by Broadway star Bundy is one of those weird critical anomalies: a single that dares you to hate it, and thereby ends up being – though you’ll never admit it to anyone in person – kind of charming. It wears its campy garishness more boldly than possibly any country release since “Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy),” which isn’t so surprising coming from the former lead of Legally Blonde: The Musical, but is certainly big news in a format as dependent on the tried-and-true as mainstream country.
That’s not to say “Giddy On Up” (commiserate with me for a sec on that title?) is a completely odd duck. In plot terms, it’s just another cutesy girl-power kiss-off song, the likes of which have been standard fare since the Shania boom and will probably be for some time to come. This one can stand proudly among the most lyrically bland of its kin, too, with the most interesting line being a little knock on Bath & Body Works in the second verse. (more…)
I had such a negative reaction to “Strange” that it kept me away from the new Reba McEntire album at first. So imagine my surprise when the second single from Keep On Lovin’ You, “Consider Me Gone”, turned out to be my favorite single from her in thirteen years.
Everything that “Strange” wasn’t, “Consider Me Gone” was: introspective, self-assured, fully believable and completely adult. It left me more receptive to McEntire’s music than I have been in a long time, so I eagerly dived in to the title track, which is now the latest single.
While it doesn’t approach the perfection of “Consider Me Gone”, I must say that it’s still a good deal better than the bulk of this legend’s output. It’s really unfair to compare her to the newer acts that dominate the radio. Among the women, only Carrie Underwood is in her league as a vocalist, and she doesn’t have the extra thirty years of life experience to draw upon that Reba does.
That’s why Carrie Underwood makes great music that expresses the twenty-something experience. We need Reba to do the same for the fifty-somethings. When she makes age-appropriate music, she sounds awesome. “I Keep On Lovin’ You” is in that vein, a solid anniversary song that is clearly about a relationship that has already weathered several storms, and even though more are on the horizon, these two mates will keep sailing together.
It’s held back only by a slightly too-slow pace and fairly bland melody, which would be far more noticeable in the hands of a less proficient singer. The production is subtle, almost completely stripped down at first. Thankfully, there is a warm steel guitar that keeps this one out of coffeehouse folkie territory. And when her voice begins to soar toward the end, those good, old-fashioned “Somebody Should Leave” goosebumps come rushing in.
There was considerable grumbling among eMusic’s 400,000-ish subscribers last year when the formerly indie-centric music download service enacted a dramatic increase in monthly user subscription fees in exchange for posting a few good chunks of the Sony catalogue. Thankfully, the service endured the backlash long enough to strike up another major-label deal, this time with Warner Music Group (and no additional price hike – so far).
The deal is a huge treat that helps ease the burn of the increased price, bringing with it classic catalogue work from the likes of Emmylou Harris, Dwight Yoakam, Randy Travis, Gram Parsons, Neil Young, Travis Tritt, Eddie Rabbitt, Linda Ronstadt, Jerry Jeff Walker and more. That’s in addition to the Dolly Parton, George Jones, Johnny Cash, Tammy Wynette, Willie Nelson, Sons of the Pioneers and others already brought in by Sony and other labels. With per-track costs averaging at about $.45 depending on your monthly plan, the newly rejuvenated service could prove quite enticing to catalogue fans who like to cherry-pick. Let’s hope deals with Universal Music Group and EMI are forthcoming.
eMusic’s blog post on the expansion can be found here. For more information, see the site itself.
Back in the middle of June, William reviewed Sugar Hill recording artist Sarah Jarosz’s excellent debut album, Song Up in Her Head. Now, for a limited time, it is available at Amazon’s digital store for just $1.99. If you haven’t given it a chance yet, this is the time. It will be more than well worth it.
Not only did the album land the #17 spot on Amazon’s Best Albums of 2009 list, but “Tell Me True”was also their #1 country song.
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