The Grammy’s were well the Grammy’s, filled as usual with a ton of fantastic performances but I have to say that Mumford & Sons v. The Avett Brothers v. Bob Dylan was the highlight of the night for me. Not only did M&S rock out on that tiny little rectangle of a stage that somehow didn’t break to perform “The Cave,” they cemented themselves as the next great band from the UK. If 2010 was a huge step for the folk rock foursome in terms of crossing the pond and selling out small concert venues, 2011 is going to be one hell of a wild ride. The Avett Brothers continue to amaze me and I dug their performance which gained steam midway through and probably netted them a ton more fans following. And no matter how old Bob Dylan gets and how mumbled he may sound, I can never get enough of the musician who made me love music.
Also did Mick Jagger rock the Grammy’s or what? His cover of Solomon Burke’s “Everybody Needs Somebody To Love” with Raphael Saadiq was sensational. What a tribute it was, filled with energy and spunk that no doubt must have had Burke smiling down from up above.
Eminem, Rihanna, Dre I’d say was as you’d expect, a great, energetic performance but the real winner seems to be Skylar Grey who practically stole the show with her vocals on “I Need A Doctor.” And you know what, I’m sure the Eminem, Dre and Alex da Kid are grinning from ear-to-ear knowing they just hit the jackpot yet again.
B.o.B, Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae – three of todays most talented definitely didn’t disappoint and 2011 should continue to be huge for all three.
Arcade Fire, wow! The Suburbs propelled them to another level in 2010 and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the Canadians after their performances brought rock back to the Grammy’s. My only question is did they know they were going to win that they were set to play a second song? I hope not but just curious….
Cee Lo dressed as a ginormous parrot was a bit scary. Was he trying to be Koko B. Ware? The Gwyneth Paltrow part, did I miss something? And The Muppets, loved them!
Drake and Rihanna was just ok. Anyone else think it wasn’t that great? I just wonder if Chris Brown was watching and what he must have been thinking about RiRi’s outfit.
Some other notes:
Trombone Shorty! Let’s hope he gets his due eventually
The Aretha Franklin tribute was a nice touch
Props to Esperanza Spalding and her big win!
John Mayer, Norah Jones and Keith Urban paying tribute to Dolly Parton was pretty cool
How many times do we have to see Lady GaGa and Katy Perry perform at awards shows? Talented they may be but again?
Barbra Streisand, would have been cool if Duck Sauce was a special guest during the performance. Hey we can all dream, right?
Do J. Lo and Marc Anthony tell award producers we’ll only present if we appear together?
Can Lady Antebellum officially be considered not country since their crossover to mainstream is now cemented?
And one more note because I just can’t leave it out, what the heck was up with Puffy and his gold teef?
Do You Hear The Music? 