Grammy Observations

Perhaps I'm one of the few who still watch the Grammy Awards with the mistaken notion that it is musically relevant. Or perhaps I was only semi-coherent and too tired to change the channel when it came on. Either way, I ended up seeing it.

As with most award shows, I can do without the acceptance speeches. I was especially disappointed by the one where a whole group took turns at the microphone saying things that amounted to, "Hi Mom!" I did like the modest sentiment that John Mayer expressed in his acceptance speech, "I just want to say this is very, very fast, and I promise to catch up."

I noticed that so many of the major award winners were younger this year. Nelly, Ashanti, Mayer and Jones are all less than 25 years old. I wonder if that age group has always dominated or if I'm just noticing it now because I'm getting older.

1. No Doubt, Nelly and Eminem seem to put on solid performances, regardless of the venue.
2. Faith Hill and Avril Lavigne always seem to turn in disappointing performances.
3. You can back Vanessa Carlton up with an entire orchestra, but she will never sound half as good as James Taylor accompanied by Yo-Yo Ma.
4. Having 'N Sync pay tribute to the Bee Gees seemed entirely inadequate.
5. Even after all this time, Simon & Garfunkel singing "The Sound of Silence" in a darkened arena, under a single spotlight, still makes for a great musical moment.