Sunday, January 31, 2010

Thoughts on the 52nd Grammys

I'm not much interested in today's music. But I did watch the Grammys tonight and enjoyed the pairings of old school and new school artists - Elton John and Lady Gaga, Leon Russell and The Zac Brown Band, Stevie Nicks and Taylor Swift as well as Roberta Flack and Maxwell singing "Where Is This Love?" Maxwell did justice to Donny Hathaway.

Smokey Robinson, Celine Dion, Usher, Carrie Underwood and Jennifer Hudson sang Michael Jackson's "Earth Song." Jeff Beck's tribute to Les Paul was also a nice touch.

But perhaps the most interesting highlight of the evening was by Pink when she performed her song "Glitter in the Air." She came out in a white robe and hood, walked along a promenade and disrobed wearing only a series of ribbons. Pink then approached the other side of the stage where dancers were gathered in a Cirque de Soleil like formation. She was then lifted into the air, brought back down, dipped into water, lifted back up and spun round and round spraying the water around while continuing to sing. It was quite a spectacle.

Of course, it was Pink who wrote the anti-Bush song "Dear Mr. President" a few years back. It included lyrics like, "What kind of father would take his own daughter's rights away?/And what kind of father might hate his own daughter if she were gay?" Of course, President Obama doesn't support gay marriage, either. But I don't see Pink penning any songs addressed to him.

I saw VH-1's Behind The Music profile on her a few months ago and she comes off as a very sullen, abrasive woman. But she's also an undeniably talented woman who knows who to put on a show.

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