While a very slow night for landings at LaGuardia Airport thanks to the icy weather in New York kept me from seeing most of the 2016 Grammy Awards, I did manage to catch the last three big numbers: the tributes to David Bowie and B.B. King and the performance by the Hollywood Vampires, a salute to Lemmy.
The 2014 duet record with Tony Bennett Cheek to Cheek clearly signaled that Lady Gaga is in the midst of a career transition from oddball pop star to something more serious and adult that I heartily applaud. The Bowie tribute, with Nile Rodgers on guitar, was fast paced, visually alluring, loaded with Bowie hits and to my ears a big success. Ditto the King tribute where Chris Stapleton nailed King’s single note style and both Gary Clark Jr. and Bonnie Raitt added their signature styles in both guitar playing and vocals in classy, respectful ways. The Vampires were fun, if disorganized and a little sloppy. Watching Johnny Depp play rock guitar dude was a bit squirm-inducing, as he tried to envince a seen-it-all, “no big thing” hard rock band attitude and a fashion fusion that mixed latter day Keith Richards scarves and rings with early years GNR tats and the `ol, guitar slung low, bob-in-place rhythm guitarist shtick.
While the Grammies have a notorious habit of not seizing the moment when it comes to awards—the Academy Awards have the same issue, Bogie loses for Casablanca but wins for African Queen?—two of this year’s winners struck me as absolutely right:
Best Historical Album: The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Volume 11.
Best Large Jazz Ensemble: The Thompson Fields, Maria Schneider Orchestra.
