Grammys to Right-Wing Fundagelicals: “In Your Face”.

[riqster]

http://bluntandcranky.wordpress.com/2014/01/27/grammys-to-right-wing-fundagelicals-in-your-face/

" That, friends, was the first Grammy awards show in years that was worth watching. Hoo boy, somebody must have grown a pair, and allowed some artists to take some risks for a damned change. From Steven Tyler singing Smokey Robinson in front of Smokey Robinson, to Taylor Swift bleeding all over the piano, to Macklemore and Ryan Lewis’ stinging bitch-slap to the major labels, some truly excellent moments occurred. Note to awards show producers near and far: safe sucks, risk rocks. Learn from this telecast.

But the best part wasn’t purely musical: it was the mass marriage of straight, LGBT, and multi-racial couples at the 2/3 mark of the broadcast. A good rap/gospel mashup number set up the ceremony, and the rap itself was a huge thumb in the eye to all the homophobes who are such an affliction on society.

There were some awesome musical moments, too: Nelson, Haggard, Kristofferson, and Shelton laid out a reminder of what country music used to be before it turned into classic rock sung through nasal cavities; Metallica with a classical pianist; and Imagine Dragons with a helluva hip hop artist, totally melting down the stage; those were just a few of the great musical moments of a rarely-watchable awards show. But it’s not what everyone will be talking about this morning.

And that’s a good thing, overall. Music isn’t just ear candy, you know: it’s part of the zeitgeist, and is as much influenced by as it is influential within it. Last night a few thousand music industry professionals, some of them pretty damned influential, all spoke with one voice. And what that voice said was:”up yours” to the regressive, repressive, and hate-ridden “Christian Conservative” community that wants us all to party like it’s 1499.

The courts, the people, and society as a whole are moving towards a rational, sane, and Constitutional policy on marriage equality. The Grammys added their considerable weight to the discussion, and it’s gonna be a fun week as the “Republicans”, Wingnuts, and Fundies go into full freakout mode, blathering, bullying, lying, shrieking, and generally acting like they can still bluster their way to victory.

That worked for a while, when the majority of the country tried to be civilized when dealing with these Repub barbarians. But people are getting tired of that losing approach. Last night, we saw what happens when we stand up for what is right: great art, great television, good politics, and oh yeah, a ton of money got made, all while serving the greater good and defending our Constitutional freedoms.

In your face, Fundies. In your face while dancing. In your face while we turn the volume up. Because you were right, back in the 50′s and 60′s: rock music IS revolutionary, and it WILL destroy your hateful, bigoted, backwards, hypocritical, lying society. In your face, boyo, because that is a very good thing."

Reference material at the link.

[monmouth3]

1. I didn't watch the show (Downton Abbey you know)..This a.m. Morning Joe and Mika were pretty

aghast at Beyonce and her performance. They stated that she already "owns the world" and why was it necessary for her to dance to be so sexy. I left them shortly after that..

[riqster]

3. I missed her performance.

I was cleaning up after dinner. Scratch-made chicken parmigiana takes some serious elbow grease to scrub up , but it was worth it

I was able to see most of the show after that, tho'.

[bluemarkers]

16. me too

saw something about a "mass marriage" and Beyonce wearing white on twitter - didn't make any sense last night... I really think the majority of Americans believe that we all deserve the same rights

[riqster]

20. And the RW loonies are totally losing their gourds

About the marriage. Awesome.

[locdlib]

40. I was glad she and her husband did the

sexy performance. I remarked to my hubby that the right wing evangelicals heads must be popping off their shoulders. And I'm not a huge fan of Beyoncé or Jay-Z, but the fact that they did such a steamy performance, one that rubbed sex and sexuality in their faces, was just fine with me.

[Myrina]

53. I wasn't aghast at the 'sexy' overload ...

... I'm just aghast that she doesn't STFU and go away already. She's got enough money to count to keep her busy for the rest of her life .... retire & let some youngsters with talent have a shot at the spotlight.

[catbyte]

2. I didn't watch the Grammys, but I did watch the Rolling Stones in Hyde Park for their 50th

Anniversary Tour windup on Showtime or one of those channels. Jesus, those guys are 70 years old & they could still blow my socks off. I was struck by how many young people were in the audience & knew every freaking word of every freaking song. I know I don't know the lyrics to the stuff my folks listened to back in the 30's & 40's, but kids sure know the stuff from 1963-on. There are a lot of things I don't like about pushing 60, but I thank Ceiling Cat that I was around to see some of the greatest music in the history of the planet played while it was being made.

[riqster]

5. Awesome. I'll have to look for that.

I also have got to watch "Sound City". I hear it's amazing.

[catbyte]

7. Their renditions of Gimme Shelter, Sympathy for the Devil & You Can't Always Get What You Want

were off the hook. Look for it.

[SomethingFishy]

32. Yeah Sound City is amazing..

Palladia has been showing it and VH1 as well.. Catch it if you can.. I hear there is another one just came out about Muscle Shoals, I'm keeping an eye out for that one..

[CBGLuthier]

4. I turned by and saw some woman writhing on a chair while lip syncing and decided to

watch a bad movie instead. Glad to see it did not all suck as bad as that.

[riqster]

6. Yeah, there was some crap. But some good stuff as well.

[2banon]

8. awesome review... will have to check it out later if it's available on line?

My only edit would have been to describe these republicans as neanderthals, (vs barbarians) which I truly believe that species must be.

[riqster]

9. Neanderthals couldn't help being Neanderthals. They were born that way.

Repubes choose to be barbaric. That's my take, anyway.

Thanks for the kind words.

[2banon]

10. gotta point.. lol!

[Redford]

11. I'm a fuddy duddy I guess.

I'd rather watch Downton Abbey than a bunch of lip synching.

[riqster]

14. A refreshing amount of actual singing occurred.

One of the good things about this broadcast.

[840high]

27. I'm with you.

[NightWatcher]

12. I liked when Metallica played One with the classical pianist

There were some other good mashups as well. Pharrel, Daft Punk, and Stevie Wonder had a good performance too. The mass wedding song/mashup performance was pretty good as well.

That singer Lorde made me feel so sorry for the kids in New Zealand

[riqster]

13. Lorde's record isn't half bad, but her performance last night sucked.

My opinion, anyway.

[lunasun]

26. just the opposite for me = she carried the whole song with out much musical accompaniment

quite well too imo

[joeglow3]

15. I didn't see anything like that during the Royal Rumble

Slightly different target audience.

[riqster]

18. Lol, yeah.

Just a wee bit different.

[TlalocW]

52. I thought the Grammys and Royal Rumble should be combined

Performances done inside a wrestling ring, and if one of them started sucking too much, send in a wrestler to throw them over the top rope.

TlalocW

[Happyhippychick]

17. I watched. I get a little depressed at the state of today's music, I just hate it.

Real Rock and my wonderful Alternative music are dead. Even the category for "Best rock" only featured the old timers.

[riqster]

19. As to the industry, I agree.

There is some good music popping up around the scene, though.

But the marriage equality message made the show worthwhile IMO.

[Happyhippychick]

23. Oh yes, the show had some great moments!

I loved the wedding and seeing Paul and Ringo on the same stage. Also the country boys were great and John Legend is just pure talent.

[central scrutinizer]

49. annulment?

[link:|

[alcibiades_mystery]

22. The Alternative Category had several awesome albums

Vampire Weekend's "Modern Vampires of the City" is a gawshdarned masterpiece. (It won for this category)

The National's "Trouble Will Find Me" is beautiful, as is every other album the band has ever made.

Neko Case's "The Worse Things Get..." is fantastic

While I'm not crazy about Tame Impala's "Lonerism," it's certainly a strong showing, and many of the songs are fantastic.

To say that Alternative music is dead is simply not to be paying attention. Many artists are putting out incredible music these days.

[Happyhippychick]

24. I definitely missed that, I will try to find it online.

Thanks!

[brett_jv]

31. Modern Vampires of the City is stone-cold brilliant ...

It was voted Album of the Year in Rolling Stone, and PopMatters, and it made 33 year-end 'best of' lists, including 22 'Top 10' listings.

One of those rare albums with 'not a bad song on it', and more than 1/2 the songs are amazing (Step, Ya Hey, Unbelievers, Hannah Hunt, Diane Young, and Everlasting Arms, in particular). I not sure it's what I'd personally call 'alternative' though, even if that's the category others put them into (like the Grammies). The major touchstones are Paul Simon, the Beatles, Buddy Holly, even a bit of Bread. It's pop, mostly, with a bit of an edge to it. And a ton of creativity in the way it's assembled and played. It's probably the best album of the year regardless of genre.

Agree also on The National & Neko Case, both great albums.

Based on your taste Alcibades, I also recommend checking out the NY band called Lucius, they just put out their debut 'Wildewoman' a couple months back, and it's awesome.

Here's a sample track ... sounds a bit twee at first, but trust me, these ladies can BELT it, which they show a hint of at the end of the song.

[alcibiades_mystery]

45. Thanks! Will check it out

I'd add Hudson to the brilliant list in MVotC. It's friggin' beautiful.

Agree also on MVotC being best album of the year regardless of genre. Total standout. Rare that I'd fall for an album as much as I did for that one.

[NRaleighLiberal]

38. I am with you - we have the new National and Arcade Fire on frequent listen...

miss shoegazer stuff (Pale Saints, Cocteaus) - our tastes are so fringe that nothing at the Grammys would work for us.

[tridim]

21. Republicans don't care that our culture is changing

Which is why they keep losing.

Pessimists suck. Right and left.

[riqster]

25. May their blindness continue. nt

[Rozlee]

28. The more youth they alienate, the bleaker their future will be.

They're losing more ground than they're gaining. They've alienated large segments of the population; segments that are growing and crowding them out.

[SomethingFishy]

34. LMAO.. people have been saying that for generations..

They are like cockroaches, enough of them will always survive to be annoying, in the way, and spreading disease.

[Rozlee]

48. It might be different this time.

There's a demographic tide that's coming their way. Last year, for the first time, minority births outnumbered white births. That never happened before. The pre-segregationist, pre-Civil Rights base that made up the most faithful bloc of the conservative base will be going tits up within the next 10 to 15 years. America is leaving its religious roots behind and becoming more secular, which will be a blow to the religious right. In the past, religion was a strong force in America. Now, especially among the young, it's influence is waning. Yes, a lot of them will survive and the haters make the most noise. After all, a small minority ruled South Africa and the 1% will still run the country and be able to manipulate the system. But, conservatives have painted themselves into a corner with their extremism. They've alienated everyone to the point where the Republican Party is now one that consists of 90% non-Hispanic whites. Extinction looms for them with those numbers, especially if they're not willing to moderate their stances on racism, misogyny, gay rights and income equality.

[okaawhatever]

29. They announced a special Grammy 2 hour show to coincide with the 50th Anniversary of the Beatles

performance on Ed Sullivan. It will be at the same time, same date and same channel as it was 50 years ago. (I think it's February 9th?) That should be awesome. I was surprised that Ringo, Sir Paul and Yoko Ono were all there last night. Wonder how they got along?

[lunasun]

30. It was all in their face YES!

Starting with a women they already hate for " ruining " SBhalf time
then joined by her husband - one of music's biggest power couples & they are black and confident

Macklemore/Lewis' Indie call out on how music can still come from people not promotion
Lou Reed tribute with Walk on the Wild side lyrics

and then the Samelove segment must of blew their heads off
Not only the genders but mixed races along side white straight couples probably freaked them even more as it was a united front ( (same love)

The touching moment to me was seeing M/L's Mary Lambert(L) with tears at the end
Must 've been overwhelming for her for sure

I doubt Daft Punk a french house band winning the big award and hugging each other in those helmets helped end the night well for the haters of anything different
than what they want


Hey Merle sang Okie from Muskogee

**I reaaly liked Lang Lang, the Chinese pianist with Metallica - phenomenal!
He did a nice tribute to Van Cliburn who passed this year but the Metallica collaboration was great imo
but this is what everyone I think will remember the most
http://theboombox.com/macklemore-ryan-lewis-perform-same-love-2014-grammy-awards/

[Dawson Leery]

33. k/r

[calimary]

35. OMG!!!!!!!!!! LOVE IT!!!!!!!!

"...what country music used to be before it turned into classic rock sung through nasal cavities"!

[riqster]

44. Thanks. One of my pet peeves.

I come from a small town in a rural county not far from Cleveland. And we had a lot of cats singing rock and roll with their countrified voices.

And it was still called rock and roll, not re-named to a different genre to suit the singer.

[calimary]

50. I first heard a version of that from my dad, YEARS ago.

He was watching what I think was the "Phil Donahue Show" when it aired from Chicago - LONG before Oprah, and he said "who's that guy singin' through his nose?"

I cringed just a little - it was James Taylor.

[riqster]

51. I saw JT twice. Amazing artist.

He never, so far as I know, assigned a genre to himself. Not sure how he could have, for that matter.

[brett_jv]

36. Wife and I were both tearing up during the wedding bit ...

Just a beautiful and inspirational celebration. The choice of having gay icon Madonna to come out and do the climactic portion of the song was absolutely brilliant.

We loved every minute of it, and esp. loved thinking about how the wing-nuts heads would be exploding across the country.

Great Show, Grammies.

Metallica and the pianist though ... YUCK. I've seen Metallica many times, and they're great at what they do, which is freaking ROCK. What they did last night, however, was NOT 'what they do', and that wimpy version they did, mashed-up with the piano was just pathetic, imho. Also couldn't figure out why they chose to play 'One' ... why not a friggin' Velvet Underground or Lou Reed song, in that particular moment?

[TheMightyFavog]

37. Looks like I missed out.

Sherlock was on, after all.

[Saviolo]

39. The whole Same Love moment

was genuinely touching. A bunch of interracial and same-sex couples being married live by Queen Latifah during the song, and Madonna coming out to put the cherry on top of Macklemore, Ryan Lewis, and Mary Lambert's beautiful number. A really fantastic set piece that gave a very firm jab into the face of religious intolerance of same-sex couples.

Macklemore takes a lot of flak, and I'm not sure why. He seems like a really genuine person and a really genuine ally. This new movement towards requiring flawless allies will only get us no allies ever again.

[TrogL]

41. Lyrics to one of the songs "If you don't go to church, you're going to hell"

I think it was http://www.metrolyrics.com/follow-your-arrow-lyrics-kacey-musgraves.html

In context it makes sense but it raises a larger issue. Think I'll start a thread in religion.

[riqster]

47. It's a cute-sounding song with a good message.

[Baitball Blogger]

42. I wish i had more time to sit and watch it.

There were so many greats on that show that I stopped often to enjoy the music.

Wow! Wish I knew ahead of time!

[LeftinOH]

43. Regarding the Grammy stuff. Who are all these people? I didn't watch,

but I've read some of post-awards stuff. I'm sure it isn't just me, but I haven't the faintest idea who these people are or what they do.

Macklemore? = Is that some kind of fish? Daft Punk? = Is that a mentally challenged delinquent?

I can't be the only one.

[riqster]

46. Some of them I had to Google after the fact,

Or during the commercials.