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Ramblings, observations, and rants
Solely for my own amusement, but if any of this gives you a grin, cool!
The Police…Oh YES baby
Sounds just as good as in '83
What the hell was he singing in the breakdown?
hmmmm, Sting is now in the running for the Gingey Award for Best Hottie-Over 50 Category
Best Pop Colab...YEAH...Stevie & Tony...I love me some Tony Bennett now...PURE CLASS.
They both are making me tear up...my hormones are out of whack.
Chicks...ok, I get it...they spoke out for what they believed...but they aren't heroes, they are musicians. Enough with the overblown Joan Baez introduction. As they ask in this song: "Can't you just get over it?" Oh, and I had a prom dress that looks like Natalie's. The other two look hot.
Prince...what was that? Beyonce...great dress. Lose the flowers in your hair. I am amazed you didn't fall down those steps...good girl! Fantastic performance! WOW.
Carrie Underwood: you have looked bored in every shot so far...get excited!!! You were sitting at home eating a pint of ice cream and watching this show only 2 years ago!
I LOVE Fergie's hair, and her pewter baby doll dress...lovely.
Mary J. looks sincerely touched and a little taken aback. She even brought her purse up on the stage...lol... I'm happy for her.
Queen L...not crazy about your dress...but who am I? I'm sitting on my couch w/ my laptop and a cocktail...you are rich and on national tv. lol
Justin Timberlake...nice echo effect going on here...ouch, this is a song written about Brit-Brit, isn't it? ok, I am loving this performance... I always love black "ensemble" BGVs, too... NOOOOOO, don't ruin the performance with this cheezy holding the camera in your face gimick...GONG!!!!!!
Mary J, Mary J, Mary J....Blige. Preach it, girlfriend.
Corrine, John, & John...ahhhhhh, I lovvvve good music... sweet. This is the kind of music I like to turn all of the lights out, crank it up, and bask in every note...
John Mayer is now in the running for the Gingey Award for Best Hottie-Under 30 Category...for his musicianship alone...and the hair...great hair.
Next presenters: uh, who are you ladies? Holy crap...I can't believe Christina Ag didn't win Best Pop Vocal...oh well, John Mayer is a good second choice.
Commercial break: Holy shit, I am 0 for 0 in my predictions this year...I suck!
Shakira...DAMN! Look at her shakin' that thang! Very cool production number. I'm sure all of you ass men are having a coronary right about now! Wait. Did he just rap, "Obama"? I want an outfit like hers...however, I would end up looking like Buddah in it.
Ok, this is really sad...aging sucks. I hate seeing our legends looking sooooo elderly.
hmmmm...Chicks again...and Natalie was almost...almo...nope...she wasn't speechless...
Wow, I feel like I'm listening to Jackie Wil ...oh there was Algore... Wilson...who are all of these airline pilots? Did Delta go on strike again?
Best Rap category...dead to me. Time for a potty break.
Back just in time for Ludacris to give a shout-out to Bill O'Rilley...that was funny!
oooh, this guy is going to play Charlie Pride (one of my favorites)...Terrance Howard...(thx, Sista)...wow, a pretty intense intro for Mary J. She's good, but, "royalty"? Not yet...not for a few years/decades...she isn't quite Aretha yet...
Ok, I take it back...that was amazing.
Please, God...oh, this is farkin' ridiculous...somebody pleeeeze give Natalie a muzzle.
Carrie Underwood...ok, this is kind of cute, The Bob Wills thing. Rascal Flatts doing Eagles...eh...ok...wasn't crazy about Gary LeVox' lead. Not at all.
Carrie Underwood on Desparado...thumbs up.
Just not into Gary LeVox on any of this. NOOOOOO, please don't do the face to face hump dance ... whew! it's over...
Natalie Cole: "uh, this is great. Carrie Underwood." I don't think it was a "Great!", but a "Great."
Samuel L. & Christina Ricci: awkward.
Smokey...good.
Lionel...omg..."Hello"...I'm back in 1985 again...
next number: ummmmm....potty time again...
ah, here we go...Christina Aguilera...LOVE the performance, hate the hair...wow, that was some scream!
Ok, had to take a break to address a child issue.
I always get sad when they show who all has passed away in the last year. Ahmet Ertegun...what an amazing pioneer in the recording industry. Buck Owens, Denny Doherty, Freddy Fender...
...James Brown.
David Spade...somebody remind me to blog about when I asked him for directions underneath 30 Rock in 1995...
Ludacris & Mary J. Blige...oooh, very cool vocal acrobatics from Mary J. ...Ok, at first I wasn't into this...but I kinda am now. Wow. Powerful.
James Blunt: I must be really, really hormonal...this song is really depressing me tonight...kinda makes me wanna go jump off the Batman Building...
...not really, but geez...
Jennifer Hudson...I would've picked a different dress...
ummm...this whole "contest" thing really cheapens the purpose of this event...but ok...
oooh, Justin...I love him...love this song...love it, love it, love it...ain't no sunshine, amen.
ok, bring up the beat...this girl looks pretty polished considering that she just got pulled from the audience to sing on freakin' national television and in front of all of most of her heroes...my vote: winner pre-determined and performance pre-rehearsed.
Quentin Tarrentino...wins the Gingey Award for Best Hyperactive Loud Presenter in Need of Sedative.
Dixie Chicks got Record of the Year...sweeping...
I'm getting very sleepy.
Red Hot Chili Peppers...I'm disappointed that they didn't wear their socks. ;)
It's the amazing Algore! Holy crap, they are only on Best Rock Album? I thought this show was almost over! The Chili Peppers won. "We need more ROCK BANDS!!"
Don Henley and Scarlett Johanson...AWKWARD!
Album of the Year and the last word...Dixie Chicks.
Good show. I'm spent.
The only membership I kept after my departure from the corporate side of the music business was my membership to the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS), which is the voting entity for the Grammy Awards. It was the most special one because you have to earn your membership. You have to have at least 6 album credits to your name to become a member, so becoming a member is an accomplishment I am very proud of.
Hence, I get the privilege of voting for the Grammys every year, and so thought I'd share my votes for the categories I'm most interested in...we'll see if my picks are in line with the rest of the Academy and the critics!
Record of the Year:
"Be Without You,'' Mary J. Blige
"You're Beautiful,'' James Blunt
"Not Ready to Make Nice,'' Dixie Chicks
"Crazy,'' Gnarls Barkley
"Put Your Records On,'' Corinne Bailey Rae
My pick: "You're Beautiful,'' James Blunt
Because I am a mushy girl. Seriously, it's a beautiful song that will be remembered for years to come.
Winner: "Not Ready to Make Nice,'' Dixie Chicks
Well, I do believe these girls have gotten the last word, no?
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Album of the Year:
"Taking the Long Way,'' Dixie Chicks
"St. Elsewhere,'' Gnarls Barkley
"Continuum,'' John Mayer
"Stadium Arcadium,'' Red Hot Chili Peppers
"FutureSex/LoveSounds,'' Justin Timberlake
My pick: "FutureSex/LoveSounds,'' Justin Timberlake
I can't help it...he sings in falsetto like Barry Gibb. Seriously, he gets a lot of flack, but the guy has real talent. I'm just not into the other albums in this category.
Winner: "Not Ready to Make Nice,'' Dixie Chicks
Thank God we can all move on now...
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Song of the Year:
"Be Without You,'' Johnta Austin, Mary J. Blige, Bryan-Michael Cox and Jason Perry (Mary J. Blige)
"Jesus, Take the Wheel,'' Brett James, Hillary Lindsey and Gordie Sampson (Carrie Underwood)
"Not Ready to Make Nice,'' Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Dan Wilson (Dixie Chicks)
"Put Your Records On,'' John Beck, Steve Chrisanthou and Corinne Bailey Rae (Corinne Bailey Rae)
"You're Beautiful,'' James Blunt, Amanda Ghost and Sacha Skarbek (James Blunt)
My pick: "You're Beautiful"
Same reasons as above. Sorry, I can't jump on the Chicks or Underwood bandwagon on this one.
Winner: "Not Ready to Make Nice,'' Martie Maguire, Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Dan Wilson (Dixie Chicks)
um...ooook...this one's for Sharon and Angie... :)
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New Artist:
James Blunt
Chris Brown
Imogen Heap
Corinne Bailey Rae
Carrie Underwood
My pick: Carrie Underwood
You can't argue that she has talent and lasting power.
Winner: CARRIE UNDERWOOD
Thank God...Carrie, you finally made me 1-14 on my picks!!! geez!
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Pop Vocal Album:
"Back to Basics,'' Christina Aguilera
"Back to Bedlam,'' James Blunt
"The River in Reverse,'' Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint
"Continuum,'' John Mayer
"FutureSex/LoveSounds,'' Justin Timberlake
My pick: "Back to Basics," Christina Aguilera
This category has the word "vocal" in it. This girl has pipes, and they are showcased on this album beautifully.
Winner: "Continuum,'' John Mayer
Well, it's definitely my second choice. Glad it won.
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Best Country Album:
"Taking the Long Way,'' Dixie Chicks
"Like Red on a Rose,'' Alan Jackson
"The Road to Here,'' Little Big Town
"You Don't Know Me: The Songs of Cindy Walker,'' Willie Nelson
"Your Man,'' Josh Turner
My pick: "The Road to Here,'' Little Big Town
Hands down! If you haven't listened to this album, pick it up! The songs, the harmonies, the pickin'...everything about this album is perfect.
Winner: "Taking the Long Way,'' Dixie Chicks
Damn, people...share the love...unbelievable.
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Best Female Country Vocal Performance
"Kerosene Miranda," Lambert
"I Still Miss Someone," Martina McBride
"Something's Gotta Give," LeAnn Rimes
"Jesus, Take The Wheel," Carrie Underwood
"I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today," Gretchen Wilson
My pick: "I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today," Gretchen Wilson
The song and the performance slay me.
Winner: "Jesus, Take The Wheel," Carrie Underwood
Woo hoo! I still like Gretchen's performance better.
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Best Male Country Vocal Performance
"Every Mile A Memory," Dierks Bentley
"The Reason Why," Vince Gill
"The Seashores Of Old Mexico," George Strait
"Would You Go With Me," Josh Turner
"Once In A Lifetime," Keith Urban
My pick: "The Seashores Of Old Mexico," George Strait
Pure country song, pure country performance. Good stuff.
Winner: "The Reason Why," Vince Gill
Name recognition.
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Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal
"Not Ready To Make Nice," Dixie Chicks
"Heaven's My Home," The Duhks
"Boondocks," Little Big Town
"What Hurts The Most," Rascal Flatts
"Leave The Pieces," The Wreckers
My pick: "What Hurts The Most," Rascal Flatts
This was the hardest one to decide! All of the performances are excellent. I have to choose the Flatts guys because overall, it is a powerful performance in every way. Absolutely amazing. I crank it up everytime it comes on.
Winner: "Not Ready To Make Nice," Dixie Chicks
A political statement by a bunch of West Coast liberals. ;-)
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Best Country Song
Every Mile A Memory
I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today
Jesus, Take The Wheel
Like Red On A Rose
What Hurts The Most
My pick: "What Hurts The Most," Rascal Flatts
Another difficult one to pick out of this lot. I would say that the structure, melody...eh, who am I kidding...I like it because it reminds me of something the Brothers Gibb would have written.
Winner: Jesus, Take The Wheel
Man, I am sucking in my picks this year...
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Best Bluegrass Album
"Long List Of Heartaches," The Grascals
"Bluegrass," Jim Lauderdale
"Instrumentals," Ricky Skaggs And Kentucky Thunder
"Live At The Ryman," Marty Stuart And His Fabulous Superlatives
"All American Bluegrass Girl," Rhonda Vincent
My pick: "Long List of Heartaches" The Grascals
This has nothing to do with the fact that the bassist, Terry Smith, is the husband of one of my best blogger buddies, Sista. It is an excellent album, and another one to pick up as soon as possible.
Winner: "Instrumentals," Ricky Skaggs And Kentucky Thunder
Name recognition.
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Best Comedy Album
"Blue Collar Comedy Tour — One For The Road," Bill Engvall, Ron White, Jeff Foxworthy & Larry The Cable Guy
"The Carnegie Hall Performance," Lewis Black
"Life Is Worth Losing," George Carlin
"Straight Outta Lynwood", "Weird Al" Yankovic
"You Can't Fix Stupid," Ron White
My pick: "Blue Collar Comedy Tour -- One For The Road," Bill Engvall, Ron White, Jeff Foxworthy & Larry The Cable Guy
I don't care who you are...that ritechair is funny. Git-r-done!
Winner: "The Carnegie Hall Performance," Lewis Black
Who the f*ck is Lewis Black?
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Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
Can't Take It In (From The Chronicles Of Narnia — The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe), Imogen Heap
I Need To Wake Up (From An Inconvenient Truth), Melissa Etheridge
Our Town (From Cars), James Taylor
There's Nothing Like A Show On Broadway (From The Producers), Nathan Lane & Matthew Broderick)
Travelin' Thru (From Transamerica) Dolly Parton
My pick: "Travelin' Thru," Dolly Parton
I truly believe this song deserved the Oscar...what a rip off! Therefore, I hope the Academy had enough sense to vote for it this time and give her what she deserves! I did...
Winner: Our Town (From Cars), James Taylor
Damn.
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Best Short Form Music Video
"8th Of November," Big & Rich - Deaton/Flanigen & Marc Oswald, directors
"When You Were Young," The Killers - Anthony Mandler, director
"Here It Goes Again," OK Go - a bunch of directors
"Dani California," Red Hot Chili Peppers - Tony Kaye, video director
"Writing On The Walls," Underoath - Anders Forsman, Ragnar Granstrand & Linus Johansson, directors
My pick: "8th Of November," Big & Rich - Deaton/Flanigen & Marc Oswald, directors
This is one of the most powerful videos I have ever seen, bar none. If you ever get the opportunity to see the extended documentary of the making of, you must. They show it on the video channels occasionally. If you don't tear up watching it, you ain't got a heart.
Oh, and George Flanigen is a hottie...old crushes die hard.
Winner: "Here It Goes Again," OK Go - a bunch of directors
This goes under my blog category: Bullshit.
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Best Polka Album
Never mind...
Other shout-outs:
Frampton comes alive again! He won for Best Pop Instrumental Album...YAY!
Final Thoughts: I suck! I got 1 of 14 picks... I guess I should have jumped on the Chicks wagon after all...
"Wow! She was as old as you are and she's that pretty?!?!?!?"*Sigh*
B-Dub mi amigo, your lashing of those of us who care about the future of our city is fascinating to me. Especially in light of all of the rants you spew out onto your blog on a regular basis. You fail to see the underlying importance of the problem: Nashville can't have it both ways...Nashville wants so bad to be respected with our bids for conventions, big league sports teams, tourism...but then, the government goes and passes a useless bill like this, which only send the message that we remain the hillbilly, redneck, barefooted , backwards town of inbreds that most of the rest of world believes us to be. It's a damaging and slippery slope...what next: Christianity First? Christianity Only?
Also, you get pissed at everyone else getting pissed...isn't that a little ironic?
For your convenience, here is the translation of this post en Español:
B-Dub, a mi amigo, el su azotar de los de nosotros que cuiden sobre el futuro de nuestra ciudad sean fascinadores a mí. Especialmente en la luz de todos los rants usted arroga hacia fuera sobre su blog sobre una base regular. Usted no puede ver la importancia subyacente del problema: Nashville can't lo tiene que ambas maneras... Nashville desea así que malo que se respetará con nuestras ofertas para las convenciones, la liga grande se divierte los equipos, turismo... pero entonces, el gobierno va y aprueba una cuenta inútil como esto, que envían solamente el mensaje que seguimos siendo el hillbilly, redneck, descalzo, al revés ciudad de los inbreds que la mayoría del resto del mundo nos cree ser.
It's una cuesta perjudicial y deslizadiza... qué siguiente: ¿Cristianismo Primero? ¿Cristianismo Solamente? ¿También, usted consigue pissed en cada uno... isn't pissed que consigue otro que un poco irónico?
er, thanks Babel Fish
Personally, I love your blog. Too right! You know, as real Christians, we should be able to discern a deception when we see, hear, or otherwise experience it. Ex-gay ministries are just that…a deception! They don’t ‘cure’ who a person is…and I seriously take offense at the term “cure”. God wants and loves us as we are already! God made each of each us the way we are and you know what?...He said that we are ‘fearfully and wonderfully’ made. How can anyone possibly be so arrogant as to believe that they could understand something so intimate to a person’s soul? Our soul is who we really are.
I learned a long time ago that Jesus never said one word about ‘homosexuality’. Even though the word itself didn’t exist in that time, there was certainly a way to describe it. But I find it very, very interesting that the Lord Himself, who never condemned anyone, but accepted everyone where they are as they are, did not see this as an important issue whatsoever. And no matter what Paul wrote or what is in the Old Testament in the book of Leviticus (don’t even get me started on that one…I mean, we don’t do animal sacrifices anymore either! Give me a break. We are under Grace through Jesus, not under Law. So there), I am so much more willing to believe in the Man who died for me than someone who made many, many mistakes (and admitted them)…meaning Paul. Not to say that Paul was not inspired. He was. But, don’t forget that he was flawed. He was not at all perfect. Jesus was the only perfect man…which is why He became the sacrifice for all of us.
Terry McMillan
October 12, 1953 - February 2, 2007
One of the best harmonica & percussion players ever...

Emmy Scott
Age 23
Died February 2, 2007
Had a lovely time today at Espresso Joe's, enjoying a killer frozen espresso thingy and meeting some more blogger friends face to face.
Racing great, Benny Parsons, has passed away from cancer at the age of 65 today. It always makes me kind of sad when a racing legend passes, because it reminds me of my daddy. If it is possible for those who have passed to know one another up in heaven, then I'm sure my daddy and Benny have already shaken hands today.
If you were within a 10 mile radius of my house tonight, you may have heard a high-pitched squeal at around 7:35pm. That would have been yours truly giving it up for my man, Hugh Laurie, who won a Golden Globe tonight for Best Actor in a TV Series, Drama.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.