>What I thought was weird about Osborne getting all the nominations was that
>she only had one single out and a little-known album, which led me to think
>that she had some 'good friends' in the Grammy committee (See Raitt, Bonnie).
The Grammies are strange, in general. I figured this out long ago when Sting
won the "Best Jazz Instrumental Performance" for "Dream of the Blue
Turtles". Even he was embarassed by that selection. And this year, Shaggy's
"Boombastic" was voted the best reggae album (gimme a break). Or what about
Joni Mitchell being classified in the pop album category (on the other hand,
where would we put her).
>Hey, I liked Sheryl Crow. Her album is pretty diverse (ObJazz: "Do What
>They Can," the second to the last song; ObFunk: "Solidify"). She's produced
>by Bill Bottrell, who also produced Thomas Dolby's funky "Aliens Ate My
>Buick" album.
Agreed, I always loved "Aliens Ate My Buick", especially the hilarious track
"Airhead".
>Okay, since people brought light about Osborne's talent, I'll give it a
>chance. But I guess we all agree on Morrissette? Isn't she the first
>Truly-Packaged, Bandwagon-Jumping,
Nope, sorry Elson but I don't think we're all together on that one. I happen
to like Alison Morisette's "Jagged Little Pill" album very much, I applaud
her grammy awards, and I see no dichotomy in enjoying her music at the same
time I enjoy Brand New Heavies, Incognito, Marcus Miller's "Tales", John
Coltrane, Charlie Parker, Chick Corea, Robben Ford, Yellowjackets, Joni
Mitchell's "Miles of Aisles", old Billy Cobham albums, or even older Stan
Getz/Astrud Gilbero records, *and* everything the Beatles ever did. I like
"acid jazz" and funk and groove oriented music in general, but it doesn't
mean I have to dislike everthing else.
In my former band, we even used to do a version of "You Oughta Know" that
featured an extended funk jam in the middle section, where I did a funky
'organ' solo using a hammond patch. That *was* a funky bass groove that Flea
put down in the original recording, IMHO. He's no Stanley Clarke but he does
have his moments.
I guess we all have different tastes, but there was a recent thread here
about musicians being open to more genres of music. It *is* possible to
appreciate different genres for their strengths, and I especially like it
when different styles find points of intersection. If everyone was so narrow
minded, Joni Mitchell would have never had Jaco Pastorius in her band at one
point, a period in her career that yielded some of the most interesting music.
>Yodel-Like-Every-Other-Female-Alternative Singer,
>I'm-Gonna-Cuss-On-My-Record-Just-To-Look-Hard 'Alternative' Artist?
>She used to be on a Nickolodeon show, and used to be a Debbie Gibson-type
>teen pop singer (that wasn't as successful).
>The guy who wrote "You Oughtta Know" also co-wrote Michael Jackson's "Man
>In The Mirror"! Actually, I kind of like Morissette's presence in the
>industry. I mean, artists like her can only mean grunge's downfall.
I don't think it is fair to Glenn Ballard that we base everything he does on
his past commercial work. Does that mean we get to disregard Nelson
Riddle's big band arrangements for Sinatra because at one point he did the
score for the Adam West Batman TV series??
As for "packaging" - though I personally don't think Morisette had that in
mind - I think it doesn't really matter in the end, as long as we get to
appreciate the finished work. Anyway, wouldn't Blue Note Records in the 50's
and 60's or ECM in the 70's be accused of the same thing, that of packaging
their artists to conform to a certain "label sound"?
And as for "Man In The Mirror" -- check out Tuck Andress' solo acoustic
guitar version. A killer track.
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jim ayson [ jra@europa.com ] ... quezon city, metro manila, philippines
W3 Business Communications: website design and management [w3bc@tridel.com.ph]
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