Grammy Recap

It seemed tonight the Academy had decided the excellence of the recording industry was best represented by Amy Winehouse, until Herbie Hancock pulled off a NY Giants sized upset for Album of the Year. That I did not predict. (Complete list of winner here.)

In terms of programming, between Herbie Hancock playing Gershwin and Eldar paying tribute to Oscar Peterson, jazz got about six minutes of air time. (Actually, no I do not have a lot of time on my hands, but I’d like to track jazz’s Grammy penetration from year to year.) Of course, jazz collectively cannot complain this year, given Hancock’s big win. In addition, many of this year’s departed jazz greats were duly honored in the annual memorial tribute, including: Oscar Peterson, Max Roach, Al Viola, Joel Dorn, and Joe Zawinul.

As for my predictions, they are not completely embarrassing:

Herbie Hancock won for Best Contemporary Jazz Album. Check. No surprise, as he was playing the telecast. Sorry Eldar, but presumably your time will come. I predicted anyone but Hancock for Album of the year—happy to be wrong there.

Patti Austin won for Best Jazz Vocal Album for Avant Gershwin. My prediction was Dee Dee Bridgewater. There seemed to be a Gershwin vibe going on with the Grammy’s this year.

Best Instrumental Solo and Best Jazz Instrumental Album went to the late great Michael Brecker. Check and check.

New Orleans’ own Terence Blanchard won for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album (and one of your J.B. Spins Best of 2007). Check.

Paquito D’Rivera followed up a Downbeat poll win with a Best Latin Jazz Grammy. Check.

Best Traditional Blues Album went to Last of the Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen. I predicted Koko Taylor and as high powered a combination Henry Townsend, "Pinetop" Perkins, Robert Lockwood, Jr., and David "Honeyboy" Edwards are, I am shocked they beat out Taylor.

Best Musical Show Album went to Spring Awakening. Company deserved it, but check.

Best Score went to Ratatouille. I predicted the Oscar winner Babel.

Best Composition went to Maria Schneider. Check.

Best Instrumental Arrangement went to Vince Mendoza for “In a Silent Way” on Zawinul’s Brown Street. I was really pulling for Steve Wiest, but to be fair, that was a great album.

Seven right, five wrong. That is not eerily prescient, but maybe not terrible.

Grammy Predictions

Thanks to a WGA waiver the Grammy’s will go on this coming Sunday at 8:00 Eastern. Expect viewers to start asking the Guild to revoke their free pass around 8:15. At least we have something cool to listen for when Herbie Hancock performs “Rhapsody in Blue” with Lang Lang.

With the January 9th deadline for ballots long past, it is time to prognosticate. Last year I was not too far off. Of course other pundits won’t bother to predict these categories, so I’m basically competing against myself this year, with following.

Speaking of Hancock, I would be delighted to see him win album of the year, but he won’t. I don’t know what will, but I know I won’t like it. However, Hancock is a lead pipe cinch to win Best Contemporary Jazz Album. He’s set to play the show. The Academy knows him and likes him, plus a Joni Mitchell tribute album is something they can totally get behind.

Best Jazz Vocal Album is tough, but I’m thinking Dee Dee Bridgewater’s Red Earth: a Malian Journey. The world music angle is appealing and her NPR affiliation gives her added clout.

Best Instrumental Solo and Best Jazz Instrumental Album will go to Michal Brecker. There was a lot of affection for him in the industry, so I fully expect them to take advantage of a final opportunity to honor him.

A Tale of God’s Will was one of the 10 Best CDs of 2007 here. I doubt that cuts much ice with the Academy, but I still expect it to win Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. Voting for it is a painless way to express solidarity with New Orleans, and it really is a powerful record.

2007 was the first year Paquito D’Rivera won the Downbeat Reader’s Poll. Look for him go on a winning streak with the Best Latin Jazz Grammy as well. Grammy voters probably don’t dig his straight-shooting on world events like we do, but he is still very popular with fellow musicians, and Funk Tango made many critics’ Top 10 lists.

Koko Taylor will own the Best Traditional Blues category. Old School is clearly a sentimental favorite as her comeback vehicle after long bouts with illness. Besides, would you want to vote against her? I don’t think so.

Moving down the ballot, Concord aggressively promoted Gustavo Santaolalla’s score to Babel, so it might be the only nominated soundtrack in any voters’ personal collections, unless they have kids. In that case, they are probably totally sick of hearing Happy Feet and Ratatouille. Babel also won the Oscar, so it looks like a safe bet.

Critics have been slavishly boosting the “rock opera” Spring Awakening, so I fully expect it to win hands down. Company would be a more adventurous choice, given John Doyle’s unconventional staging, but that guarantees no Grammy love. (Incidentally, Great Performances will be broadcasting Doyle’s revival of the Sondheim show February 20th. Look for a review here about a week before.)

For Best Instrumental Composition, Philip Glass is the only non-jazz composer and has a loyal following. Still, if Notes for a Scandal mania broke out last year, I totally missed it. I see this going to Maria Schneider.

I have plugged Steve Wiest “Besame Mucho” for Best Instrumental Arrangement before. I would like to see him win, so I’ll make that my prediction, and take the hit if I’m wrong to avoid having divided loyalties. I really do think he has an excellent shot, since he was nominated for the late, great Maynard Ferguson’s final recording.

As usual, you will have to go on-line to check these predictions, as there is never any broadcast love for the jazz categories. Regardless, congratulations to all the nominees in these categories for some great music in 2007.

Memo to Grammy Voters

The deadline for Grammy voting is January 9th, so presumably many Recording Academy members will be curling up in front of the fire with their ballots over the holiday. For those who have not given the jazz related categories much thought (if that’s even possible), here is some completely free blogospheric advice, presented in ballot order. (You can find the complete nominations for the jazz division here and the composing/arranging division here.)

The Best Contemporary Jazz Album usually seems like an odd catchall, with widely divergent nominees thrown together. I will post predictions closer to the telecast, but I expect Herbie Hancock’s Joni Letters has this sewn up. For those not sold on Hancock, I would recommend checking out Will Bernard. I’m not particularly well versed in these artists, but I like his funk and free improv approach.

Best Jazz Vocal Album is a strong field. Kurt Elling is also a deserving choice, but I would go with Freddy Cole. I actually met him briefly this year under strange circumstances, and he seemed legitimately nice. Those who do not live in The City might be interested in this commercial he shot for NY1, Time Warner’s New York news channel, on the Staten Island Ferry. It’s a respectful presentation of his vocal artistry and hopefully could even increase his fan base.

Even though my favorite track from Terence Blanchard’s A Tale of God’s Will was “Ashé,” “Levees” from the same release would probably be my choice for Jazz Instrumental solo. Of course, it would be hard to vote against Hank Jones in any category. However, you can vote for his live set with Joe Lovano, Kids: Live at Dizzy’s, for Best Jazz Instrumental Album.

Blanchard’s A Tale of God’s Will is a simply beautiful session that packs a real emotional punch. It would get my vote for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Recording. I was also happy to see Charles Tolliver’s With Love nominated. Tolliver should have been recorded far more than he has been, as this session proves.

I have blogged on Steve Wiest before. I like the man and his music, so it should not come as a surprise that I recommend him for the Best Instrumental Arrangement Category for “Besame Mucho.” Wiest enjoyed a long stint in the great Maynard Ferguson’s band, and his nominated chart has added significance for its inclusion on the trumpeter’s final CD, One and Only.

Again, these are my favorites, not my predictions. Unfortunately the two are not necessarily the same. If you are a Grammy voter, and do not mind a little internet jazz punditry, than I definitely recommend you go to the websites and myspace pages of these artists and check out their nominated work.

Grammy Prediction Recap

Aside from the occasional screen crawl, the only jazz appearances on Sunday’s Grammy telecast were the well-deserved lifetime achievement award for Ornette Coleman, and in the memorial tributes. It did seem to answer the question: just what does a jazz artist have to do to make the primetime show?

Jazz might be far from the Grammy spotlight, but I went ahead and made some predictions here in December, so it’s time to take what lumps are coming. (List of all winners & Nominees here.)

I waffled on the best contemporary jazz category, suggesting Béla Fleck and Mike Stern were the frontrunners. Fleck won.

I picked Diana Krall as the prohibitive favorite for best jazz vocal album, but averred Nancy Wilson might be a dark horse. Wilson, of course won. Maybe that’s okay for online commentary, but I’m sure the bookies wouldn’t pay on that.

Best instrumental solo—Michael Brecker on Randy Brecker’s Some Skunk Funk. Check.

Best jazz instrumental album—Chick Corea’s Ultimate Adventure. Check.

Best jazz large ensemble album—Randy Brecker’s Some Skunk Funk. Check.

Best Latin jazz album—Brian Lynch & Eddie Palmieri’s Simpático. Check.

I’d argue that’s not a bad record in the jazz categories. Random predictions in other categories did not pan out as well. In the contemporary blues category, I thought Katrina solidarity would swing it for Dr. John’s Sippiana Hericane. Instead, the New Orleans sentiment went to Irma Thomas for After the Rain. I was hoping Fred Hersch would beat out John Williams’ theme for the appeasement picture Munich in the best instrumental composition category. That didn’t happen. Not really a prediction, I wrote Grammy voters should give best classical producer award to Manfred Eicher every year. They didn’t see it that way.

Corea did take another Grammy for best instrumental arranging, and Dan Morgenstern did receive another Grammy for liner notes, so there are two more checks. I also made a mushy prediction that the best instrumental arrangement award would go to an arrangement on either a Tony Bennett or Chris Botti record. That was a safe bet.

That’s the prognostication record you get here. Make of it what you will.