Even with the assistance of the Writers Guild of America, the Grammys need all the help they can get in staying relevant and interesting.
Like other award broadcasts, the Grammys showcase is known to drag on with awkward performance pairings, unprepared presenters and head-scratching choices for winners.
The best moments in any award telecast are the oddities and weird moments that sneak through the mix. It’s why we love Sly Stone and Kanye West. And Amy Winehouse.
Oh, Amy.
Winehouse leads all contenders this year with six nominations, including the night’s biggest categories — record, album, song of the year, best new artist and best female pop vocal performance. Winehouse’s contemporary R&B music and defiant lyrics (just saying “no, no, no” to rehab) wooed us with their freshness. We were already hooked by the time we realized that Winehouse is the English tabloids’ mess of an answer to Britney Spears.
They say artists should write about what they know. And for better or worse, Winehouse does. (Although Winehouse finally said “yes” to rehab.) And that’s what has made this year’s Grammy telecast one of the most anticipated in recent history. The Grammys need Winehouse more than she needs them.
The only problem? Winehouse won’t make the big party.
She was denied a U.S. visa this time around, presumably because of her recent legal problems and her public history of drug abuse.
The Grammys will likely make her available by satellite, but this is a big blow to the show. The public wants Winehouse in all of her uncensored, hair-sprayed, eye-linered glory. She has become one of the most fascinating artists of the 21st century.
The Grammys were granted a waiver from the striking Writers Guild of America, which will allow its members to write for the show. But without Winehouse, who’s going to give the show that needed dose of drama? Kanye West? The Time, who will perform an anniversary segment?
“(The Grammys) will be boring without her,” white-hot producer Mark Ronson, who worked with Winehouse on the platinum-selling “Back to Black,” told NME magazine last week at a Fashion Week party in New York.
What can you expect tonight?
Tina Turner will join Beyonce for a song. Other performers include Feist, Josh Groban, Fergie, Brad Paisley, Andrea Bocelli, John Legend, John Fogerty with Jerry Lee Lewis, Foo Fighters (with guest conductor John Paul Jones), Herbie Hancock, Carrie Underwood and Rihanna with a reunited the Time.
But back to the missing Winehouse. How did she become such a part of our lives in such a short time?
It started with the music. And then the music took on a new life when we discovered just how true her stories were.
“She’s taking a really fresh approach to her music,” said Gabi Knight, a music editor at . “It sounds vintage, but there’s something in it that’s definitely new and dynamic. Her work with Mark Ronson really speaks to that. He’s a groundbreaking producer, and their collaboration has produced something that has a ’60s feel while still sounding current.”
British hit in 2006
“Back to Black” was released in the U.S. in January 2007, three months after its release in the United Kingdom, where it had already been No. 1 multiple times over. Critics on both sides of the pond lauded the record, admitting their penchant for Winehouse’s soulful voice and frank lyrics, not to mention producer Ronson’s undeniable dexterity with R&B beats and horns.
It wasn’t long before American radio took the cue from its British counterparts and gave “Rehab” a spin, to overwhelming results. The album charted higher than any other American debut by a female British solo artist, and it stayed in Billboard’s Top 10 for months, with all her stateside fans obsessed with her startling frankness regarding her relationships with men and illegal substances.
“The album shows who she is,” said Beville Darden, a music editor with AOL Music. “She makes no apologies for being who she is. She wears her heart on her sleeve on this album, and it’s one of the most personal albums of the year.”
After reaching gold status in early May by selling more than 500,000 copies in the U.S., “Back to Black” was declared platinum (for 1 million sales) in mid-July.
Meanwhile, Winehouse’s behavior had become more and more erratic. First was the news that she had married her ex, Blake Fielder-Civil, in a May ceremony in Miami.
That was the beginning of the real trouble for Winehouse. After that came the August trip to the hospital, then the trip to a “retreat” in Essex, and the cancellation of another American tour. Pictures appeared of Winehouse and Fielder-Civil bruised and battered, and the pair were arrested in October in Norway for possession of marijuana.
November brought Winehouse’s blurry performance of “Back to Black” at the MTV Europe Awards. Later that month her home was raided by police, and then Fielder- Civil was arrested in a bribery scandal. She started a 17-date European tour in mid-November, showed up drunk to the first date, cursed the audience and later canceled the tour.
In December, Winehouse was arrested on charges related to her husband’s case. In January came the infamous picture of a disheveled Winehouse looking like a strung- out Joan Rivers with a bad platinum dye job.
Later that month a video surfaced of a woman, allegedly Winehouse, apparently smoking crack. Police have questioned Winehouse in the matter.
Will the added drama affect her chances tonight?
“I hope her personal problems don’t come into play with the voters, because it is a fantastic album,” said Darden. “She co-wrote every song on the album. It has such a broad appeal.”
And so does her life story. Stay tuned for more in this real-life drama, but don’t count on any juice from the Grammys tonight.
Ricardo Baca: 303-954-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com
“The 50th Annual Grammy Awards”
Awards show. Amy Winehouse leads the nominations at a show that will include appearances by Feist, Alicia Keys, Brad Paisley, Foo Fighters and more. 7 p.m., KCNC-Channel 4.
