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Monday, February 13, 2017

Grammys 2017: The night"s most memorable performances

Adele Gana Grande, Llora y Hace Llorar a Beyonce en Grammys 2017

The polar stars of the 2017 Grammys provided two of the telecasts most memorable performances, one acelestial dream of near perfection, the other endearingly human.

Anyone wondering whether Beyonc"s just-announced pregnancy would take away from her ability to perform as vividly as we"ve come to expect gottheir answer Sunday night when the singer delivered a stunning rendition of her songs "Love Drought" and "Sandcastles.

Dressed in a flowing gown and elaborate head piece, Beyoncmoved slowly but surely down a long runway surrounded by female dancers,then took a seat in a wooden chair that reclined nearly 90degrees over empty space all while she continued to sing powerfully and with palpable emotion in her voice.

The performance was a masterful showof strength and delicacy, intelligence and feeling one she pulled off not in spite of her changingbody, but because of it.

GRAMMYS FULL COVERAGE: Adele wins big but still bows toBeyonc

Adele, meanwhile, came out strong, opening the show with a confident performances of Hello, which went on to win song of the year.But during her tribute to the late singer George Michael, she flubbed and had to startagain.

Well into Michael"s 1996 song "Fastlove," the singer paused and,with a look of sorrow on her face, cussed and said, "I"m sorry for swearing and I"m sorry for starting again. Can we please start again?"

The restart was worth it Adele went on to nail the song but when the performance was over, the Grammy winnerput her hands over her face the moment the lights went down and shook her head.

Both the resplendent Queen Bey and the chagrined Adele were met by cheering crowds and the requisite Twitter storm of devotion.

Bruno brings it. Twice.

Pity poor Bruno Mars, tasked with following up what was perhaps the finest Grammy performance in a generation. But if anyone had a prayer of playing live after Beyonc without instantly vaporizing into total cosmic insignificance, it was probably Bruno Mars.

Theres nothing one can really do to follow up on a nine-minute medley of mind-erasing pregnancy holograms and chair-tilt stunts, so Mars instead did what he does best: corral his bros, throw on some gold chains and play his new pitch-perfect "80s funk pastiche with aplomb. Thats What I Like is a great, slow rolling slice of his recent affection for Zapp and Gap Band (so much so that the lattersued him).

When he played it for the still-stunned-by-Bey Grammy crowd, he pulled the not-insignificant feat of reminding viewers why hes one of the most endearing, charismatic performers in pop.

And then he did it again, returning to the stage an hour later in full Prince regalia to pay tribute to one of the industrys greatest losses of the year.

The thing about Mars is, hes got a similar mix of instrumental chops, stage presence and deftness with electro-funk that made Prince so exalted. Add a kickoff set from the Time, favored collaborators of the Purple One, for a medley of Jungle Love/The Bird into Lets Go Crazy, and it all adds up to an homage thats not just respectful, but flat-out fun and worthy of the benefactor.

A Tribe calls Resist

Among the many inspiring artists died in 2016, the loss of rapper Phife Dawg hit the hip-hop community hard. As co-founder of A Tribe Called Quest, he helped createclassics of the genre including "People"s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm," "Midnight Marauders" and "The Low End Theory."

When his co-founders Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Q-Tip landed onstage withBusta Rhymes andnew artist nominee Anderson .Paak to pay tribute, Q-Tip gestured toward an empty microphone and dedicated the performance to Phife.

And although the tribute featured Tribetracks like "Movin" Backwards" and "Award Tour," it focused on the new "We the People." A timely song, particularly in light of recent changes to U.S.immigration policies, its chorus jumped out of the speakers:

"All the black folks, you must go/All the Mexicans, you must go/All the poor folks, you must go/ Muslims and gays, we hate your ways/ See all you bad folks you must go."

But it was the roar of Busta Rhymes that made the biggestimpression. Decrying "President Agent Orange,"he and the others crashed through a makeshift wall.

At the end, with the people alongside him onstage, Q-Tip screamed, "Resist! Resist! Resist!"

Youre going to know my name

James Cordengently mocked Grammy winner Sturgill Simpson for being the name that would send the most viewers to search engines to find out who exactly he was. With a performance backed by the Dap-Kings horns, Simpson provided an answer.

Simpson leaned into "All Around You" from his nominated "A Sailor"s Guide to Earth," and his weathered voice soared atop the brassy backdrop provided by the longtime collaborators with the late Sharon Jones (who presenter Dwight Yoakam paid tribute to in his introduction).

While it may have been entirely on-brand for the grammysto have asked Simpson to perform something from Jones" catalog, the rising country star"s performance pointed toward what those who could already identify Simpson already knew -- that he has a perfectly defttouch with brassyR&Bin his own right.

And, one assumes, a very busy Wikipedia page.

Daft Punk and the art of the backup

The last time Daft Punk was on a Grammy stage, the act wasplaying alongside Pharrell Williams, Nile Rodgers and Stevie Wonder just before accepting the album of the year award in2014 for Random Access Memories.

This time, the French duo washappy to play backup to the Weeknd for an icy rendition of I Feel It Coming, one of the standout collaborations from the latters LP Starboy.

The trio played in front of a frigid interstellar setup that was part vintage KanyeWest mountain range and part Hoth from Star Wars.

It didnt have quite the vocal pyrotechnicsof Adeles opening numberor much more live instrumentation than a little robot keyboard poking.Daft Punk, much to the chagrin of fans,has pretty much stuck to awards shows for live appearances since Random Access Memories brought the duo back to prominence.

But itsstint with the Weeknd has been an interesting case of perhaps the most famous act in electronic music willfully hanging back and adding analog sparkle to his nihilism.

Times staff writers August Brown, Randall Roberts, Chris Barton and Mikael Wood contributed to this report.

Todd.Martens@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter: @toddmartens

Source: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-grammys-performances-20170212-story.html

BAFTA Awards 2017: Stephen Fry calls Donald Trump "blithering idiot"

Viola Davis wins Supporting Actress | BAFTA Film Awards 2017
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Stephen Fry

London: Comedian Stephen Fry, host of the 70th British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards, took a dig at US President Donald Trump at the gala here on Sunday, calling him a "blithering idiot".

After an on-stage performance by Cirque du Soleil to open the show at the Royal Albert Hall here, Fry made his opening remarks. While welcoming Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep to the ceremony, he said Streep was "one of the greatest actresses of all-time, reports variety.com.

"Only a blithering idiot would think otherwise," Fry added.

The comment was in reference to Trump"s comment that Streep is one of the most "overrated actresses" after her speech at the 74th Golden Globes ceremony last month.

Streep herself laughed off the spat with Trump at the Human Rights campaign"s 2017 greater new york gala dinner on Saturday, according to variety.com.

"Yes, I"m the most overrated and over decorated actress," she said.

Source: http://www.mid-day.com/articles/bafta-awards-2017-stephen-fry-us-president-donald-trump-bafta-awards-2017-stephen-fry-calls-donald-trump-blithering-idiot-hollywood-news/17991151

Chance the Rapper, Jennifer Hudson shine at Clive Davis" pre-Grammy gala

Chance the Rapper ft. 2 Chainz & Lil Wayne - No Problem (Official Video)

Mary J. Blige warned the audience at the Clive Davis Gala that she was not in a good place.

"I look happy, somewhat, but I"m going through some horrible stuff right now," said Blige, who was about to perform in tribute to Saturday night"s honoree, BET Networks President Debra Lee.

"It"s called a divorce."

Driven by her emotions, the R&B star went out to sing rousing renditions of "Thick of It" and "No More Drama" as the audience watched in awe. Diddy, Jennifer Hudson, French Montana, John Legend, LL Cool J and more stars stared closely from the front row, dancing along and cheering Blige on.

She screeched and screamed, ran from left to right, and even got on the floor to close her performance at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, held the night before the 2017 Grammy Awards.

Katy Perry Stuns at 2017 GRAMMYs

Katy Perry - Dark Horse (Official) ft. Juicy J

By Amanda Wicks

Katy Perry matched Beyonc in terms of artistry when she performed her brand new single Chained to the Rhythm at the 2017 GRAMMYs.

Related: GRAMMY Winners 2017: See the Full List

Performing on a rotating set that went from a utopian white picket dream to a shattered dystopian nightmare, perrywore a white suit with a black corset and an armband reading Persist. As the song progressed, the white picket fence she stood behindand which she references in the songgrew higher before she broke free only to discover that the world outside threatened to undo her.

The song took on a political note at the very end when Perry joined hands with Skip Marley and stood in front of a projection of the Constitution.

Her performance had extra star power at the start thanks to Little Big Town, who introduced Perrys performance by singing an a cappella snippet of her song Teenage Dream.

Source: http://radio.com/2017/02/12/katy-perry-2017-grammys-performance/

Sunday, February 12, 2017

Ed Sheeran ditched half the songs he wrote for his new album | Arts ...

Ed Sheeran - Photograph (Official Music Video)

Ed Sheeran scrapped half the songs he"d recorded for his new album.

The "Shape of You" singer hadn"t had the reaction he"d hoped for on his third LP when he finished it last summer, so acted on the advice he was given by producer and frequent collaborator Rick Rubin and ditched some of the tracks.

He recalled: "[Rick Rubin] walked out of the house and said, "Write more songs."

"I was like, "Oh, ow." No one was jumping for joy at the label and I thought there must be a reason. So I looked at it again and scrapped six songs."

And the 25-year-old star wasn"t upset by the criticism as he knows the key to longevity is to be willing to take advice.

He told GQ magazine: "It is my vision - but the reason those artists who have a light that shines for five years then disappear is they don"t listen to other people.

"I can"t think I know everything. I know how to write a song and put together an album of good songs, but sometimes it"s difficult to tell which songs should or shouldn"t be on an album.

"But ultimately the album has improved because of it."

Ed - who is in a relationship with former school friend Cherry Seaborn - often writes songs that he has no intention of recording because he finds it a useful way of venting his feelings.

He explained: "I get out the darkness in my life through a song.

"There"s loads of songs that never get recorded that are just me being in a mood.

"Instead of sending a long email or having an angry phone call, I write a song then bin it. It happened on this album. It"s a very good outlet for emotion."

Source: http://www.nptelegraph.com/news/arts_and_entertainment/ed-sheeran-ditched-half-the-songs-he-wrote-for-his/article_87bfa2f9-bc85-5fab-b9d8-9d55bbf06a6d.html

Al Jarreau, seven-time Grammy-winning singer, dies at 76

Al Jarreau 1976 -Take Five

Al Jarreau, a Grammy Award-winning singer whose versatile tenor voice and vibrant stage style blurred the lines between jazz, soul and pop music, died Feb. 12 at a Los Angeles hospital. He was 76.

His publicist, Joe Gordon, announced the death, saying the singer had been treated for exhaustion, after announcing his retirement from touring last week. The cause of death was not immediately known.

Mr. Jarreau was loosely classified as a jazz singer, but his eclectic style was entirely his own, polished through years of obscure apprenticeship in lonely nightclubs. He did not release his first album until 1975, when he was 35, but within two years, he had won the first of his seven Grammy Awards and had begun to attract a wide following.

He was dubbed the acrobat of scat for the way he adopted the fast, wordless syllables of bebop jazz musicians, but he did not limit himself to the musical backdrop of an earlier generation. His approach emphasized the percussion-heavy and electronically amplified sound of rhythm-and-blues and funk music, and he had a particular gift for mimicking almost any kind of musical instrument or sound.

Jarreau imitates the electronic and percussive hardware of the 1970s, critic Robert Palmer wrote in Rolling Stone in 1979. But he does more than that. He stands there and makes it all sound natural, singing so sweetly and unaffectedly youd think he just happened on this remarkable vocal vocabulary.

After winning awards and plaudits as a jazz singer, Mr. Jarreau found a wider audience with his 1981 album Breakin Away, which sold more than 1 million copies and included a Top 20 hit, We"re in This Love Together. The album won Grammy Awards in the jazz and pop vocal categories, propelling Mr. Jarreau to widespread stardom.

He was soon appearing on television, touring with a 10-piece band and taking the stage with dramatic lighting and choreographed dance moves. He seemed poised for a popular breakthrough that never quite arrived. Despite his Grammy Awards and growing acclaim, Mr. Jarreau groused that Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder and Al Green sold more records, even though they in the view of many, including Mr. Jarreau could not match his vocal chops.

As the 1980s wore on, Mr. Jarreau explored rock, reggae and international music and recorded the theme song for the TV series Moonlighting. His 1992 album Heaven and Earth won a Grammy for best R&B vocal performance, giving Mr. Jarreau Grammys in three categories.

He branched out into other fields, performing with symphony orchestras and acting on Broadway in 1996 in the role of Teen Angel in Grease.

As time went on, Mr. Jarreau returned to his early inspiration in straight-ahead jazz. He recorded an album of jazz standards in 2004 called Accentuate the Positive, which included songs by Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington and Johnny Mercer and was considered a triumphant return to form.

It"s really the first jazz record Ive ever done, Mr. Jarreau told Billboard magazine. Everything else that came before was pop and R&B. This is a thanks to the kind of music that made me the person I am today.

Alwyn Lopez Jarreau was born March 12, 1940, in Milwaukee. His father, originally from New Orleans, was a former Seventh-day Adventist preacher, and his mother was a piano teacher. Mr. Jarreau sang gospel in church and doo-wop on street corners, absorbing the many musical styles of his melting-pot home town.

He had listened from an early age to Nat King Cole, Billy Eckstine, Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald, but his two greatest influences were jazz scat artist Jon Hendricks and the smooth ballad singer Johnny Mathis.

A lot of who I am is described in the qualities of those two guys the fiery jazz singer and the balladeer and how they performed, he said in 2005. Somewhere in there, too, is an R&B guy who went to Motown University.

An excellent athlete, Mr. Jarreau tried out with the Milwaukee Braves baseball team and played basketball at Wisconsins Ripon College, from which he graduated in 1962. He sang in dance bands in college and graduate school and, in 1964, received a masters degree in vocational rehabilitation from the University of Iowa.

After moving to San Francisco, Mr. Jarreau worked by day as a counselor for the disabled and sang in jazz clubs at night, quitting his counseling job in 1968 to devote himself to music. Working with a Brazilian guitarist, he learned to fill empty musical spaces with expressive improvisations. He devised inventive versions of songs by Joni Mitchell and the Beatles, wrote original tunes and seemed at home in any musical style.

In 2007, he won two more Grammys for a recording made with guitarist George Benson, Givin It Up. Mr. Jarreau remained in demand in recording studios and on concert stages around the world into his 70s. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2001, hosted a public television program on jazz singing and established a scholarship fund at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee for students interested in becoming teachers.

His marriage to Phyllis Hall ended in divorce.

Survivors include his wife of 39 years, Susan Player, and a son from his second marriage.

Never one to stay in one physical or musical place for long, Mr. Jarreau described his constantly evolving approach to music to the Chicago Tribune in 1989.

Jazz, whatever we think its purest form is, is a dynamic and changing form, he said. It will never be the jazz of the 1930s and 40s and 50s, because its changing and responding to its environment. That environment includes the influences of Michael Jackson, Sting and hip-hop just as much as Charlie Parker or bebop.

Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&ct2=us&usg=AFQjCNGq8thIVMgRiwRB536Y4Lm02y4YfA&clid=c3a7d30bb8a4878e06b80cf16b898331&cid=52779380600984&ei=hrygWOj0L5HF3gGm-KSIBQ&url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/al-jarreau-seven-time-grammy-winning-singer-dies-at-76/2017/02/12/7edf5c7e-f14c-11e6-b9c9-e83fce42fb61_story.html

Ed Sheeran once played a gig in Chelmsford and earned just �20

Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud [Official Video]
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Did you know that superstar Ed Sheeran once played a gig in Chelmsford for a fee of just 20?

The Grammy award-winning singer played a short set at the old Barhouse pub in Victoria Road in 2010 - and no one in the room knew who he was.

Ed, who grew up in Suffolk, sang some of his early songs in front of a crowd of just 20 to 30 people in the bar which is now BackTrack. Not only that, but the organiser only booked him as a favour to another act on the bill.

At the Shakster RnR gig, the first act was a singer called Benjamin Bloom from Suffolk. He asked the event organiser, Shakey from Shakster Records, if his mate from home could sing a few songs on the night too.

"I knew Benjamin a bit and I said "yeah tell him to come along"," Shakey remembered.

"The first thing I thought was a bit odd was that Benjamin told me I had better put Ed on after him.

"Normally an act would want to be on as late as possible."

Also on the bill that night were Stealing Signs and Essex act, Venkman.

"When I saw Ed Sheeran setting up with his two mics and his pedals and looping, I thought to myself "this is a bit different"," Shakey said.

"I text a few of my mates and told them they"d better get down to the Barhouse quickly because this guy Ed Sheeran was going to be pretty good."

READ MORE: Ed Sheeran drops into an Essex cafe for a full English

Ed played a short set which included an early version of The A Team in front of the small crowd.

"I knew straight away that he was amazing." Shakey said.

"Of course I had no idea just how successful he would become. He"s definitely the most successful act I"ve ever booked. His show was great and his voice was wonderful."

The audience were only charged 3 entry to see him - whereas fans now have to pay between 50 and 85 to see the star play live.

"We only used to pay acts around 20 towards their travelling expenses," shakey laughed.

"ed was very polite and friendly and told me he had to shoot off to play two gigs in London. So I paid him his travel money and he gave me a copy of his first promo CD, which included A Team. I still have it now."

READ MORE: Could Ed Sheeran be playing at V Festival again this year?

Shakey also records all of his gigs on his camcorder, so he even has a copy of Ed"s early live show in Chelmsford.

Shakey then met Ed again a year later at the SXSW festival in Texas.

"We had a good chat and I gave him a copy of the Barhouse gig DVD and he seemed to like it," Shakey said.

"Everyone was buzzing around him by then as he"d had a few hits, but he still took the time for a chat and even recorded a voicemail message for my wife"s birthday."

A few years later, Ed performed at V Festival in 2012. He obviously still remembered the Barhouse gig as he referenced it during his set, Shakey said.

"He basically said "it"s nice to see the crowds here in Chelmsford as there weren"t many of you around the last time I played here"," Shakey recalled.

"We all thought he was amazing at the Barhouse gig but we couldn"t have guessed how he would go on to become such a household name."

Source: http://www.essexlive.news/ed-sheeran-once-played-a-gig-in-chelmsford-and-earned-just-20/story-30120142-detail/story.html