Customer Reviews

The Grammys

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I just used to be so into all of the awards shows, but especially the Grammys. This year, however, I just found myself hugely let down performance wise, not to mention the way that the awards were handed out. Feel that it is injustice? Then check out this book! The book was brought to us by "Variety", a magazine that makes even those normal people interested in Hollywood cringe, although a few of the statements made by the writers make sense. Just check out the stats! It gives all the nominees and winners of these "prestigious" music awards from 1958 to 1998. Its insane to read the list of people that had not won Grammys (the amazing Neil Young) yet some of those legends have only recently (Cher for the dancey "Believe" and Elvis Costello for his lighter sounding work with Burt Baccarach) are of course not listed in this 1998 book. The stats are flawless. Lets say you have a craving to know who won the best male rock vocal performance for 1985, just take a look and you found it (Don Henley for his hit rock ballad "Boys of Summer").

It's is nonsense, but its just fun stuff to know. Even the years by year accounts of what happened at every show are fun. If you are a pop culture pariah like I am, this book. I also want to urge that this book is not only for fans of the awards. Just reading this book might make your blood boil of your favorites loosing out to unwarranted winners. For example, when Milli Vanilli won there fraud of an award, they won over inspiring hip hop acts like Neneh Cherry (the funky "Buffalo Stance" songstress) and Soul II Soul (the groundbreaking UK dance blues group of "Back To Life" fame)! And Pia Zodra (best known to many for her hilarious cameos in "Naked Gun 33 and1/3" and "Hairspray") was actually nominated for a rock performance Grammy for a song called "Rock It Out" (I downloaded it in. Perhaps her husband was behind that as well? Again, it useless information, but pleasant nonetheless.

The author doesn't varnish Grammy's scandalous past! He tells it like it is in a sassy, fun writing style -- year by year. All of the nominees and winners are listed, plus there are lots of photos, old pages from the tradepaper Variety -- and FASCINATING trivia in the back of the book. (Elvis never won Record or Album of the Year, but the Fifth Dimension won best record TWICE! WOW!). Highly recommended.

Listing all the nominees as well as the winners in every Grammy cataegory from 1958 through 1997 makes this a valuable reference source for record and pop culture buffs. An article about the awards and nominations for each year accompanies the listings. The articles are not especially well written, containing as they do several irritating factual errors, but for the most part its the listings that are the focus of this book and they're just what they should be. Coverage of some Grammy controversies is interesting and probably could make an interesting book of their own. Recommended.

This book is full of typos and errors. Where was the editor? The only reason I give it two stars is because of the narrative commentary for each year. That part is interesting. Andthe list in the back of which artists have never won a Grammy.

The author doesn't varnish Grammy's scandalous past! He tells it like it is in a sassy, fun writing style -- year by year. All of the nominees and winners are listed, plus there are lots of photos, old pages from the tradepaper Variety -- and FASCINATING trivia in the back of the book. (Elvis never won Record or Album of the Year, but the Fifth Dimension won best record TWICE! WOW!). O'Neil also wrote Variety's books "Movie Awards" and "The Emmys" -- all three are HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

I really enjoy Tom O'Neil's other two books, too -- "Movie Awards" and "The Emmys." I cannot recommend these books stronger to you guys. I'm addicted to them. Get all three -- you'll thank me. (...)

The Grammys: For the Record is an exellent reference to the Grammy Awards and I look forward to the upcoming volume. Dependant on price, it will be an invaluable addition to my reference library.