BEYONCE, KANYE, BECK AND THE PROBLEM WITH THE GRAMMYS

So last night, Kanye West got crazy again, once again complaining quite publicly that Beyonce didn't win something that he felt that she should have won: the GRAMMY for Album of the Year. It's really to write off anything he says, because, let's face it, he can be a  bit of cry baby when things don't go his way.

But when it comes to Beyonce, there's lots of people looking out for her, and they're generally pretty vocal about it.

One of the most well thought out defenses of her came back in December: a friend of mine and former colleague wrote a bit about Beyonce being snubbed by the GRAMMYs... when the nominations were first announced.

Beyonce was nominated in "only" one of the major categories, Album of the Year, but not Song or Record. My first instinct was: big deal. She's nominated for what is arguably the biggest award of the show, it felt churlish that anyone would complain that she isn't nominated in enough of the major categories. It felt like something from straight out of the spot-on SNL "Beygency" skit.

But then I considered that Meghan Trainor's "All About That Bass" -- a novelty song, albeit one with a good message -- was nominated for Song and Record, and that felt a bit weird. Why would that be nominated in any categories that Beyonce's "Pretty Hurts" or "Flawless" wasn't nominated in?

I'll be clear here. I'm not a huge Beyonce fan: I listened to her album because I am a voting NARAS member and I wanted to know what I was voting for (or against). I doubt I'll ever listen to Beyonce in one sitting again. But there's no doubt that this album was more than just an album, it was an event. An event that you could almost call the 2013/2014 equivalent of a Thriller or Tapestry. At least Jagged Little Pill! All of those albums won Album of the Year, and they were all albums that cranked out hit after hit for a year or more. From the moment Beyonce dropped the album, with no warning, in late 2013, through late last year, Beyonce kept churning out single after single in a way that doesn't seem possible anymore. This is, after all, an era of ageism (and , let's face it, she's not in her 20s anymore, sorry Beygency!) and it's also an age where the culture has the attention span of a moth. People are all about the album until the album comes out, and then it's on to the next thing.

Beyonce was ingrained in popular culture in 2014: it added a new slang term to the lexicon ("Surfbordt"), and a new catch-phrase ("I woke up like this"). For good measure, it even gave Beyonce a new nickname ("'Yonce"). She even used a remix of "Flawless" to address that elevator incident. The songs weren't just pop hits. "Pretty Hurts" was about the pressures of womanhood (and a bit heavier than "All About That Bass"), where she showed some rare insecurity. In "Partition" she showed that she actually has desires beyond just money and fame. And then there was "XO" and "Jealous" and "Flawless" and the "Flawless" remix and then "7/11." There was no album that came close to making the impact of Beyonce this year.

A colleague of mine produced a mini-doc about the year in Beyonce; she wanted it to be five minutes max; it goes on for over ten.



It was just Beyonce's year, period.

I generally gravitate to stuff that I consider more "left field." I like to go who I perceive to be the underdog, and I'd personally have an easy time voting against Beyonce, given some other choices. Like, if St. Vincent's album had been nominated, I would have been all about it. Despite the disparity in popularity levels, I could justify voting for such an extraordinary album over a sales juggernaut by a superstar, even if most people have never heard of St. Vincent.

I love Beck's Morning Phase, I listened to it yesterday actually. But if you're gonna vote against Beyonce, you really have to be able to justify that choice, and I couldn't do it with Beck, even though I'm likely to listen to that album for years to come. It's not the Album of the Year by any stretch, I was surprised it even got nominated (I thought the token "rock" nomination would have gone to Jack White or the Black Keys or even St. Vincent).

How did it win, especially up against four albums that had a much higher profile, surely sold more, and had actual hit singles? I think all of the "pop" type GRAMMY voters split their votes between Bey, Sam Smith, Pharrell and Ed Sheeran, and the voters who fancy themselves more "serious" all went with Beck. That's my guess of how it happened. A lot of times, it's a numbers game.

I also think that there's a sort of inherent contrarianism to the voting body; they don't want anyone getting too big. That's why I thought Bruce Springsteen (who I feel you can compare to Beyonce on a few levels) didn't win in 2003 for The Rising even though he was the only artist really able to address 9/11, no mean feat (Album of the Year went to Norah Jones's Come Away With Me that year, and while I love that album, I felt The Rising really should have won). Kanye West has been nominated in that category a few times as well, but has never won. I think that in some ways, the music industry fear artists getting too big. In the above Beyonce mini-doc, one of the pundits mentions that the industry is afraid of Beyonce. I think he's right.

Like I said, I'm a voting NARAS member, and I care about the GRAMMYS and the integrity of the GRAMMYs. I can defend "controversial" Album of the Year choices at times: for example, a lot of ageists were whining about Robert Plant and Alison Krauss's Raising Sand winning in 2009 (which I thought was a great choice; if Lil' Wayne won, I thought it would be a bit lame). A lot of people equate young with "relevant" (I don't) and over-35 with over the hill (obviously I don't).

But when you get a Steely Dan or Herbie Hancock win, it makes the voters look out of touch just for nominating them. I think that's what bothers me most about this: Bey will be fine. I just hope the GRAMMYs credibility will be.

It's like that time that Kanye said that "George Bush doesn't like black people." Yeah, he seemed batshit crazy, but also he didn't seem wrong. His delivery of course, was pretty awful: no, Beck shouldn't give his Album of the Year GRAMMY to Beyonce, he won, she didn't. And making a case that Beyonce is a "real artist" and Beck isn't is a bit ridiculous.  But the main point, that a major superstar got inexplicably snubbed. Well, a lot of people surely agree with him. And not just members of the Beygency.

TOP TEN ALBUMS OF 2013 (GUARANTEED VAMPIRE WEEKEND-FREE!)

Yes, it's been a really long time since I've been here, updating No Expiration. I'm going to try to return more often in 2014.  You can read a lot of my stuff here at Radio.com, the site I work for (along with a number of websites for CBS owned classic rock, classic hits and Jack stations, along with Chicago's WXRT).

I'm planning on sharing my take on upcoming music events including the GRAMMYs and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as well as links to some of my interviews, videos and features.  But for now, I'm  returning with my take on the best albums of the year. 

Regarding the headline, I don't really have anything against Vampire Weekend, I am not that familiar with their music (although the few times I've heard their music, it hasn't really kept my attention). I think that they are a "zeitgeist" band - a band who, through a confluence of fans, critical acclaim and an intangible "x factor," are a band who everyone who works in music is expected to pay attention to, and expected to like. That's fine. I definitely like some artists who fall into that category. 

Anyway, I've been having a hard time coming up with an actual order for my favorite albums of the year. In recent years, I've had a handful of albums that rose to the top. In 2007, it was Ben Harper, Bruce Springsteen, Steve Earle, Mavis Staples and Robert Plant/Alison Krauss. In 2008, the Foxboro Hot Tubs. In 2009, Bob Dylan, the Cocktail Slippers, Rancid and Levon Helm. 2010, it was the Drive-By Truckers and Mavis Staples. 2011: Social Distortion and Foo Fighters. And last year, Bruce Springsteen's Wrecking Ball. 

This year, I have a number of albums that I've enjoyed, but no clear favorites. But I'll try to put them in some sort of order here. So, let's start already!

1. Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite - Get Up! Two generations of blues artists come together. The easiest thing in the world would have been to make this a covers album. Instead, Ben (and the guys from his current band) wrote a bunch of songs that should be blues standards in the years to come. I had the pleasure and honor of interviewing them when their album came out, and that was a huge thrill. Shortly after that, I saw them playing a show at Irving Plaza (way too small of a venue for them) and it was mind-blowingly great. Check out my review, with my wife's amazing photos, here. Anyway, I'm curious to see what Ben does next: I'd love to see him reunite with his old band, the Innocent Criminals, in 2014.

2. Nine Inch Nails - Hesitation Marks This was one that I thought was really overlooked by music critics. But I realize that a white, angry guy forever connected to the '90s who looks like he could totally kick your ass isn't who critics get behind these days.  But whatever. This album was really innovative. Of course, Trent has to compete with his past, which definitely looms large. Pretty Hate Machine, Broken and The Downward Spiral were all game changers. I don't know that he has another earth shaking record in him like that again. And he isn't that guy anymore: he's married, he has kids, has greyhounds. And yet, I think he's still haunted by every artist who ever disappointed him: he doesn't want to get soft, get boring or sell out. And he doesn't. Not only was this a great album, but he supported it with a great tour: first he did the festival circuit (they pretty much blew everyone away, including Mrs. Carter, at Made In America) and then revamped the band, put together a new stage show and raised the game once again on his headlining tour. Check out my review of that, and (again) my wife's amazing photos, here. I should also mention that his album with How To Destroy Angels was great, and their concerts were amazing too. I can't wait to see what Trent does next.

3. Kanye West - Yeezus Ok, I'm with the critics on this one. And yes, I know he's a douche. I've already written about my first (and only) encounter with him, you can read about it here. Do I buy into any of his hype? No. The Wall Street Journal wrote a scathing retort to his complaints that the fashion world is preventing him from entering their world. I wouldn't look to him as a fashion icon anyway. But what he is great at is making records. Of course, sometimes he needs some help and that was the case here: Rick Rubin exec-produced this album, and I'm sure that was a big factor. But Kanye knows a great track when he produces it, and he knows who to collaborate with (he worked with Daft Punk on "Black Skinhead," a highlight of the album). And he's still a compelling MC. I even like "Bound 2" but let's not talk about the video.

4. Mavis Staples - One True Vine Mavis's second collaboration in a row with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy. I don't like this one as much as their last record, You Are Not Alone, but this is still pretty great. Once again, Tweedy wrote the best song on the album. Last time, it was the title track, this time it's "Every Step." As great as the songs that Tweedy writes for Wilco are, I think he saves his best songs for Mavis. Another highlight is the cover of Funkadelic's "Can You Get To That." Mavis is the rare artist who improves with age. I went to see her in concert at New York's City Winery, and it was one of the best shows I saw all year. It made you feel good to be alive.  Thank you Mavis.

5. Queens Of The Stone Age - Like Clockwork On one hand, I really like Josh Homme and all of his projects. On the other, I don't always go completely gaga for them as some others do. I really liked the Queens circa Songs For The Deaf, when they had three vocalists: Josh, bassist Nick Oliveri and Mark Lanegan. I thought that they sounded too "samey" once it was just Josh. And then I saw them at the Made In America festival. I thought they were great, and that the new songs were amazing, so I checked out the album, and really loved it. "I Sat By The Ocean" is one of my favorites. Josh got bonus points for calling Jay Z out after playing Made In America. I like some of Jay's stuff, but everyone else falls all over themselves trying to be his pal. Josh comes from a different era and a different school.

6. Arctic Monkeys - AM I really thought all the critics would go crazy over this album. They've been hyping the Arctic Monkeys forever. In my mind, they're one of the few bands that the media go crazy over who actually deserve the hype.  I loved their debut album, 2006's Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not, and everything since. But I think this might be their best album. It combines their tight songwriting, which has always been a hallmark of the group, but also adds a lot of the "weirdness" that Josh Homme brought to the group when he produced their 2009 album Humbug. Josh actually sings backing vocals on a couple of songs here, giving him presence on two of my top ten albums of the year. Way to go, Josh!

7. Elvis Costello and the Roots - Wise Up Ghost More proof that both Elvis and the Roots can tackle any kind of music. A lot of this album reminds me of the Specials.  Sometimes these kinds of combinations can come off a bit contrived, but you know that with this one, it was all about mutual admiration and respect. I would love to see them tour together: imagine what Elvis songs they would revisit if they had time to rework some of his classics.  (In my world, Black Thought would be part of the tour and they'd do a bunch of Roots classics as well, Elvis could play along on guitar). Anyway, I'd file this with Elvis's great collab with Allen Toussaint, and the Roots' album with John Legend.

8. Black Sabbath - 13 Like everyone else, I approached this with managed expectations. I mean, could they still make a classic? Well, time will tell, but this album seriously kicked ass. And, OK, it doesn't  quite live up to the first six Sabbath albums, but it's at least as good as Never Say Die! and is better than Technical Ecstasy.  I obviously have a lot of feelings about the band: as I tell everyone I've ever met, I wrote the liner notes to the Black Box, and a while back was interviewed by A&E for a Sabbath doc. I was not disappointed by this album (other than the fact that they couldn't get it together with Bill Ward to have a full reunion; that said, Brad Wilk did a great job on the album, and Tommy Clufetos was great live). A lot of credit is due to producer Rick Rubin (him again!) but also to Ozzy, Tony and Geezer for bringing their A+ game. Especially Tony, who was going through chemo at the time.

9. Walking Papers - Walking Papers A new band featuring Duff McKagan on Guns N Roses and Barrett Martin of Screaming Trees and Mad Season. It sounds like nothing Duff has done, it's really more like Barrett's bands. In fact, singer Jeff Angell sounds a bit like Mark Lanegan. It's definitely a hard rock album, but more of a dusty Tom Waits type blues vibe (not a Clapton blues vibe). I was fortunate enough to interview Duff and Jeff for a Radio.com New Music To Know (read it here) and they were super cool. But what really turned me on to them was seeing them live on the second stage at the Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival (see my review and my wife's photos here). They were really great, and I bought their album right there, and then reached out to get an interview. This isn't a "side project," it's a great band, please be clear. I hope they tour in 2014, I want to see them again!

10. Valerie June - Pushin' Against A Stone I also interviewed her for Radio.com's New Music To Know (read it here). I heard about her because some of the songs were produced by Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys (one of my favorite producers) and I think I'd read about her somewhere. I checked out her album and was blown away.  It would be great if she was a "zeitgeist" artist, but she's not going out of her way to enter the conversation for anything other than her amazing singing voice and her great songs. I think music lovers will be following her career for years to come.



So, there you have it. But ten isn't enough, here's a few other albums that I feel I have to add:

• Daft Punk Random Access Memories It has my favorite song of the year (yes, "Get Lucky") and it sees them turning their backs on the EDM scene they may or may not have created, eschewing samples and using all live musicians, including Nile Rodgers. 
• M.I.A. Matangi It has another of my favorite songs of the year ("Bring The Noize"). She's one of the most interesting artists today, consistently. 
• Alice In Chains The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here In which they prove that the "new" lineup, with singer/guitarist William DuVall is for real. One of the most underrated albums of the year. 
• Haim Days Are Gone Yeah, I'm with the critics on this one, too. I don't know how it's "indie" though, it sounds like '80s era Fleetwood Mac and Genesis, and I mean that as a compliment. Especially relative to what most indie rock sounds like these days. I saw them at Made In America and they were incredible. 
• Aaron Neville My True Story In which he revisits his doo-wop past, on a stripped down record produced by Don Was and Keith Richards. 
• Holly Williams The Highway The granddaughter of Hank, her artistry stands on its own. She's great. "Drinkin'" is devastating. 
• Lindi Ortega Tin Star I discovered her opening for Social Distortion, she was great. I wish the press would pay attention to her, she surely deserves it. Another artist who I covered for Radio.com's New Music To Know. A super cool chick as well. 
• Jason Isbell Southeastern The former Drive-By Trucker (who wrote my favorite DBT song, "Never Gonna Change") announced this album by saying it was the best thing he's ever done. Well, it is pretty freaking great. Check it out. 
• Lone Bellow Lone Bellow A great new band, when they sing together it's magic. Do yourself a favor and check them out. 
• Kacey Musgraves Same Trailer Different Park  Another time the critics are right. Her debut is excellent, she will get my vote for Best New Artist at the GRAMMYs. 
• Hanni El-Khatib Head In The Dirt Another Dan Auerbach production, it's great garage rock from L.A. 
• Sara Bareilles The Blessed Unrest I'm sorry to say that I only listened to this after it got a GRAMMY nomination, and well deserved. I interviewed a lot of music writers about her, all of whom were surprised, because she's not part of the zeitgeist, or the conversation. Which is all hte more reason to check this album out. 

Well, that's pretty much it. Bring it, 2014!

TOMORROW ON THE MORNING JOLT: FUNK!

Two weeks ago, I returned to SiriusXM OutQ's The Morning Jolt With Larry Flick after being on the disabled list for a while.  Last week, I had to miss it again (for scheduling reasons, not heath ones). Tomorrow I'm back, and I'm bringing the funk.

Well, maybe not funk by the strictest definition of funk purists. But all the music I'm bringing in will be funky.

First up, is the Red Hot Chili Peppers' new album, I'm With You. I wrote about it recently, and I wish I liked it more than I do. That said, it has some great moments, like "Monarchy Of Roses" and "Brendan's Death Song."  More importantly, the new lineup, featuring guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, does show a lot of potential.

Primus is one of my favorite bands, and I really dig their new album, Green Naugahyde, which I just wrote about.  "Tragedy's A'Comin'" is one of my favorite songs of the year.

Fishbone is one of the most underrated bands of the past few decades.  But I haven't enjoyed much of their new music since 1993's Give A Monkey A Brain... And He'll Swear He's The Center Of The Universe.  They've just released The Crazy Glue EP.  I like it.  I'm really looking forward to the documentary about the band, Everyday Sunshine. Anything that gets them to a wider audience is cool with me!

When it comes to Lenny Kravitz, I'm a singles guy.  I have his best-of, and I'm cool with that. But the songs I've heard from his new album, Black And White America (the title track and "Superlove") are pretty cool and very funky. I may have to check this one out a bit more.

I wrote about Trombone Shorty about a year ago, and now he's got a new album, For True. I recently filmed a performance by him at the SiriusXM studios, and he was great (see it here).

Sly Stone actually has a new album, but sadly, it's mostly his old hits re-recorded.  There's no point to doing that: they were perfect the first time, and frankly Sly doesn't sound as good as he used to. There's a good new original song though, "Plain Jane."

I think that a lot of today's funk music is done by DJs, not bands, and David Guetta is one of the biggest DJs. I produced this shoot at The Electric Zoo festival in 2009 and I kind of "got" it.  Although dance music isn't my thing as much as rock and roll, I get it.

I haven't written about Superheavy yet, but any band with Mick Jagger, A.R. Rahman, Damien Marley, Joss Stone and Dave Stewart is worth paying attention to. Also worth paying attention to is the Jay-Z/Kanye West album, Watch The Throne.  So, if time allows, we'll discuss all of these albums tomorrow on the show!

TOMORROW ON THE MORNING JOLT - POP, POP, POP MUSIC

First off: this (very obviously) photoshopped image is from Rolling Stone.

Second: sorry I haven't been posting in the past week.  Things have been busy.

Onward! So tomorrow morning I will be on SiriusXM OutQ's The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick  (and co-host Keith Price) at about 9 am ET. Every so often, I go against type and bring in a bunch of straight up pop records.

Right now, the biggest pop record on earth is the latest from Lady Gaga, Born This Way. I don't have as strong of an opinion on her as everyone else seems to.  I think she is talented, she's written some good songs, and she's a savvy marketer. On the other, I think she goes way out of her way to prove her intelligence, her artsiness and how much of an outsider she is.  I don't buy into her like other people do.  I think her new album is pretty good, but it's about as edgy as a Loverboy or REO Speedwagon album from the '80s.  I do enjoy the fact that she used Clarence Clemons from The E Street Band on two of the songs.  His playing is very '80s: it reminded me of his playing on "Dancing In The Dark" or Aretha's "Freeway Of Love."

I choose a couple of other prominent pop records: a Britney/Ke$ha/Nicki Minaj collab, a Katy Perry/Kanye West collab and some new Beyonce songs.  I have to say, I wasn't really impressed by any of them. Also a newer artist named Christina Perri: she's not my thing, but I can appreciate her a bit.

And also, the artist who I think will be one of the stories of 2011: Adele.  Right now, I bet that 21 will be one of the big Grammy albums, and it may make lots of critics lists also.

And what's that you say?  You don't have a SiriusXM subscription?  Get on that! Get a free online trial and check out what you're missing!

BEST OF 2010 - #4 - KANYE WEST "MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY"

I was really knocked out by this album. I wrote about it recently.

TOMORROW ON OUTQ: CEE LO GREEN, KANYE WEST AND MORE

For those of you who are new to No Expiration: every Wednesday morning at 9 am ET (ish), I contribute to the SiriusXM OutQ show The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick, where I talk about music. This week, I will discuss some of the last releases of 2010, also known as "Q4" records.  These are often albums that record labels have huge commercial hopes for.

First off is Cee Lo Green's The Lady Killer, his first solo album since forming Gnarls Barkley with Danger Mouse. I think there were high expectations for this album, based on the popularity of Gnarls, and also the huge success of the first single, "Fuck You," a huge viral hit over the summer. It doesn't seem to be doing that well, unfortunately.  I like it, but don't love it - there certainly aren't any songs as catchy as "Fuck You," and that song obviously isn't an easy hit.  Although it was nominated for a bunch of Grammys.  One great song on the album other than the single: his cover of Band Of Horses' "No One's Gonna Love You." That was one of my favorite songs of the '00s, but Cee Lo owns it now.

I wish I liked Cee Lo's album as much as Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.  Kanye's album is one of the best things I've heard this year. It is an incredible album. 

Also on the list for tomorrow: new albums by Kid Rock, Rihanna, Shakira, My Chemical Romance, Black Eyed Peas, Robyn and The Zac Brown Band.

KANYE WEST MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY

It's a great album, period. 

I recently tweeted that it's easy enough to ignore Kanye West's interviews and public outbursts, just enjoy the music. Besides his own records, he's produced great music for John Legend (who he pretty much helped to become a big star), Common, Mos Def and a bunch of other people. That's the way I feel.

I don't like the way he acts - I actually had my own run-in with him before his debut album came out. But it doesn't take away from his music. At the same time, his great music doens't excuse (to me) his lesser efforts.  On my Kanye scorecard, I really like his first two albums, 2004's The College Dropout and 2005's Late Registration. 2007's Graduation was ambitious and I really liked some of it, but overall, it didn't do it for me. And I just couldn't get into 2008's 808s & Heartbreak. Going into this album, I really dug the King Crimson-sampling single "Power," and didn't really like "Runaway." So I figured there was a 50/50 chance that I would like it or not. But I definitely really like it.

The opening track, "Dark Fantasy," produced by The RZA, pretty much announces that this isn't another synthy, autotuney 808s type album. But I think the second track is where it takes off: "Gorgeous," featuring Kid Cudi and Raekwon (who are both great, but the song would stand without their verses). It's a song that a rock band should re-work.  It features a cool sample of The Byrds' "You Showed Me." "Power," like I've said, is amazing. "All Of The Lights" is pretty wild, it features a ton of guest vocalists, including Rihanna, Alicia Keys, Elton John, John Legend and Fergie, among others.  

The centerpiece of the album, to me, is "Monster," a classic collab track, featuring Rick Ross, Jay-Z, Nicki Minaj and... Justin Vernon of Bon Iver. Minaj kind of steals the show with a classic verse, but the real star is Kanye's track, he produced it. Another rocking track is "Hell Of A Life" which borrows liberally from Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" (and in fact gives Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward songwriting credits). There aren't really any weak points on the entire album, and there are just so many highlights.  Yes, Kanye's attitude gets annoying, but it doesn't really ruin anything.

And by the way, even after listening to "Runaway" (the one that toasts "the douchebags and the assholes") I realized that it's actually a really good song (and would have fit in better on 808s).

TODAY ON OUTQ: HIP-HOP: THE ROOTS, EMINEM, BIG BOI AND MORE

For those of you who are new to No Expiration, every Wednesday morning at 9 am-ish, I am a guest on the SIRIUS XM Channel OutQ; I talk about new music on The Morning Jolt With Larry Flick. Today, I'll be talking about some recent hip-hop releases.

I've already written about The Roots' How I Got Over.  It's one of my favorite albums of the year, and the title track is up there as one of my favorite songs this year.  I also have a track from the Roots' upcoming collaborative album with John Legend, Wake Up, which I'll be writing more about.  It's covers of socially conscious soul tunes from the '60s and '70s.   Another one of my favorite albums this year is Big Boi's long awaited solo debut, Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son Of Chico Dusty.   It's amazing that Jive Records thought that this didn't have any commercial potential: Big Boi signed to Def Jam for the album (which is also odd, as they don't seem to be able to handle more "adult" or "arty" releases, such as How I Got Over. I'll also be talking about one of Larry Flick's favorite albums of the year, Eminem's Recovery. I've never been a huge fan of Eminem's (although I enjoy his SIRIUS XM channel Shade 45), but I definitely recognize the man's skills.  And there are some great songs on Recovery.

Kanye West has a crazy new song called "Power," which samples King Crimson's "21st Century Schitzoid Man." Amazing song, and I have that one. Also a new song from T.I., one of his first since leaving prison.  Also, music from two newer artists -- neither of whom I really "get," I confess -- B.o.B. and Drake. Tune in (SIRIUS 109, XM 98), call in (866-305-6887) and tell us what you think!

PROG ROCK STAND UP! KANYE WEST SAMPLES KING CRIMSON

Kanye West is back to rapping (as opposed to singing with autotune).  His new song "Power" features a sample of King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man."  Who would have thought that Greg Lake (later of Emerson, Lake & Palmer) would end up on one of the hottest hip-hop tracks of the year?   Check out the track for yourself right here.

LARRY MULLEN (SLIGHTLY) ONE-UPS BONO AND THE EDGE

I'm not a big fan of the Seth McFarlane TV shows: Family Guy, American Dad or The Cleveland Show. I watched the first two minutes of the first episode of Family Guy and thought it was a Simpsons knock off. I realize that that isn't totally the case, and a lot of people who I respect watch it, but it just isn't my thing, and neither or his other shows.

But I may have to check out The Cleveland Show: Larry Mullen has recorded two seperate characters for upcoming episodes: a mobster and a bad Elvis impersonator. Apparently, he is such a big fan that he reached out and asked to be involved. The BBC reports that besides Mullen, Kanye West, Will.I.Am and David Lynch (!) have also recorded guest spots for the show.

So, even though I'm not a huge Cleveland Show fan, it sure beats the Spider-Man musical that Bono and The Edge are involved with!

BEST OF THE 00s: KANYE WEST

No, I don't endorse Kanye West's behavior. My first and only encounter with him was bizarre and not super fun.

It was the Grammy Awards in either 2003 and I was doing interviews for VH1. Most artists who do press at events like this are nominees, or performers or at least presenters.  I don't think Kanye was any of the above. He may have been nominated for something, because he was an established producer at that point (notably for Jay-Z), although he hadn't released a solo record yet.

So he shows up in our interview room with a mascot -- literally a guy dressed in the mascot costume that is on the cover of his debut The College Dropout. He actually had a bit hit at that moment: he produced and rapped on Twista's song "Slow Jamz" which also featured Jaime Foxx (and which was later released on The College Dropout). I thought he'd be happy that I even knew who he was, but he was dwarfed by the chip on his shoulder. Before the cameras rolled, I mentioned that I would ask about "Slow Jamz" and then go on to his upcoming debut. He doesn't look at me but was like "OK." So I ask the question, he answers and then I ask a followup and he's like "Ya'll know I got my debut album coming out February (whatever), right?" Don't f*** with me like that I'm doing an interview, kid. I was like, well, I'm not using this anyway, and if I need to do a news package on this clown, I'll interview him again later. But I did decide that anyone this arrogant and rude had to have something to back it up. So despite the fact that I felt he was rude, I bought his album the day it came out. His ego is all over the place, as is the giant chip on his shoulder, but you can't deny it is a classic, probably the best hip-hop record of the decade.

The followup, Late Registration, was great also, and Kanye also spent time bringing the great R&B singer John Legend to the world, and exposing Common to a larger audience. Graduation wasn't as good, and the last album with auto-tune, was really dull. But neither or those take away from how great the first two were.  And despite Kanye's humongous ego, he is still a good collaborator: other than producing Common and John Legend, he's also done tracks for Jay-Z, Nas, Mos Def and Talib Kweli, among others, since becoming a star in his own right. He's also shared the mic on some great collaborative tracks, including "Classic (Better Than I've Ever Been)" with Nas, KRS-One and Rakim, "Swagga Like Us" with Jay-Z, T.I. and Lil' Wayne and "Run This Town" with Jay-Z and Rihanna.

His verbal beatdowns have been embarassing three times as often as they've been cool: he shouldn't have bitched about Gretchen Wilson when she won Best New Artist at the American Music Awards (I've interviewed her as well, and she could probably physically kick his ass), he shouldn't have complained about Justin Timberlake winning an award that he was nominated for, and of course the Taylor Swift thing was ridiculous.  On the other hand, his post-Katrina televised bitch slap of bush II was awesome and a classic TV moment. But hopefully Kanye will get his stuff together: I'm sure he has lots of great music in him for the '10s.

TOMORROW ON OUTQ: HIP-HOP

OutQ listeners know I like to flip the script. Last week, I discussed "outlaw" country music. Tomorrow,I'll talk about hip-hop.


I never bought into Jay-Z like most everyone else have. I have no great objection to him, I just have not often felt the need to pay to hear his music. That said, he has some great songs: I like "Can I Get A...," "Money Ain't A Thing" and his cover of Ice-T's "99 Problems." He was also great on "Swagga Like Us." But his new song, "Run This Town," featuring Rihanna and Kanye West, is great. Rihanna's cool, it's nice to hear her return with such power. And hopefully this will be the last we hear from Kanye for a while. I'm a fan of his music, but I think he needs a break from the limelight, and the world needs a break from him.


Kid Cudi is a protegee of Kanye, I don't know too much about him, but he seems to sort of come from the Native Tongues tradition. This song features Kanye and Common, and prominently samples Lady Gaga.


Lady Gaga is also featured on Wale 's "Chillin'." He's a protegee of the great UK producer Mark Ronson. Pretty cool song. It's interesting to hear so many hip-hop dudes into Lady Gaga.


T.I. was being hailed as "The Jay-Z of the South" at one point. I felt the same about him as I did about Jay: no objection, but I wouldn't go out of my way to listen. After a while, I started to enjoy some of his songs. "Dead and Gone" with Justin Timberlake is great, and he killed it on "Swagga Like Us." This new song, "When I'm Gone," featuring Mary J. Blige, has a lot of weight. He's currently serving a year in prison.


Michael Franti has never gotten much attention in hip-hop, but just as I like "outlaw" country, I also like "outlaw" hip-hop. Not gansta, but guys who don't follow the same rules (or hire the same management companies or marketing companies) as the hip-hop stars. Franti got his start in a punk/hip-hop band called The Beatnigs who were on Jello Biafra 's Alternative Tentacles label. Then he had a sort of industrial/hip-hop hybrid group The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphopracy. Then he formed the more rootsy Spearhead, and they're sort of in the jam band scene. They're really political, but this is just a fun summer jam. I can't believe the guy has a hit single, like 20 years into his career! But good for him.


The Beastie Boys "Too Many Rappers" featuring Nas is the lead single from the Beasties' Hot Sauce Committee, which should have come out by now, but was delayed because of Adam Yauch's recent health scare. This song also gets some extra weight from Yauch's first lines: "I been in the game since before you was born, I'll still be MCing after you're gone." I'm glad that that's still true. No one takes the old-school hip-hop feel and makes it modern like the Beasties.

BEST OF '09: N.A.S.A.'s SPIRIT OF APOLLO

I don't know what's up with the cover of N.A.S.A.'s Spirit Of Apollo album, or what they are trying to say. But don't let the Klan clown trick you, this is a very one-world album. The guest list includes: David Byrne, Chali 2na (formerly of Jurassic 5), Chuck D, Method Man, The RZA, John Frusciante of The Red Hot Chili Peppers, KRS-One, Karen O of The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Ol' Dirty Bastard (the album has been in the works for a long time), Tom Waits, Kool Keith, Kanye West, Santigold, Lykke Li, George Clinton, M.I.A., Del The Funkee Homosapien, Ghostface Killah and the late DJ AM. N.A.S.A. features DJ Zegon and Squeak E. Clean (aka Sam Speigel aka Spike Jonze's brother, which explains some of the guest list). It is a great, fun album that not enough people know about it. Check it out, have a great time, thank me later. It's hard to explain.

Other Best of '09 albums: Bob Dylan's Together Through Life , The Cocktail Slippers' Saint Valentine's Day Massacre , Rancid's Let The Dominoes Fall, Willie Nelson & Asleep At The Wheel's Willie & The Wheel

4 REASONS WHY IT'S OK THAT TAYLOR SWIFT GOT THAT VMA

I didn't even watch the VMAs other than the Michael Jackson tribute that opened the show. But right before I went to bed, Facebook went crazy on Kanye West, who played the damn fool as the whole world now knows. I was worried that people were going to turn this into a black/white thing, luckily that didn't happen. And I'm glad that the hip-hop community hasn't supported Kanye on this. They may not be too familiar with Taylor Swift's music (nor am I) but she just seems too nice for that kind of treatment. But some people feel like Beyonce really did get robbed. So here's a few reasons why I think Taylor won (I don't own albums by either lady, and I have never seen either of them in concert, but I do enjoy songs by each - I'm pretty unbiased on this one).

1 - MTV plays "hip" with their promos and image, but MTV is really for high school and early college kids. Beyonce is probably almost 30, and her song "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" probably doesn't resonate with kids that age. Taylor Swift's song is about a girl in the school band who digs a football guy who digs a hot cheerleader. In the video (spoiler alert!) the nice girl gets the guy at the end (Taylor plays both girls, but the nice one more closely resembles her). Taylor is 19, and probably seems a bit more like younger girls. Beyonce never shows weakness, her video features choreography that most girls could never hope to copy, and of course B is impossibly good looking.

2 - Although the VMAs is not a political event, nearly every artist who performed endorsed Barack Obama in the last election. Even the host, a British guy, gave The President -- and even his health care plan! -- some major props during his opening monologue. To me, and lots of people I know, and most people who work at MTV, that's all good and almost expected. The thing is, MTV is supposed to appeal to all young people, not just the ones who voted for (or wanted to vote for) Barack Obama. I bet Taylor Swift voted for Obama also - but she didn't get politically involved in the election, so middle America is comfortable with her. Inviting her to be a part of the VMAs was clever marketing. Which is the entire purpose of the VMAs - don't get it twisted.

3 - Like I said, Beyonce is probably almost 30, Taylor isn't even 20. MTV is all about "in with the new." And while it might make some people uncomfortable hearing this, Beyonce is getting a bit old for MTV. Sorry! It happens to everyone. To me, Kanye West complaining about Taylor just make him look old. REALLY OLD!!!! (caps and !'s in tribute to the man's twitter style). Again: sorry.

4 - And by the way, it's not like Beyonce got dissed. I know "Single Ladies" got Video of the Year - the voters (a small group of MTV execs) decide on all the results at once, so they know that B was getting something later in the night. But to address Kanye's claim that "Single Ladies" is one of the best videos of all time: it isn't even in Beyonce's top five. If you think I don't know what I'm talking about because I don't cover her on this blog, I submit: "'03 Bonnie & Clyde," "Crazy In Love," "Work It Out" (yeah, the Austin Powers jam), plus Destiny's Child's "No, No, No," "Bootylicious," "Soldier," "Lose My Breath," "Survivor," "Jumpin' Jumpin'" and I'm probably forgetting some other ones.

In closing, Kanye is a douche. I have to admit: I liked when he was douche and took aim at bush. But really, come on dude. On the other hand, The College Dropout and Late Registration are still great, and Graduation had some good jams too. And that was very nice of Beyonce to give Taylor her speech back. It's not like she donated her kidney to Taylor (some people seemed to think this made B a saint), but it was a gracious move and the right thing to do.

THE WEEK IN KANYE

Apparently, South Park really skewered Kanye West this week.  I haven't watched the show in a few years, but I have to catch this episode. I am a fan of Kanye's music (especially the first two albums and some of his collabs), but he can definitely stand to be taken down a few pegs.  

Kanye took it like a man, though, and took to his blog to say that he is working on his ego, and said that part of being dope is not always telling people how dope you are, and saying "thank you" when someone compliments him instead of saying "I told you so!" I'll give him credit for this.  He later posted again, saying that he didn't get his ego epiphany from the South Park episode. 

Also, Rolling Stone asked if Kanye is the KISS of hip-hop, because he's making deals for a fragrance, a sneaker and an energy drink. Well, yeah, lots of hip-hop cats are like the KISS of hip-hop, but will their music hold up as well as KISS's does 30+ years later, and will their fans still care? The funny thing is, music critics have routinely slammed KISS for Gene's marketing instincts (true, he's had lots of dumb ideas, and many that are embarrassing to his fans) but no one ever calls Kanye or Jay-Z a "sellout." That's some white guilt shit, right there. 

KANYE WEST, EMPLOYER OF BLOGGERS

Kanye West is one of the most prolific bloggers in pop music. How does he find the time to post a few times a day? He has a two person staff of bloggers! For real: he told New York magazine's Vulture blog. I guess he doesn't make his records on his own, and these days blogging is another source of content, why not have someone help you to make it as great as it can be? Still, I wish someone would break his vocoder already.

THE GRAMMYS: "NOT A BAD WAY TO SPEND A SUNDAY NIGHT"

It's the easiest thing in the world to complain that the Grammy Awards is a boring show. But I tend to like it, and I think this year's show was really well done. For the most part.

I was glad that Al Green performed, but I wish he got to do something from his new album, which got a bunch of nominations and won him two Grammys tonight. I like Justin Timberlake, but it would have been more appropriate for Al to have been backed by ?uestlove and the guys who played on his album, and maybe performed with Anthony Hamilton and John Legend. That said, I liked his performance. It turns out that it was a last minute addition to the show: two performances were cancelled: Chris Brown and Rihanna both pulled out the show right before it started. You can read about that all over the web at this point.

On a similar note, if Neil Diamond's new album is so great, why didn't he perform a new song instead of "Sweet Caroline." That was cheesy as hell, I don't know if a new song would have been any better though.

I don't listen to Carrie Underwood that much, but I liked her performance, and ditto for Taylor Swift (whose performance would have been better without Miley Cyrus). And how could you not be moved by Jennifer Hudson's performance. The Jonas Brothers looked a bit out of their league with Stevie Wonder. It was sort of cute that he played with them, though. U2 was great as always, that goes without saying. Kid Rock was good, I like that "All Summer Long" song. Am I the only person who never heard that Katy Perry song? I never did; it was pretty good. It sounds like her biggest influences are Gwen Stefani and P!nk.

I loved the Four Tops tribute with Jamie Foxx, Ne-Yo, Smokey Robinson and Top Duke Fakir. The Bo Diddley tribute with B.B. King, Buddy Guy, John Mayer and Keith Urban was a bit messy.

Hip-Hop provided some of the best moments of the night: the "Swagga Like Us" performance with Jay-Z, T.I., Lil' Wayne, Kanye West and a very pregnant M.I.A. (who may have been lip-synching); T.I.'s performance with Justin Timberlake was great, and so was Lil' Wayne's. I didn't like Kanye and Estelle's as much, and Jay-Z joining Coldplay onstage was a bit goofy.

I liked seeing Paul McCartney, but again, "I Saw Her Standing There"? I think he should have done a new song. It was fun to see Dave Grohl playing drums for him though. Radiohead 's performance was interesting, and probably confusing to most of the crowd. Was the whole band there, or was it just Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood and the huge marching band?

My favorite performance was Robert Plant & Alison Krauss' medley of "Rich Woman" and "Gone Gone Gone," and I was glad to see them go five for five, winning all of their nominations, including Record and Album Of The Year. I loved Robert's comment that in the "old days," being at the Grammys would have seemed like "selling out," but "It's not a bad way to spend a Sunday night." I'm sure there's going to be a lot of bitching about "old" artists beating out the likes of Lil Wayne and Coldplay, and that the album wasn't as ubiquitous in the culture. Whatever: it was a mature but totally credible album that didn't pander that was released on an indie label. It deserved all the accolades it won (it also won a Grammy last year) and more. That's my final word!

GRAMMY PREDICITONS

As promised, here are my Grammy predictions in the big categories, as well
as predictions by Keith Price, the ebony, chunky, funky co-host of The Morning Jolt with Larry Flick on SIRIUS XM Satellite Radio. On Monday morning, we'll see how well we did, and discuss the show.

Record of the Year
Adele’s “Chasing Pavements”
Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida”
Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love”
M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes”
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss’ “Please Read The Letter”

No Expiration says: Robert Plant and Alison Krauss should win, it was a phenomenal track from an incredible record that gave two career artists a new career highlight. Record of the Year is also an award for the production: Robert Plant recorded the song ten years earlier with Jimmy Page, produced by Steve Albini. The new version, produced by T-Bone Burnett, casts the song in a new light. I also think it will win, this is the kind of record that Grammy voters love, and all of the younger artists will cancel each other out.

Keith Price saysAdele should win, but Leona Lewis, a favorite of Larry Flick, will win.

Album of the Year
Coldplay’s Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends
Lil’ Wayne’s Tha Carter III
Ne-Yo’s Year of the Gentleman
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss’ Raising Sand
Radiohead’s In Rainbows

No Expiration says: Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, again, should win, although Radiohead’s album is great and Coldplay’s is the rare “rock” record to have a long shelf-life with lots of single, and Lil Wayne’s sold over three milli. But I think Wayne and Ne-Yo cancel each other out, and Radiohead and Coldplay cancel each other out.

Keith Price says: Coldplay will win, but Robert Plant & Alison Krauss should win.

Song of the Year
Estelle featuring Kanye West: “American Boy”
Adele: “Chasing Pavements”
Jason Mraz: “I’m Yours”
Sara Bareilles: “Love Song”
Coldplay: “Viva La Vida”

No Expiration says: there’s no clear cut winner here, but Jason Mraz shouldn’t have been invited to this party, with all due respect. I liked a lot of these songs, but I voted for Coldplay, and I think that is who will win (which isn’t why I voted for them).

Keith Price says: “American Boy” will win, but “Chasing Pavements” should win.

Best New Artist
Adele
Duffy
The Jonas Brothers
Lady Antelbellum
Jazmine Sullivan

No Expiration says: Duffy should and will win. Yes, The Jonas Brothers sold tons of records and film tickets and concert tickets and deserve recognition for that, plus they write songs and play instruments. But the Grammys don’t want to become the American Music Awards. Duffy’s album is a great debut by a career artist that had the old-fashioned slow build, and she never seemed like she was getting overexposed.

Keith Price agrees!

NARAS DISSES SPRINGSTEEN AGAIN

OK, I'm going to sound like a middle aged New Jerseyite here, but for the second year in a row, the Grammy nominations have dissed Bruce Springsteen big time. There were some really good nominations: Robert Plant & Alison Krauss' Raising Sand did really well, and the nominations will likely expose even more people to a classic album. And all the nominations for R&B singer Jazmine Sullivan will no doubt expose her to new fans, regardless of whether or not she wins anything (I downloaded two of her songs on iTunes tonight and liked them a lot). I am glad to see Adele do so well (I was shocked that she got more nominations than Duffy). I won't even complain about Lil' Wayne getting more nominations than anyone else - he isn't for me (although "Swagga Like Us," featuring Wayne, Kanye West, Jay-Z and T.I. is probably the best hip-hop song of the year, even I can admit that).

But "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" is a classic. I like Sara Barielles' "Love Song," but it is really that good? Is Jason Mraz's song "I'm Yours"? Who decides this stuff? Both were nominated for Song of the Year. "Girls..." is also an incredible production. But apparently not as good as Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love." "Girls..." did get two nominations in the rock category. I also felt that Al Green's Lay It Down should have gotten more nominations than it did, and in the top three categories (all of his were in R&B).

Ah well, Bruce will be fine, so will the Reverend Al. And I'm glad for Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, they have my vote in every category they're nominated in.

THIS WEEK ON OUTQ: Q-TIP, RAPHAEL SAADIQ, JOHN LEGEND, KANYE

So this week's theme is going to be
hip-hop and R&B. First off is Q-Tip's new album, The Renaissance. I'm glad it came out at all - his last two albums were shelved by his record labels. He is a really ambitious artist, and doesn't pander, and that may be why he has never sold tons of records, but it's also why people still care about him after all these years. His last album came out in 1999! That's a long time in any genre, especially hip-hop. He has some cool guests on the album, including Norah Jones, D'Angelo (also on sabbatical) and Raphael Saadiq. It's a really ambitious album, and I really dig it.

Speaking of Raphael, I really dig his album, The Way I See It. It's more than a tribute to Motown, it's more like a thank you letter. I believe in saying "thank you," and I love old Motown, so I'm cool with this album. I'm sure some people will complain that it sounds too old-school Motownish. This is my favorite of the albums I'll be talking about this week.

I was really looking forward to John Legend's new album, Evolver. I like it, but don't love it. it sounds very contemporary R&B, and is a bit more Brian McKnight than Al Green or Marvin Gaye. That's just my take. I like "Everybody Knows," and also his Estelle collaboration, "No Other Love," which features the great reggae sax player Dean Fraser. I also like his Barack Obama tribute song, "If You're Out There." The great thing about John Legend: you don't have to enjoy every album equally, he's gonna be around for a long time.

I'm also talking about tracks from upcoming albums by Common and Kanye West. Common's has a very Afrika Bambaataa electro sound (the songs were actually produced by Pharell) and I like them. I'm not super into Kanye's new autotune heavy singing.