Get the drinks and popcorn ready, because this Sunday’s Grammy Awards telecast is sure to be an interesting one.
Aside from the expected big award winners (get ready to hear “Adele” over and over again), there are some performances that will be interesting, newsworthy and probably exciting. Here is just some of the performance lineup:
• The Beach Boys will reunite and enjoy a joint performance with Foster the People and Maroon 5 
• Foo Fighters, Chris Brown, Lil Wayne, David Guetta and Deadmau5 will all join forces to give a special tribute to dance/electronic music
• Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will rock the house
• Adele will perform, which will be the first public performance for her since she had vocal surgery
• Bruno Mars
• Taylor Swift
• Katy Perry
• Kelly Clarkson
• The Band Perry
• Glen Campbell
• Coldplay
• Rihanna
While the specific purpose of the Grammies is to award the best in music for the past year, we like that it’s a great way to watch a concert featuring a wide array of musical performers. Since some of them can be unpredictable (Nicki Minaj will also perform, for example), the excitement of the unknown is also a critical piece of the puzzle.
Bon Iver is up for four Grammy awards, but the band won’t perform as previously reported. Apparently the indie-rock band was asked to perform with other artists (per the norm at the Grammies) but the band wanted a solo performance.
Get Ready for Grammies this Sunday
Pick up Tickets for These Summer Shows
Now is about the time that news begins trickling out about which artists are touring over the summer. While many concert venues have set their schedules, fans might be happy to find that there is a wide array of live music experiences available this summer.
Who’s touring this summer? Country Music fans might happy to know that Carrie Underwood is currently on tour and will continue for a few more months, and Brad Paisley and Brooks & Dunn are also slated to tour soon. Other country music artists set to tour include Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw.
While she set herself as a country music singer, Taylor Swift successfully crossed country music lines into pop music in 2009 and her 2010 tour will stop at a number of venues this summer, including two nights at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and stops in Iowa, Ohio, Kansas, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York and other states and venues.
U2 will continue its highly successful 2009 tour into 2010. The Irish rock sensation will make a number of outdoor stops in the United States including stops at the Meadowlands Stadium n New Jersey, the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, Ca., Angels Stadium in Anaheim, Ca., and Invesco Field in Denver.
Other headline tours this summer include the Dave Matthews Band, Green Day, John Mayer, Lady Gaga, Nickelback and Sting. Elton John and the Eagles will also headline some shows. John will also continue his highly successful Face 2 Face tour with Billy Joel this fall.
Finally, some of the grandfathers (literally) of rock and roll might be on tour this summer. Rumor has it that the Rolling Stones might head out on tour. The band hasn’t since it toured behind 2005’s “A Bigger Bang”.
Awesome Releases Coming Next Week
If you have varied taste in music, you might like some of the new releases that are coming next week. Releasing Tuesday are the following:
“Raymond v. Raymond” – Usher. This is Usher’s 7th album and it features a story within the album, taking listeners on a tour of his coming-of-age story and his need to balance his life as a person with a life and his life as a superstar performer. Amazon notes that the album is “is sure to paint a vivid portrait of growth, triumph, defeat and happiness.”
“Freight Train” – Alan Jackson. This country superstar has sold more than 50 million albums and has collected more than 100 industry awards, including three Country Music Awards for “Entertainer of the Year”. “Freight Train” features the hit song “It’s Just That Way” along with 11 other new songs.
“This Charming Life” – Joan Armatrading. British singer-songwriter Armatrading is a three-time Grammy nominated artist and the only female artist from the UK to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Blues chart. She was also the first British female to be nominated for a Grammy in the blues category. This album features 11 new songs.
Weapons of Self Destruction – Robin Williams. If you like potty mouth comedy, this disc is for you. This is a release of Williams’ 2009 show in Washington, DC. which aired on HBO. Williams covers a wide range of topics ranging from his open heart surgery to health care in America. The disc features clips from previous concerts featuring Williams; some are as old as 1978. But be warned – this one carries warnings of explicit language.
“All in Good Time” – Barenaked Ladies. This is the first release from the Canadian group without co-vocalist Steven Page. Since the group was founded, it’s won several Grammy nominations and eight Juno awards. The group can also boast of more than 14 million albums sold worldwide and a number of hit singles. This album is the group’s 11th studio effort and features production by Michael Phillip Wojewoda.
AI Down to Final 10
To be admitted into the “American Idol” competition at all is enough for some singers, but most of the singers understand that being in the top 12 is one of the highest honors a contestant can receive. But the reality is for those who want to make a career in music, being in the top 10 is really where it’s at.
It’s the top 10 contestants that get to go on tour during the summer, and it’s during that tour that fans are made and record buyers are born. So the first two contestants to go on “American Idol” knew that they were missing out on being in that top 10. On Wednesday night page Miles was sent home, and she understood it was due partly to a lack of good song choices and partly due to some struggles with illness.
“I had a lot of health issues going on there … bad song choices”, Miles said. “But I still had a blast, and it was a great learning experience.”
Miles struggled during Tuesday’s No. 1 hits night, when she sang Phil Collins’ “Against All Odds”, a performance Randy Jackson called “terrible”.
When host Ryan Seacrest announced Wednesday night that Miles would be going home, the judges told her she didn’t have to sing a final song in order to try and stay on the show. Judge Simon Cowell told her that the judges had already decided she would not be allowed to stay on the show, so singing for her final chance to be saved by the judges would be pointless.
“It’s not working,” Cowell told Miles. “I don’t want to give you any false hope here. It’s the end.”
Miley Cyrus was the mentor during this week’s show and she returned to the results show to sing “When I Look at You.”
Next week, the theme will be R&B and soul music, and Usher will mentor the performers.