Family Stone: Keep Sly Home

I never watch the Grammys - they are boring, the performances forced, and in the end, are just a recognition of sales. But Bruce and Bono in the same show? What am I, made of wood? So I flipped it on, figuring I would just do other stuff and run into the room when I heard them. And I love the Kanye West/Jamie Fox Goldigger song.

Apart from some uneven performances and definite sound troubles, I enjoyed the parts I saw. Madonna appearing with Gorillaz? Great stuff - probably less tension in rehearsals - fewer dancers to yell at.

And U2 never disappoints. After a kick ass version of Vertigo, Bono basically served as back-up singer to MJ Blige, who really should be on at the end of the show, b/c it is unfair to make anyone follow her.

And Bruce? Well... did he piss off both the lighting and the hair guys before the show? Not a fan of the song but it's always great to see him perform. But who could predict the debacle that would come later? Was anyone else scared to see like 15 people on the stage before Sly came out? Were they there in case he became a human pinball, to bounce him back into the playing area?

Sly's new look. Frightening. (The only thing more frightening was Sheryl Crow's visible sternum.) Was his neck surgically removed so he could better watch his own hands not play the keyboard?

I remember seeing Sly and the Family Stone in the mid-70's. I was away at school and my brother came up for the weekend to visit and to see his first concert. Back then, Sly was so great that he could show up an hour and a half late, play for 45 minutes, and still get a 10-minute standing ovation (which he did that night). He was so popular that he got married at Madison Square Garden to one of the "stars" of the movie Soylent Green (soylent green is people!), and people actually cared.

But why would his family allow his bizarre behavior to be witnessed by millions? It seemed like his mike was not even turned on until the end. Did he leave prematurely? I couldn't tell. Apparently there is a documentary in the works about his departure from the public eye. Maybe they thought this would help sales. It might, but for the same reason people slow down to look at car wrecks.

So glad they ended the show with the Wilson Pickett tribute. Watching Sam Moore and Bruce kick off Midnight Hour was like having a lemon sorbet after a really awful second course. I wish there was a palate cleanser for my brain.