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February 28, 2002
U2 Wins Four Grammy Awards, Including Record Of The Year
2.28.02 - Launch
(2/28/02, 12 a.m. ET) -- U2 walked away with an impressive four Grammys last night: record of the year, best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal, best rock album, and best rock performance by a duo or group with vocal.
The band's "Walk On" won for record of the year, beating out stiff competition from India.Arie, Alicia Keys, OutKast, and Train. They picked up best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal for "Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of."
"Elevation" won the band best rock performance by a duo or group with vocal. And All That You Can't Leave Behind won best rock album in the pre-telecast ceremony.
The band opened the show with "Walk On," and was then the first artist to pick up an award on the Grammy telecast, landing best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal for "Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of." In accepting the honor, U2 frontman Bono explained why the award was extremely important to the band. "Oh, thank God--that's two in the bag. Being Irish, if you get eight nominations and get no awards, they wouldn't let you back in the country, so this is a public safety issue. Thank you," he said.
In the band's second trip to the podium, accepting best rock performance by a duo or group with vocals for "Elevation," Bono joked to the crowd that he hoped the band didn't win another Grammy. Prior to that comment, guitarist the Edge made fun of his own lengthy acceptance-speech habits, but Bono interceded. "Well, you know, there was a lot to go on about last year. Last year was a great year," Edge said. "And this year there are some very special things also that have happened to me which I just want to tell you about."
Bono interrupted, "He's a guitar player. I do the talking. I'm the singer."
Finally, when U2 came up to take its big prize, record of the year, Bono didn't speak until the end of the closing speech, leaving the Edge and bassist Adam Clayton to acknowledge those who helped them this year.
-- Darren Davis and Jason Gelman
Copyright © 2002 Yahoo! Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Posted by Jonathan at 04:02 PM | Comments (0)
February 24, 2002
You Heard It Here First
2.24.02 - Los Angeles Times
Often but not always the most deserving, U2 and Alicia Keys are likely to snag the top honors.
By Robert Hilburn
The Grammy Awards show producers should open the telecast Wednesday with U2's "Beautiful Day," because there's no real suspense when it comes to naming the best album this year.
The Irish quartet's "All That You Can't Leave Behind," which includes the song, is the runaway favorite to win in the most prestigious Grammy category, which would make it the first rock band to win the best album award twice. "The Joshua Tree" was named best album in 1988.
A victory would climax a remarkable 15 months for the band, whose album and world tour not only reestablished it as a critical and commercial cornerstone in rock, but also helped restore confidence in rock music's ability to inspire a mass audience. That kind of momentum could lead to a sweep of the top Grammy categories most years, but it's not likely this time because 21-year-old Alicia Keys generated considerable momentum herself. The singer-songwriter, who was the Cinderella story of pop last year, is nominated in six categories and she stands a strong chance of winning in most of them.
Here's a guide to some of the most interesting Grammy matchups. Wednesday's ceremony will be held at Staples Center and broadcast on KCBS-TV at 8 p.m.
Album of the Year
The nominees: India.Arie's "Acoustic Soul," Bob Dylan's "Love and Theft," OutKast's "Stankonia," U2's "All That You Can't Leave Behind" and the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack.
Ever since the Grammy brain trust gave final responsibility for choosing nominees in the top categories to a blue ribbon committee in 1995, the best album nominees have been impressive.
"All That You Can't Leave Behind" isn't as inspiring as "The Joshua Tree," but it is a passionate and well-crafted work and it would be a popular choice in this category. But "Love and Theft" and "Stankonia" were even more acclaimed, and a victory by either would also be hailed by many pop observers.
The OutKast collection would be the first hard-core rap album to win in this category, while "Love and Theft" is even more ambitious than Dylan's 1997 Grammy winner "Time Out of Mind."
The remaining albums are respectable, but a notch or two below the other choices. The longshot would be "O Brother," which could emerge on top if Dylan draws enough votes from U2. The soundtrack will draw a lot of support from Nashville and fans of the Coen brothers movie.
Likely winner: U2.
Most deserving: Bob Dylan.
Record of the Year
The nominees: India.Arie's "Video," Alicia Keys' "Fallin'," OutKast's "Ms. Jackson," Train's "Drops of Jupiter" and U2's "Walk On."
India.Arie picked up more nominations (seven) than Keys, which was a surprise because Keys got more radio play, more enthusiastic reviews and more sales during the year. But while the screening committee put Arie in this field, the full academy membership, which now exceeds 13,000 will likely side with Keys. If for no other reason, she has greater name recognition, often an important factor in a lengthy Grammy ballot (101 categories this year).
U2 is also a force, but "Beautiful Day" won last year in this category (which honors a single track rather than an entire album), so it's unlikely voters will honor the band two years in a row for best record, especially when "Beautiful Day" was a more compelling track.
Key's "Fallin'," a soul-accented expression of being helplessly in love, brings a modern sensibility to the classic soul tradition. "Video" is a liberating expression of self-affirmation, but it wasn't as big a hit, so it probably won't be as familiar to the mass membership.
Likely winner and most deserving: Alicia Keys.
Song of the Year
The nominees: Train's "Drops of Jupiter," Alicia Keys' "Fallin'," Nelly Furtado's "I'm Like a Bird," U2's "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," India.Arie, Carlos Broady and Shannon Sanders' "Video."
The wild card here is U2. If there is a U2 sweep, "Stuck" could be carried along. It's a moving statement of emotional disconnection. But there is usually a correlation between this category, which is for the songwriter only, and the best record category, which considers all the elements in a single recording, including song, vocal and instrumentation. Because different U2 works were nominated in the categories, it suggests that neither was dominant in voters' minds. The Keys song has more of a universal feel--it's the kind of song that could have been sung in the '60s by Aretha Franklin or be revived 30 years from now by a new generation of soul artists.
Likely winner and most deserving: Alicia Keys.
Best New Artist
The nominees: India.Arie, Nelly Furtado, David Gray, Alicia Keys and Linkin Park.
Linkin Park's "Hybrid Theory" was the biggest-selling album of 2001, but the rap-rock group's appeal is almost exclusively to teens, and there is little reason for adult Grammy voters to identify with it. Besides, this award usually goes to a solo artist. Keys and Arie are worthy, but Keys has the wider range and more striking ambition.
Likely winner and most deserving: Alicia Keys.
Pop Vocal Album
The nominees: Nelly Furtado's "Whoa, Nelly!," Janet Jackson's "All for You," Elton John's "Songs From the West Coast," 'N Sync's "Celebrity" and Sade's "Lovers Rock."
Sade's smooth, understated style would seem to be tailor-made for mainstream Grammy voters, but she's only won twice (best R&B vocal with a group in 1993 and best new artist in 1985). John has won five times but never in a high-profile category, so he is overdue. It helps that this is his strongest album in decades--easily the class of the field.
Likely winner and most deserving: Elton John.
Rock Album
The nominees: Ryan Adams' "Gold," Aerosmith's "Just Push Play," PJ Harvey's "Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea," Linkin Park's "Hybrid Theory," U2's "All That You Can't Leave Behind."
U2 is a cinch here. The media buzz about Adams probably hasn't infected the membership, and the critically adored Harvey is considered too much an outsider in Grammy circles.
Likely winner and most deserving: U2.
R&B Album
The nominees: Aaliyah's "Aaliyah," India.Arie's "Acoustic Soul," Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama," Destiny's Child's "Survivor," Alicia Keys' "Songs in A Minor."
This is one of the most competitive fields. The big if is whether voters want to pay tribute to Aaliyah, the young singer who was killed in a plane crash last year. Everyone here has a chance.
Likely winner and most deserving: Alicia Keys.
Rap Album
The nominees: Eve's "Scorpion," Ja Rule's "Pain Is Love," Jay-Z's "The Blueprint," Ludacris' "Back for the First Time;" OutKast's "Stankonia."
There is a lot of commercial firepower here, but the best album nomination for "Stankonia" makes OutKast the odds-on favorite.
Likely winner and most deserving: OutKast.
Contemporary Folk Album
The nominees: Bob Dylan's "Love and Theft," Buddy & Julie Miller's "Buddy & Julie Miller," various artists' "Poet: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt," Gillian Welch's "Time (The Revelator)," Lucinda Williams' "Essence."
This category, a dumping ground for albums a little left of rock and a little right of country, is a critic's delight. Just look at the winners over the past five years: Emmylou Harris' "Red Dirt Girl," Tom Waits' "Mule Variations," Lucinda Williams' "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road," Dylan's "Time Out of Mind" and Bruce Springsteen's "The Ghost of Tom Joad." Dylan and Williams are back again, and both had marvelous albums, but Dylan will reign.
Likely winner and most deserving: Bob Dylan.
Producer of the Year (Non-Classical)
The nominees: T Bone Burnett, Dr. Dre, Gerald Eaton/ Brian West, Nigel Godrich, Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis.
Dr. Dre is the greatest hip-hop producer ever, but he won in this category last year, when he had much stronger credits. He's back this time chiefly on name value and respect. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis are also much respected, they've won before in this category, and their work in 2001 (including the Janet Jackson album) wasn't strong enough to earn them a repeat. The competition will be Burnett, the guiding force behind the "O Brother" album. Eaton/West worked with Nelly Furtado; Godrich produced the Travis and Radiohead albums.
Likely winner and most deserving: T Bone Burnett.
Robert Hilburn, The Times' pop music critic, can be reached at robert.hilburn@latimes.com
Copyright © 2002 Los Angeles Times. All rights reserved.
Posted by Jonathan at 04:05 PM | Comments (0)
February 04, 2002
Halftime Show: An American Tribute
2.4.02 - Associated Press
By Brett Martel, Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - U2 had the Super Bowl halftime stage all to itself, and the Irish rockers delivered a moving tribute to America and the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Lead singer Bono walked onto the field with a slow, shoulder-wagging swagger, singing the group's recent hit, "Beautiful Day," as he climbed onto the point of a pink, heart-shaped catwalk that surrounded the stage.
As the first song wound down, a giant screen scrolled the names of victims in the attacks, and the group broke into the 1980s hit, "Where the Streets Have No Name."
The names also reflected in overlapping patterns across the stands, which were dark, save for the countless camera flashes.
Unlike glitzy halftime shows of the past, the effects were limited to standard strobe lights. But all attention was on Bono anyway, who pulled back his lapel to reveal an American flag to the roars of the crowd.
Sunday's pregame lineup opened with the Boston Pops. Wearing white coats and black bow ties, the musicians drew enthusiastic applause when they finished their first session with "Stars and Stripes Forever."
The pregame lineup also featured Paul McCartney, Barry Manilow, Marc Anthony, Mary J. Blige, Patti LaBelle, James Ingram, Wynonna, Yolanda Adams and Mariah Carey.
Carey, wearing a long, royal blue dress, performed the national anthem for the first time, her renowned high inflection peppering several verses. As she sang with the stadium lights down, fans in the Superdome's three levels held red, white and blue glow sticks, respectively, from top to bottom. A giant American flag in the shape of the United States was unfurled on the field.
Producers said most of the musical performers prerecorded their sound tracks to reduce the possibility of technical problems. However, U2, played live.
The pregame show also included a video of current and former star players reading the Declaration of Independence. In another video, former presidents Carter, Clinton, Ford and Bush joined Nancy Reagan in quoting Abraham Lincoln. The videos concluded with fans chanting "U-S-A!"
McCartney, who was in New York when the hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center, sang his Sept. 11-inspired song, "Freedom."
He took the stage, acoustic guitar in hand, as cheerleaders with silver, glittering pompoms spelled out "freedom" across the field. Others marched with dozens of flags from foreign nations.
"I'm proud to be here and stand up with America," McCartney said in a TV interview shortly before halftime ended.
Earlier, LaBelle, Ingram, Wynonna and Adams joined Manilow in singing "Let Freedom Ring," a song Manilow wrote years ago to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the U.S. Constitution.
As the group sang, servicemen marched around the perimeter of the field with American flags while women wearing red, white or blue statue-of-liberty outfits marched in front of the stage, forming the ribbon that has stood as a symbol of national unity since the attacks.
The song concluded with a young boy in a camouflage military uniform ringing a replica of the Liberty Bell.
Anthony and Blige then sang "America the Beautiful," accompanied by the Pops and flanked by flag-bearing law officers.
Copyright © 2001 Yahoo! Inc., and The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Posted by Jonathan at 04:06 PM | Comments (0)
February 03, 2002
Unlikely Note Is Struck on World Finance Stage
2.3.02 - LA Times
Bill Gates and Bono challenge the Treasury chief and the U.S. to boost foreign aid.
By William Orme, Times Staff Writer
NEW YORK -- At one end of the dais was Uncle Sam's chief financial representative, a man seen by some at this year's World Economic Forum as Uncle Scrooge: Paul H. O'Neill, an unapologetic opponent of increased aid from the world's wealthiest nation to the world's poorest nations.
On the other side, taking on the Treasury secretary and his tightfisted policies, was the new odd couple of the aid advocacy world: the wealthiest nation's wealthiest man, Bill Gates, in his trademark mail-order glasses and open-collar shirt, and Bono, the Irish rock star, in his trademark wraparound shades and much more open collar.
Looking squarely at O'Neill, his fellow panelist at a session during the annual forum's third day here, Gates chastised the U.S. government Saturday as "the laggard" among world aid donors.
"If we took the world and reordered it so that you and me were close to a random neighborhood from some other part of the world, you would see the living conditions, the medical problems, the infant mortality, and of course the human spirit would respond to that," Gates said.
Bono, who has emerged at the forum as the unlikely chief spokesman for developing nations and international aid programs, was clearly pleased to have his new billionaire friend taking the lead Saturday.
Noting that he once enlisted Pope John Paul II in his campaign for debt relief for poor nations--"an unusual juxtaposition" that he said was calculated to attract media attention--the U2 front man smiled broadly as he and Gates reiterated pleas for aid later at a joint news conference.
"Now I am here with the pope of software, making another unusual juxtaposition," Bono said.
After announcing Saturday that he is personally giving an additional $50 million to combat the worldwide spread of AIDS, Gates challenged O'Neill and the Bush administration to increase U.S. government funding for health-care programs in sub-Saharan Africa and other poor regions. More money for vaccinations alone could save 2 million lives a year, Gates said, "and if the U.S. doesn't do it, it is not going to happen."
O'Neill, however, politely but pointedly dismissed the criticism from the software tycoon and the rock star, making clear that he remains opposed to appeals for a major increase in aid from wealthy nations. Poor countries have received "trillions of dollars in aid over the years with precious little to show for it," he said, a calculation that appeared from his later remarks to include the costs of the many internationally backed bailouts of indebted nations from Asia to Latin America in recent decades.
"The question is, how do we create a situation so that people become engines of economic progress, and not just objects of our pity?" O'Neill said.
Bono retorted that without outside help for basic health care, many poor countries will find economic progress impossible.
"Dead people don't make a great work force," he said.
Britain, France and other European nations have been pushing plans to boost aid from the world's wealthiest nations to poor countries and regions, but the Bush administration has blocked the proposals. In November, O'Neill in effect vetoed a proposed call by the finance ministers of the wealthy Group of 7 nations that they all aim to devote 0.7% of their gross domestic product to international aid programs. Few now are close to that goal; the furthest away, figures show, is the United States, where an estimated 0.1% of the GDP goes to foreign aid. The United Nations has long sought commitments from rich countries to boost aid to 1% of GDP.
More recently, the U.S. Treasury torpedoed proposals to have wealthy nations pledge an eventual doubling in their foreign aid commitment, an idea backed most prominently by Gordon Brown, Britain's chancellor of the exchequer. Proponents had hoped to have the pledge adopted at a U.N. conference on foreign aid in Monterrey, Mexico, next month. But the administration told conference planners that President Bush would cancel a planned appearance there if specific aid commitments were adopted, diplomats at the United Nations said.
Mexico, counting on Bush's presence to give greater prominence to the conference, urged the Europeans to back away from their insistence on fixed aid goals, the diplomats said. Last week, the White House announced that Bush would attend.
O'Neill, asked here whether he agreed with the goals endorsed by Brown and others, said he is "not charmed by proposals" to set specific targets for aid increases.
"Why is it that the spread between those of us who are privileged and those of us who are not is so incomprehensibly large?" O'Neill said. "My answer to that question is: Up until now, we've lacked imagination."
But Ernesto Zedillo, Mexico's former president, who also appeared on the panel with O'Neill, suggested mildly that what is lacking isn't imagination, but cash.
"Even if we update institutions, the bottom line is, we still need money," Zedillo said.
Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), speaking from the audience, also challenged O'Neill. Less than 1% of the U.S. federal budget is spent on foreign aid, he said, with the bulk of that going to Israel and Egypt and what Leahy characterized as disguised export promotion programs and funds for "the failed war" on drugs.
"We are left with a tiny, tiny portion for very poor countries," Leahy said. "It's ridiculous."
The new focus on health and on environmental problems in poor countries by Gates and other wealthy philanthropists--Ted Turner and the Hewlett and Packard families, among others--has been cited by some U.S. opponents of government assistance as a more efficient and focused form of foreign aid. But Gates argued vigorously here for greatly increased aid from the United States and other official donors.
"Certainly private philanthropy is no substitute for governmental action here," Gates told reporters later. "The scale of the problem, and the need to engage it government-to-government, is just way too great for this to be done, even with the increases you will be seeing in private philanthropy."
More official funding of health and development programs in poor nations also will attract more money from private charities, Gates said.
"We have said to governments that 'if you step up and increase, we will be stepping up and increasing as well,' " said Gates, whose personal foundation reports that it has given out $2.8 billion in grants and pledged $2.1 billion more since its creation two years ago. More than half the grants have gone to global health projects, it says.
In their joint appeal for aid to poor nations, Gates let Bono do most of the talking.
Though the rock star had described himself to a forum concert audience as "the poor man's James Joyce or the thinking man's Perry Como," he came across Saturday as a secretly studious policy wonk in hipster's clothing. With Gates attentively nodding, he spoke offhandedly about the Group of 8 summit in Canada later this year, his recent drug pricing discussions with executives from major drug companies, and the debate over "conditionality" in World Bank debt restructuring programs.
Bono was carefully diplomatic about O'Neill, giving him credit for honesty--"the secretary's position accurately reflects a certain distrust in the U.S. about foreign aid," he said--and disclosing plans to accompany O'Neill on a visit to Africa in a month and a half. The Treasury Department later confirmed plans for the trip.
"The great thing about hanging out with Republicans is that it is very unhip for both of us," Bono said. "There is a parity of pain there."
Outside, unseen by Gates or Bono or any other forum participants, about 7,000 demonstrators converged for the largest protests yet against the five-day gathering of political and business leaders. The protesters represented a variety of causes, from animal rights and environmentalism to Palestinian nationalism and anti-globalization campaigns.
Holding brightly colored signs, the marchers were watched by thousands of police officers who walked alongside, behind and in front of them as they made their way toward the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, the site of the forum. Officials said 36 people were arrested for misdemeanor offenses.
"It's all about greed, man," said college student Joel Silverman, who had come to protest international bankers' "blatant manipulation" of poor economies.
As she donned a rubber Statue of Liberty crown, Michelle Arti of France called the forum "a force for evil."
Most New Yorkers paid little heed, but some watching the protests were openly antagonistic.
"Go home!" yelled a man in front of a Gap store near 59th Street, a target of protests earlier in the week. "We've had enough craziness in this town--we don't need any more."
* * *
Times staff writer Josh Getlin contributed to this report.
Copyright © 2002 Los Angeles Times. All rights reserved.
Posted by Jonathan at 04:10 PM | Comments (0)
February 01, 2002
An NFL Employee's U2 Experience
From: "Miller, Scott"
To: "U2 Station"
Subject: RE:
Date: Fri, 1 Feb 2002 23:39:53 -0500
I work for the NFL yes and I was doing some work in the stadium.Of course there was a buzz about when U2 would do thier soundcheck so about 2:30 I start to hear Elvation over the PA.I dropped everything and ran into the stadium.Thier guitar tech was playing Edgeitars and the stage was setup but the band was no where in sight.I asked a few questions but no one seemed to be able to help me as to when the band would play.
A few hours later around 5:30 PM I saw it.The stage was completeley setup.They even have a little heart set up in front of the stage.Not as large as the one on tour but large enough for a pit ful of people.The whole band on stage playing Beautiful day.They sang it twice took a short break and sang it again.All the while Bono is running around the heart shaped stage and also testing how far he can actually venture out I guess.There was someone walking with him right beside him during these takes.In between Bono mentioning things here and there.Than they did MLK into Streets.It all sounded amazing.The Edge looked like he was totally into it,Larry looked kind of bored but that's Larry.Mind you the whole stadium is dark Just the stage lights are on Like a concert.I have now edged my way to within 20 ft of the heart.Bono is on the 50 yard line talking to some stage crew I guess and also some NFL execs I happen recognize.I notice that Paul McGuinnes is right next to me shaking hands with some people and they were ready for the last run.
They Play a video compilition on the 2 jumbo screens on bothh ends of the Field as the intro.The stage crew bring in college students to fill the heart and pull people close to the stage so Bono can practice walking through the crowd and up on to the stage.Totally fucken cool because I'm fucken one of em.They do the Video intro Bono walks by me onto the stage they rip into Beautiful day and I have my elbows on the outer tip of the heart and Bono is standin right in front of me.I could have tripped him.They go into MLK and scroll the names of the victims of Sept 11th and then do Streets.I tell you I can go home right now fuck the Superbowl.But you know what they are playing and I am working the game so anything can happen hopefully.
Posted by Jonathan at 10:20 PM | Comments (0)