At Large with Tom Williams > Music is in the air

Written by Tom Williams Tuesday, 07 February 2012 12:49

Music is making news right now.

You’ve probably read that the Stockton Goes to the Beach concerts, held at the Ocean City Music Pier for the past five summers, have moved to the new Convention Hall in Cape May. They have already announced the schedule that includes Jay & The Americans, The Lettermen, Gerry & The Pacemakers, The Association and Gary Puckett, among others.

You might have seen most of those acts in Ocean City the last five years. But the Music Pier is not planning to close down on Monday nights. They are very close to announcing a schedule of concerts that will keep the music alive in the pier with performers very much like the ones who have visited the past five years.

It will all start on July 2 when a benefit concert to raise funs for the local VFW Post will be held on the pier with a popular act. After that, there will be an act every Monday night. The lineup should be confirmed by the end of this month.

Here’s a suggestion. The Stockton concerts have included Jay & The Americans a couple times at the Music Pier and the group is coming to Cape May on July 9. But this is not the voice that produced “Cara Mia,” “This Magic Moment,” “Come A Little Bit Closer” and “Only In America,” among others. The lead singer of this version of Jay & The Americans was brought in from a Jay & The Americans cover band.

The real Jay is still out there doing concerts. His stage name is Jay Black and he still has the voice, at least, most of it. His hair is white and he talks a little slower but, when he sings those songs, you know this is THE Jay. It would be a treat for area fans of the group to bring the real voice of Jay & The Americans to the Music Pier.

In addition to awaiting the new pier lineup, this week there was the halftime show at the Super Bowl. Now, Madonna is 53 years old. But she looked great, sounded great and put together a terrific show. The technology used in the show was excellent. The only negative was an inappropriate gesture by British rapper M.I.A., a highly successful worldwide performer.

The viewers obviously agreed.

Regardless of how Eagles fans felt about the Giants winning another Super Bowl, the broadcast was the most watched television program in USA history. An estimated 111.3 million people watched the game. But 114 million watched Madonna’s halftime show, meaning there were nearly three million viewers who tuned in at halftime and changed the channel when her “World Peace” graphic floated across the field at the end of her show.

The music will continue on Sunday with the 54th Annual Grammy Awards, hosted by LL Cool J. The show will feature live performances by Bruce Springsteen, Chris Brown, Bruno Mars, Nicki Minaj (who was also in Madonna’s halftime show), Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson and Foo Fighters, among others.

Diana Ross will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award in what should feature some great Motown tunes. Minaj is one of five nominated for Best New Artist. And, if record sales and online hits are any indication, viewers will also see a lot of Adele, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Rihanna, Jay-Z, Beyonce and Kanye West.

One interesting nomination is in the best performance by a duo or group. Body and Soul by Tony Bennett and the late Amy Winehouse is one of the five performances nominated.

It is interesting that Ross is being honored with her lifetime award, which is certainly well deserved, because she has never won a single Grammy in her outstanding career.

And she is not alone.

Among those who have never won a Grammy are Chuck Berry, Queen, the Beach Boys, the Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, Tupac Shakur, The Who, Bob Marley, Buddy Holly, The Doors and The Jackson Five.

Michael Jackson, on the other hand, did very well by himself. He won eight in one year (a record he shares with Santana) and earned 13 in his career. Stevie Wonder and U2 have each won 22 Grammys and the most ever is 31 by classical conductor Georg Solti.

And Elvis Presley – The King of Rock & Roll, the singer who changed the face of popular music – won three Grammy awards. But all three were for gospel recordings. Of course, the big years in which Elvis changed the music business were 1956-57 and the Grammys did not start until 1958. Elvis did get nominated 15 times, including four times in the gospel categories.

So, there you have it. Madonna was a gigantic hit, you have some extra information to help you enjoy the Grammys on Sunday and we’re all waiting to find out who is coming to the Music Pier on Mondays this summer.

Words of Wisdom: “Music is everybody's possession. It's only publishers who think that people own it.”

(John Lennon)