Two great, recently departed classic rock icons – Glenn Frey of The Eagles and David Bowie – were honored last night at the Grammy Awards. (See the Frey tribute video at this site, too.) The two tributes garnered different responses though.
Glenn Frey’s tribute sung by his band mates and Jackson Browne was well received by most everyone who watched the Grammys last night or has seen the highlights on the internet. Lady Gaga’s singing of a medley of David Bowie’s songs received more mixed reviews.
IMO, I wasn’t overly enthused about the choice of Gaga to commemorate Bowie. Her music ain’t my bag, baby, probably not yours, either. I did love her rendition of the National Anthem before Super Bowl 50, though, and there’s no doubt she has great pipes. She was obviously influenced by Bowie, even getting his face tattooed on her body at some point in her past. She also straddles the androgynous line that Bowie did throughout her career. The late Freddie Mercury was a fan of Liza Minnelli, so different strokes for different folks and perhaps there’s a parallel universe comparison.
After watching her 6-minute-plus cover of Bowie’s hits, I give the tribute thumbs up. She sounded like him on some songs and had great in-song wardrobe changes that reflected the different personas of Bowie’s career. I just wish they’d chosen to give “Under Pressure” more than a few seconds of time in the medley. Bowie’s son, Duncan Jones, tweeted a review that seemed to give her a thumbs down. FWIW. Judge for yourself.
Doc Watson
