Kennedy Center Honors Buddy Guy and Led Zeppelin

[skeith]

Anyone see the show last night? I really enjoyed the Buddy Guy tribute and thought that Jeff Beck and a woman singer (Beth Hart?) blew the doors off the place and while I like Bonnie Raitt I would have hated to follow Beck and Hart as she did.

The Zeppelin tribute was nice too and most shocking of all I even enjoyed Stairway to Heaven (a song I didn't much care for at the time) done by of all folks the girl duo band Heart... i was prepared to dislike it but I didn't. You could see Plant tearing up.

Wonderful tributes also to Dustin Hoffman and David Letterman.

[ValerieB]

boy, has Buddy Guy cleaned himself up! LOL! every time i've seen him in person, he looked totally different with the oily, stringy hair, the gold tooth and always seemed to be drunk. i'm glad he was able to enjoy the tribute and accolades at this time in his life.

i enjoyed the entire show. Letterman had the Zeppelin guys on his show last night. they of course were much more relaxed and full of fun. Dave proved that he really doesn't know much about music or musicians! LOL

[danasgoodstuff]

Anyone else think it was rather telling that Jeff Beck played in the Buddy Guy tribute and not in the Zep? Given his long history with Page it's hard to not see it as a rather deliberate slight.

[JETman]

Anyone else think it was rather telling that Jeff Beck played in the Buddy Guy tribute and not in the Zep? Given his long history with Page it's hard to not see it as a rather deliberate slight.

Not a slight. It's well known that Beck was jealous of Zep's success. I believe he felt that Jimmy stole the thunder of the JB Group. It just turned out that Jimmy was smart enough to pick the superior singer and musicians to back him up. I believe they're on friendly terms again, though.

[danasgoodstuff]

Anyone else think it was rather telling that Jeff Beck played in the Buddy Guy tribute and not in the Zep? Given his long history with Page it's hard to not see it as a rather deliberate slight.

Not a slight. It's well known that Beck was jealous of Zep's success. I believe he felt that Jimmy stole the thunder of the JB Group. It just turned out that Jimmy was smart enough to pick the superior singer and musicians to back him up. I believe they're on friendly terms again, though.

All's good then I guess, Page, Plant & Jones certainly seemed to enjoy the evening.

[paul secor]

To me (perpetual cynic, I guess), it's mostly b.s. They'll never honor anyone on the cutting edge when they're on the cutting edge, and the folks they honor are usually at the tail end of their careers. That's how it works and it won't change.

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

Edited December 28, 2012 by paul secor

[jlhoots]

Where's Tracy Chapman been? Thought she sounded good.

[PHILLYQ]

boy, has Buddy Guy cleaned himself up! LOL! every time i've seen him in person, he looked totally different with the oily, stringy hair, the gold tooth and always seemed to be drunk. i'm glad he was able to enjoy the tribute and accolades at this time in his life.

i enjoyed the entire show. Letterman had the Zeppelin guys on his show last night. they of course were much more relaxed and full of fun. Dave proved that he really doesn't know much about music or musicians! LOL

He's got a shaved head now. I saw him this summer and he was on fire and his energy level would have put most 20 year olds to shame.

[ValerieB]

To me (perpetual cynic, I guess), it's mostly b.s. They'll never honor anyone on the cutting edge when they're on the cutting edge, and the folks they honor are usually at the tail end of their careers. That's how it works and it won't change.

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

i believe one of the rules of the award is the recipient be over a certain age. and i don't believe Her Majesty has honored Led Zeppelin either!! LOL

boy, has Buddy Guy cleaned himself up! LOL! every time i've seen him in person, he looked totally different with the oily, stringy hair, the gold tooth and always seemed to be drunk. i'm glad he was able to enjoy the tribute and accolades at this time in his life.

i enjoyed the entire show. Letterman had the Zeppelin guys on his show last night. they of course were much more relaxed and full of fun. Dave proved that he really doesn't know much about music or musicians! LOL

He's got a shaved head now. I saw him this summer and he was on fire and his energy level would have put most 20 year olds to shame.

yes, i watched the show that's why i said he looked "cleaned up". he really looks like he might have stopped drinking.

Edited December 28, 2012 by ValerieB

[JETman]

To me (perpetual cynic, I guess), it's mostly b.s. They'll never honor anyone on the cutting edge when they're on the cutting edge, and the folks they honor are usually at the tail end of their careers. That's how it works and it won't change.

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

Sheesh. Nice 'tude.

Jazz is not the only genre out there. If the greatest rock and roll band is not worthy of honor then none is. And, there are no American acts worthy of such an honor in the genre. The "limeys", as you so eloquently call them. took an "American" music, put it through a blender, and did it better than any American to date has ever done it. Simply put, we have not stepped up to the plate to match the results of the British Invasion.

[BFrank]

I didn't see the whole thing, but I liked the Buddy Guy segment, too.

Actually, I thought Bonnie Raitt blew Hart and Beck away. She had more class than Hart and more chops (that night, at least) than Beck. Sadly I've found Jeff Beck to be pretty sleepy in recent years.

[Jazzmoose]

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

That is kind of odd.

[BFrank]

The Honors recipients recognized for their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts-whether in music, dance, theater, opera, motion pictures, or television-are selected by the Center's Board of Trustees. The primary criterion in the selection process is excellence. The Honors are not designated by art form or category of artistic achievement; the selection process, over the years, has produced balance among the various arts and artistic disciplines.

They don't say the honors are limited to American artists, only those who have contributed to American culture.

[JETman]

I didn't see the whole thing, but I liked the Buddy Guy segment, too.

Actually, I thought Bonnie Raitt blew Hart and Beck away. She had more class than Hart and more chops (that night, at least) than Beck. Sadly I've found Jeff Beck to be pretty sleepy in recent years.

Although I agree that Beck has been "pretty sleepy in recent years" (actually ALWAYS for me), Hart was somewhat of a revelation to me. Ballsy chick who could sing her ass off. I thought Raitt was good as well, but she doesn't have the same power in her singing, nor does she have the chops in her playing that Beck does (regardless of how cold he leaves me).

Nice tributes, both. I thought the sea of bowler hats was a damn nice touch as well.

[Guy Berger]

Anyone see the show last night? I really enjoyed the Buddy Guy tribute and thought that Jeff Beck and a woman singer (Beth Hart?) blew the doors off the place and while I like Bonnie Raitt I would have hated to follow Beck and Hart as she did.

The Zeppelin tribute was nice too and most shocking of all I even enjoyed Stairway to Heaven (a song I didn't much care for at the time) done by of all folks the girl duo band Heart... i was prepared to dislike it but I didn't. You could see Plant tearing up.

Wonderful tributes also to Dustin Hoffman and David Letterman.

I only watched the Letterman and Zep segments (I caught the broadcast by accident while flipping through channels). Heart and Kravitz were outstanding (after Kravitz I thought, no one can top that - I was wrong). Foo Fighters and Kid Rock, not as good.

[JETman]

Foo Fighters and Kid Rock, not as good.

I'm afraid this just circles back to what I originally said about American rock acts. Our music. but the "blimeys" do/did it better.

When you think about it, the Kennedy Center chose to honor an American art form (see Buddy Guy) in the grander scheme of things. It picked the greatest purveyor of that art form to accomplish its goal. No reason to get offended. I would've loved to have seen Mr. Secor's reaction if the Center had chosen Kiss instead.

[Shawn]

That version of Stairway To Heaven with Heart was damn fine. Must be nerve-wracking to perform a song like that with the original artists watching down from on high.

[skeith]

Anyone else think it was rather telling that Jeff Beck played in the Buddy Guy tribute and not in the Zep? Given his long history with Page it's hard to not see it as a rather deliberate slight.

My understanding of how this works at the Kennedy Center is that the Artist being honored is typically paid tribute by others influenced by him or her and generally they seem to be of a younger generation than the honoree. Given that Beck is rather more of a contemporary of Zep's and arguably as much as or more of an influence on Page than the other way around, then it would not make sense for Beck to be honoring Zep. That would be kind of like McCartney honoring Badfinger!

[JETman]

Anyone else think it was rather telling that Jeff Beck played in the Buddy Guy tribute and not in the Zep? Given his long history with Page it's hard to not see it as a rather deliberate slight.

My understanding of how this works at the Kennedy Center is that the Artist being honored is typically paid tribute by others influenced by him or her and generally they seem to be of a younger generation than the honoree. Given that Beck is rather more of a contemporary of Zep's and arguably as much as or more of an influence on Page than the other way around, then it would not make sense for Beck to be honoring Zep. That would be kind of like McCartney honoring Badfinger!

ha ha. Beck an influence on Page? Picture that. All the Clapton "God" talk aside, Mr. Page was THE preeminent blues-influenced rock guitarist in England during the early to mid 60s. Like Beck, he was influenced by American blues musicians. What some here don't seem to get is that the Kennedy Center was essentially honoring the American art form by honoring Buddy Guy and Led Zeppelin. And, as far as validity and the inane post above goes, rock and jazz are equal bastard step-children of the blues. IF America had produced a rock act even close to the equal of Led Zeppelin in influence and virtuosity, I'm sure that act would have been honored before the "blimeys".

Like I said above, the bigger reason that it wouldn't have made sense for Beck to honor Zeppelin was that Beck was jealous of Zeppelin. You want some more negative/jealous homeland reaction to Led Zeppelin, check out Keith Richards' ridiculous interview on you tube.

[paul secor]

To me (perpetual cynic, I guess), it's mostly b.s. They'll never honor anyone on the cutting edge when they're on the cutting edge, and the folks they honor are usually at the tail end of their careers. That's how it works and it won't change.

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

If the greatest rock and roll band is not worthy of honor then none is. And, there are no American acts worthy of such an honor in the genre. The "limeys", as you so eloquently call them. took an "American" music, put it through a blender, and did it better than any American to date has ever done it. Simply put, we have not stepped up to the plate to match the results of the British Invasion.

If you actually believe this and you're not just looking for another argument - seems to be your modus operandi - you had better do some serious listening.

[JSngry]

I'm trying to think of a reason why American music needed an "answer" to Led Zeppelin. I mean, I like them, occasionally love them, well enough, but..that was something they needed to do, not us. I'm glad they did it, but since they did, hey, lots of other people have needed to do other things since, and have, so...apples, oranges, pineapples, fruit salad, let's eat a good meal and then go watch reruns on tv or something like that. Plenty available!

[JETman]

To me (perpetual cynic, I guess), it's mostly b.s. They'll never honor anyone on the cutting edge when they're on the cutting edge, and the folks they honor are usually at the tail end of their careers. That's how it works and it won't change.

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

If the greatest rock and roll band is not worthy of honor then none is. And, there are no American acts worthy of such an honor in the genre. The "limeys", as you so eloquently call them. took an "American" music, put it through a blender, and did it better than any American to date has ever done it. Simply put, we have not stepped up to the plate to match the results of the British Invasion.

If you actually believe this and you're not just looking for another argument - seems to be your modus operandi - you had better do some serious listening.

I actually believe this, after decades of serious listening. It was your initial comment which indicated ignorance. General rule of thumb -- if you don't want to be called out, don't say it. Your anger/whining over jazz not being recognized on a national level is misplaced, naive and offensive to boot, AND you seem to conveniently forget Jimmy Carter's little jazz party.

Name one American rock band since the invasion which has melded the elements in a better way and more successfully than Led Zeppelin. Go ahead --- I dare ya.

I'm trying to think of a reason why American music needed an "answer" to Led Zeppelin. I mean, I like them, occasionally love them, well enough, but..that was something they needed to do, not us. I'm glad they did it, but since they did, hey, lots of other people have needed to do other things since, and have, so...apples, oranges, pineapples, fruit salad, let's eat a good meal and then go watch reruns on tv or something like that. Plenty available!

You're trying to distract from the issue at hand.

I know that if I were a "blimey", I'd sure as hell be offended.

Edited December 29, 2012 by JETman

[Jim R]

You're trying to distract from the issue at hand.

Gee, ya think?

I can't even believe this is happening. It's almost 2013, right?

I just watched the whole show on Youtube. Good stuff. Liked the Hoffman tribute; sort of skimmed through the ballet (just not my thing); Tina Fey was fantastic; liked the soulfulness of Kim Wilson and the cool simplicity of Jimmy Vaughan; and thought the "Stairway To Heaven" finale was very well done.

I guess it's too late for T-Bone Walker?

[paul secor]

To me (perpetual cynic, I guess), it's mostly b.s. They'll never honor anyone on the cutting edge when they're on the cutting edge, and the folks they honor are usually at the tail end of their careers. That's how it works and it won't change.

My question is, why did the Kennedy Center honor a limey rock band? Don't we have plenty of American artists who could use some recognition? Answer: YES. Did her majesty ever offer a knighthood to Louis or Duke or Chuck Berry? Not to my knowledge.

If the greatest rock and roll band is not worthy of honor then none is. And, there are no American acts worthy of such an honor in the genre. The "limeys", as you so eloquently call them. took an "American" music, put it through a blender, and did it better than any American to date has ever done it. Simply put, we have not stepped up to the plate to match the results of the British Invasion.

If you actually believe this and you're not just looking for another argument - seems to be your modus operandi - you had better do some serious listening.

I actually believe this, after decades of serious listening. It was your initial comment which indicated ignorance. General rule of thumb -- if you don't want to be called out, don't say it. Your anger/whining over jazz not being recognized on a national level is misplaced, naive and offensive to boot, AND you seem to conveniently forget Jimmy Carter's little jazz party.

Name one American rock band since the invasion which has melded the elements in a better way and more successfully than Led Zeppelin. Go ahead --- I dare ya.

I'm trying to think of a reason why American music needed an "answer" to Led Zeppelin. I mean, I like them, occasionally love them, well enough, but..that was something they needed to do, not us. I'm glad they did it, but since they did, hey, lots of other people have needed to do other things since, and have, so...apples, oranges, pineapples, fruit salad, let's eat a good meal and then go watch reruns on tv or something like that. Plenty available!

You're trying to distract from the issue at hand.

I know that if I were a "blimey", I'd sure as hell be offended.

My granddaddy once told me, "If you waste any of the short time you have on earth arguing with an ignorant person, you'll be worse off than they are. They're just ignorant. You'll be a fool." So long.

[PHILLYQ]

Beck & Page have been friends for about 50+ years. When Beck was inducted into the Rock 'n' RollHall of Fame, the guy who introduced him(and played with him) was Page. It made more sense to me to have Beck honor Buddy Guy, as Buddy Guy was a huge influence on Beck(and Clapton and....). As for Beck & Page, they probably influenced each other, as they've been friends since Beck was about 13-14 years old. Hard to imagine them NOT hanging out together and sharing riffs, techniques, etc.

I didn't see the whole thing, but I liked the Buddy Guy segment, too.

Actually, I thought Bonnie Raitt blew Hart and Beck away. She had more class than Hart and more chops (that night, at least) than Beck. Sadly I've found Jeff Beck to be pretty sleepy in recent years.

I saw the tune Beck & Beth Hart did together, and they both sounded fine to me. I love the little riffs and punctuations Beck does behind a singer. I saw Beck at a gig where she did about 5 tunes with him, and it was excellent. The finale with Raitt was nice, but Beck seemed to be in the background there, whether by choice or chance.