LATEST ADDITIONS

May Pang <A HREF="http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/femail/article.html?in_article… the beans</A> about her relationship with John Lennon.

Writing about the idiocy known as the Grammy Awards Show just isn't that much fun anymore. I used to take great glee is slicing and dicing them but they’ve been so dumb for so long that, to quote Mr. King (as in B.B.): the thrill is gone. That said, I now look at it as live comedy, of the squirm in your seat variety. It's always mildly amusing to see the U.S/U.K. music business make an ass of itself for the entire world to see. In no particular order here's a few Grammy 2007 observations.

On one of those occasions when the camera whirled down and across the crowd, I saw Jeff Tweedy of Wilco, looking very adult-like, and his wife sitting in a coveted aisle seat. He's come up in the world. His band's <I>Sky Blue Sky</I> was nominated for Best Rock Album but lost out to the Foo Fighters.

Sinatra and Keys? A tragic mistake for her. Showed how limited her talent is, but then anyone would come up short against Frank. That little sound/image synch problem did not help. A bad idea gone wrong.

Tina and Beyonce. Tina looked spectacular at 69 and sounded even better. She is a wonder of nature. And plastic surgery. Beyonce? Damn, the woman has dancer thighs doesn't she? She looked and sounded very nervous. Of course again, she was matched, not to her advantage, with a masterful singer. Maybe the whole young/old thing needs a rethink.

Liked the commercials for Garth Brooks Greatest Hits records.

The Jerry Lee Lewis/Little Richard/John Fogerty segment was fairly amazing. The Killer, who has been rumored to be on death's door for at least the last decade, looked jowly as hell but was still having fun. Little Richard, on the other hand, was oddly waxen looking (yes, more than normal) and was downright grim when he played. It did occur to me that that performance could well be Jerry Lee's final television appearance, the last glimpse America will ever get, of one of the more unforgettable creators of rock ‘n ‘roll.

Thank God Michael Jackson <I>didn’t</I> show up to pay tribute to <I>Thriller</I>. The freak quotient was off the map to begin with.

Seeing and hearing Keely Smith was great. Kid Rock however is the same untalented dope he's always been. His only redeeming quality is his respect for rock's elders, which still ain't enough to make me say anything but: why does this man have a music career?

Loved the look on people's faces when Doris Day’s name was mentioned. Ooohh was that a LONG time ago.

Andy Williams looked like Andy Williams if he were one hundred and ten years old. It’s testament to what performing in Branson, Mo. ad nauseum will do to ya. And poor squinting Tony Bennett did not a whole lot better.

Great choice on Herbie Hancock. Blew everyone's mind. In a good way.

In my first job in New York, my boss walked into my office one morning with a folded sheet of paper and a pained expression on his face. I asked him, "What's that?"

This year marks the tenth time I've written an introduction to Stereophile's venerable annual feature "Records To Die For." Looking back, I'm proud that readers always find it useful and entertaining. I'm also amazed, on some levels, that our writers—hardware or software, deadline-phobic or not—manage to find something worthwhile to say, year in and year out, about music—which, after all, is why we became audiophiles in the first place.

Don Bouchard, Ultralink/XLO Products' executive vice-president, succumbed February 7, 2008 from injuries he sustained in a motorcycle accident on December 15, 2007. Bouchard, riding with friends, had his front wheel drop into a hole in the pavement while traversing a railroad crossing and was thrown over his handlebars. The resulting injuries included a severe skull fracture, right-brain trauma, a broken clavicle, a broken rib, which punctured a lung, as well as internal trauma, multiple contusions, and bruising.

I've told you about <a href="http://blog.stereophile.com/stephenmejias/121807complaint/">my love for CBS' Sunday Morning</a> news program. The show is simply fantastic. Charles Osgood is the host. Charles Osgood wears bowties and talks in perfect rhyme. Mo Rocca knows how to dress. David Edelstein takes me to the movies. Bill Geist is the most charming buffoon. Ben Stein has a strange way of lifting the human spirit. Serena Altschul makes me sigh.

Logitech's Squeezebox Network Systems has added a new model, the Duet, which adds a 2.4" color-LCD screen and a scroll-wheel to the unit's hand-held remote (not unlike the <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/mediaservers/1006sonos/">Sonos system</A>). The screen can display song titles, album art, customized wallpapers&mdash;even RSS feeds and radio station IDs.