The Grammys 2016: A Night of Tributes

English: Gaga opening the Monster Ball with Dance in the Dark (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Maybe the theme for the 58th Grammy Awards should have been "Taps".  There were so many musical tributes to recording artists who have died since the last Grammys that the "In Memoriam" segment on the CBS telecast was hardly necessary.

The Eagles (minus Don Felder) and Jackson Browne performed "Take It Easy" in Glenn Frey's honor.  Lady Gaga channeled David Bowie in between ads for a certain computer chip.  Stevie Wonder and Pentatonix saluted Maurice White of Earth, Wind and Fire.  Even B.B. King, Michael Jackson and that guy from Motorhead got their big Grammy sendoff before the official roll call of those artists and music executives who didn't get their own tributes.  Unfortunately, that included Natalie Cole.

Lionel Richie is still among the living, but he got a tribute anyway as recipient of a major music industry honor.  With an all-star cast that included John Legend and Demi Lovato, Richie had to step in and save it from totally tanking.

Beyond the nostalgia, it was a big night for Kendrick Lamar and Taylor Swift.  Lamar won five Grammys, including one for Best Rap Album, which was "To Pimp a Butterfly".  On the telecast, he performed an acclaimed medley of "The Blacker The Berry" and "Alright".

Swift won three Grammys including Album of the Year for "1989", which was her declaration of independence from country music.  Swift's acceptance speech was a thinly veiled rebuke to Kanye West's (who didn't show up this year) misogynistic comments about her, dressed in the message that girls and women need to own their accomplishments instead of waiting for men to validate them.

Record of the Year went to "Uptown Funk", the Mark Ronson collaboration with Bruno Mars that was heard everywhere last year.  Trouble is, DJ/producer Ronson will end up lumped in with Santana and Quincy Jones for having hits under their name that are better remembered for somebody else's vocals.

Ed Sheeran's "Thinking Out Loud", which he co-wrote, was named Song of the Year.  Meghan Trainor took home the Best New Artist award, even though "All About That Bass" was two years ago.

Other Grammy takeaways:

• The hip hop-meets-history production of "Hamilton" won a Grammy for Best Musical/Theater Album.  This is noteworthy only because CBS brought its cameras inside the Broadway theater where the musical was playing, televising the opening number.  They wouldn't have done that if another musical had won, would they?
• If you had paid close attention to Gwen Stefani's live music video with its red hues and a huge bulls eye prominently featured, you would have known it was a commercial for Target.
• You'll also notice that the Grammys have become just like every other awards show on TV:  a Red Carpet pre-show, celebrities (some of them from the network's own shows) either announcing awards or introducing other acts, and so much Oscar-worthy bloat that three and a half hours just aren't enough.  Maybe that's why ratings are down.