1987 Grammy Awards – Press Conference Interviews – Gordon Skene Sound Collection –
That time of the year again – Turning clocks ahead and celebrating popular culture in all sorts of ways. And of course, The Grammy© Awards.
Here’s a little sample of the winners of 1987, as they were rushed to the press area for rapid-fire questions and answers. A lot of winners didn’t go back for the impromptu interviews, but many did – here’s a rundown on the order of artists as you’ll hear them:
1. Doc Severinsen
2. José Feliciano
3. Robert Cray
4. Duane Eddy
5. Denise Williams
6. Tracey Nelson (Rick Nelson’s widow)
7. Barbara Streisand
8. Whitney Houston
9. Simply Red
10. Bruce Hornsby
11. Anita Baker
12. Gregory Abbott
13. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
14. Brian Wilson
15. Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager
16. B.B. King
17. Beastie Boys
18. James Ingram
19. NARM President Mike Green
20. Bobby McFerrin and Herbie Hancock
21. Larry Blackmon
The 29th Grammy Awards ceremony was held on 24th February 1987 at Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The Academy awards the musicians for their ‘stand-out’ performance in the year 1986. Billy Crystal was the anchor for the evening. Paul Simon, Steve Winwood and Robert Palmer were the artists who were mostly nominated in the Grammy categories. Steve Winwood and Barbra Streisand were the artists who gathered the highest number of Grammys for the year. Paul Simon was honored with the prestigious ‘Album of the Year’ award for Graceland. The ‘Best New Artist’ award was presented to Bruce Hornsby & the Range.
That was 1987 – a lot different than 2021. Many of the artists being interviewed in 1987 are no longer with us. The music has changed, the method of listening to it has changed – the business in general has changed.
But the bottom line is; it’s still music, we’re still celebrating it and music is still the glue that holds us together – no matter the period, style or genre. Someone was asking about what unifies society; brings them all together – that one element that is our common thread. It’s music and what the chords, words and notes do to each of us. Everybody’s is different, but the power is the same. It is really ultimately love.
We are quite lucky.
