2009: The Year in Music, Part Two

September began the year of Taylor Swift

This country/pop princess loomed large this month, and into the end of the year. As she was accepting her award for best female video at the MTV Video Music Awards ceremony, rapper and gonzo critic Kanye West stormed the stage and cut off her acceptance speech, declaring that Beyonce had the best video and deserved the award instead of Swift.

But never mind. Swift proved that success is the best revenge as she finished the year with a near sweep of the CMA (Country Music Association) awards in November. She was awarded for album of the Year (Fearless), music video of the year, female vocalist, and entertainer of the year. Previously she had been awarded for video of the year and female video of the year by Country Music Television (CMT), and album of the year by the Academy of Country Music (ACM). She has been nominated for eight Grammy awards, and Fearless was the top-selling album of the year in 2009.

September also saw the release of the complete Beatles catalog remastered for the first time since 1987 with new liner notes and photographs. This release coincided with the release of the game, The Beatles Rock Band.

October was the month to Rock and Roll

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (in Cleveland) celebrated its 25th anniversary with a 12 hour 2 night concert in Madison Square garden in New York City on October 29 and 30. Among the huge stars appearing were Ron Wood, Bruce Springsteen, Simon and Garfunkle (together), Stevie Wonder, John Fogarty, Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Billy Joel, and JERRY LEE LEWIS (I thought he was dead). On November 29th, HBO aired 4 hours of the concert which has not yet been released on DVD.

In November we noticed the Oprah Effect

In November both Variety and Rolling Stone reported on the effect of Whitney Houston's September appearance on the Oprah Winfrey show. Houston's comeback album, I Look to You," spiked up 77% in sales following her Oprah appearance. Variety also attributed Barbra Streisand's September appearance on the show for the chart topping sales of her 2009 release, Love is the Answer.

In December we loved vinyl

Finally, in December The New York Times reported that there is a resurgence of vinyl record sales along with the turntables needed to play them. These are not used records, but newly cut versions of current CD releases. Younger records buyers are discovering that they prefer the sound of vinyl and they also like the better graphics and liner notes that the larger vinyl format can accommodate. Vinyl and turntable buyers are also using turntables to mix and scratch records just like DJs.

Special thanks to Donna Block, Barb Palac, and Sue Wilsey for their contributions to this 2009 recap.