How to Solve Grammy Fuss

Steve Hochman’s article “The Politics of Grammys Hit a Sour Note” (Calendar, Dec. 4) succinctly sums up everything that’s wrong with the recording industry in relation to NARAS’ annual awards. Composer Jim Steinman and his management are up in arms because of the omission of Steinman’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now,” sung by Celine Dion, in the best song entries for this year’s Grammys.

Naturally, they blame Dion’s record company for failing to submit it. The answer to all Steinman’s problems lies in the very text of the piece: “Any academy member can submit a song or artist for consideration.” Steinman’s options, as an academy member with friends in the academy, were to: enter the song for consideration himself, a matter of filling out a simple form and mailing it; rely on a friend to do it; God forbid, a voting member who actually deems his moribund composition worthy of citation, or presume the record company would take care of it, without so much as a phone call to make certain it was being done. He and his management took the third option, and now they’re bellyaching about it?

Last year, I got tired of the continual carping about the Grammys, so I resolved to join NARAS. It was easy and affordable. It’s also ridiculously easy to enter worthy recordings for Grammy consideration. They even pay for the postage. I filed an entry for a colleague’s band, whose label had shown no indications that it would do so, and lo and behold, the minute I took to do so paid off: The band’s album popped up in my entry catalog weeks later.

I realize that Steinman’s thoughts are generally preoccupied by his work with such artistic giants as Andrew Lloyd Webber, Bonnie Tyler and Meat Loaf, but even he should be able to take five minutes to fill out a form or make sure it’s being done for him. I don’t find this to be an issue of Grammy politics. It’s far simpler: plain laziness. And in this case it assured us of one less fetid piece of bombast in the running for best song.

JONATHAN PALMER

Burbank