Michael Buble shines at Junos with four wins; Nickelback, Young each get two
HALIFAX (CP) - The sugary vocals of Michael Buble dominated the Juno Awards in Halifax on Sunday night, as the fresh-faced crooner took home the evening's biggest awards.
Even the scantily clad Pamela Anderson, who hosted the show, couldn't upstage the Vancouver singer, who won a total of four Junos over the weekend including album of the year for It's Time.
"I don't know what to say. I feel like Kelly Clarkson a bit," said Buble on his last trip to the podium.
His haul included artist of the year, and his song Home, a soft-hearted track about feeling homesick, was named single of the year.
"This is a subjective business," Buble said backstage. "It's not necessarily true that the best guy or the best girl won tonight . . . but damn it, this feels really good."
As expected, Anderson's turn at hosting proved more memorable for her revealing outfits than her dialogue, although she did use the prime-time show to take a few digs at the East Coast seal hunt.
"I don't mind a little blood on the ice when it's a hockey rink, but I hate seeing blood on the ice when it's from baby seals," said the model and actor from Ladysmith, B.C., who's been lobbying Ottawa to end the annual hunt.
The 7,500 people gathered at the Halifax Metro Centre reacted with loud boos and just a few cheers.
"I can take it," she shot back. "I have high heels and they dig in deep."
With a leading six nominations, Nickelback wasn't entirely shut out of the Juno game. The rockers earned two trophies - including best group - the night earlier at a dinner celebration where the majority of the 39 awards were distributed.
With just seven awards handed out, Sunday's two-hour celebration was mostly about live music, featuring energetic performances by Coldplay, Black Eyed Peas, Hedley and Ottawa's Massari.
The Junos paid some homage to the country's flourishing indie-rock community, rewarding Arcade Fire with best songwriter honours for the songs Wake Up, Rebellion (Lies) and Neighbourhood No. 3 (Power Out). The Montreal outfit beat out Neil Young, who had been favoured to win.
Toronto collective Broken Social Scene snagged the hotly contested best alternative album award, edging out Hot Hot Heat, Metric, Tegan & Sara, and the New Pornographers.
"Look at us all. We're an army, ladies and gentlemen," said Kevin Drew while accepting the trophy, as 16 of the group's members, including Feist, worked their way on stage.
"Is there going to be a change in Canadian music? I don't know."
Backstage, Drew explained he was referring to the instant star-making machine of Canadian Idol.
"It's going nowhere," he said, adding that the music scene has been "repetitive too long."
A 25-year veteran of the business, Bryan Adams was inducted into the Hall of Fame after an introduction by Coldplay's Chris Martin.
Born in Kingston, Ont., Adams launched his career in Vancouver in 1980 and quickly became a household name thanks to a slew of catchy, arena anthems like Straight for the Heart, Run to You and Summer of '69.
"Had I started anywhere else but Vancouver, I would not be here tonight," said Adams, wearing his trademark crisp white shirt.
Best new group honours went to Bedouin Soundclash, a reggae-rock outfit formed five years ago while its three members were attending Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. The group made a huge splash last year with the infectious ditty When The Night Feels My Song.
"It's been a long trip for us," said front man Jay Malinowski.
Bedouin's win shut out Canadian Idol finalist Jacob Hoggard's psuedo-punk band Hedley.
In fact, all four Canadian Idol alumni who'd been nominated this year - including Newfoundland's Rex Goudie - went home empty-handed.
Aside from Nickelback, Young, the Tragically Hip and Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra were double Juno winners.
Superstars Coldplay and Black Eyed Peas tied for best international album, a category determined by both sales figures and votes.
Singer Diana Krall won best vocal jazz album for Christmas Songs. It was the only win for Krall, who'd been contending for five awards this year.
Jason McCoy's Road Hammers received the trophy for best country recording, while Winnipeg's The Duhks were honoured with best group roots album.
K'Naan's Dusty Foot Philosopher snagged best rap recording. Daniel Powter, of Vernon, B.C., was crowned best new artist.
More than 1,000 industry members descended on Halifax for a weekend of festivities.
The celebrations included a charity hockey game Friday night that featured Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy and TV stars the Trailer Park Boys.
Nickelback, Jully Black and Hot Hot Heat were among the musicians who spent close to five hours signing autographs for several thousand fans on Saturday.
Next year's Juno Awards will be hosted by Saskatoon
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The complete list of Juno Award winners:
Fan's Choice: Simple Plan.
Songwriter: Arcade Fire.
Single: Home, Michael Buble.
Album: It's Time, Michael Buble.
Artist: Michael Buble.
New group: Bedouin Soundclash.
Alternative album: Broken Social Scene, Broken Social Scene.
International album: Tied between X&Y, Coldplay and Monkey Business, Black Eyed Peas.
Group: Nickelback.
Instrumental album: Belladonna, Daniel Lanois.
Pop album: It's Time, Michael Buble.
Rock album: All the Right Reasons, Nickelback.
New artist: Daniel Powter.
Country recording: The Road Hammers, The Road Hammers.
Adult alternative album: Prairie Wind, Neil Young.
Rap recording: The Dusty Foot Philosopher, K'Naan.
Vocal jazz album: Christmas Songs, Diana Krall.
Contemporary jazz album: Radio Guantanamo, Jane Bunnett.
Traditional jazz album: Ask Me Later, Don Thompson Quartet.
Francophone album: Pages blanches, Jim Corcoran.
Children's album: Baroque Adventure: The Quest for Arundo Donax, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra.
Classical album: solo or chamber ensemble: Albeniz: Iberia, Marc-Andre Hamelin.
Classical album: large ensemble or soloist with large ensemble accompaniment: Beethoven: Symphonies nos.5 et 6, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra.
Classical album: vocal or choral performance: Viardot-Garcia: Lieder Chansons Canzoni Mazurkas, Isabel Bayrakdarian.
Classical composition: String Quartet No. 1 (The Awakening), Christos Hatzis.
Dance recording: Spanish Fly, Hatira & Macca featuring Shawna B.
R&B/soul recording: Back for More, Shawn Desman.
Reggae recording: Reggae Time, Blessed.
Aboriginal recording: Hometown, Burnt Project 1.
Roots and traditional album: solo: Hair in My Eyes Like A Highland Steer, Corb Lund.
Roots and traditional album: group: The Duhks, The Duhks.
Blues album: Let It Loose, Kenny 'Blues Boss' Wayne.
Contemporary Christian/gospel album: Amanda Falk, Amanda Falk.
World music album: Humo De Tabaco, Alex Cuba Band.
Producer: Neil Young, The Painter, Prairie Wind.
Recording engineer: Vic Florencia, Everyday is a Holiday/Melancholy Melody, Wikked Lil Grrrls, Esthero.
CD/DVD artwork design: Rob Baker, Garnet Armstrong, Susan Michalek, Will Ruocco for Hipeponymous, The Tragically Hip.
Video: Devil's Eye, Micah Meisner, Rich Terfry for Buck 65.
Music DVD: Hipeponymous, The Tragically Hip.
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Some of the things heard on and off the stage at the Junos:
"This is a subjective business. . . . It's not necessarily true that the best guy or the best girl won tonight. It should be an honour just to be nominated, but damn it this feels really good." - Michael Buble on his four Juno wins.
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"I love him very much. He just hugged me backstage, which to be honest was arousing." - Coldplay's Chris Martin introducing Hall of Fame inductee Bryan Adams.
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"I don't mind a little blood on the ice when it's a hockey rink, but I hate seeing blood on the ice when it's from baby seals." - Host Pamela Anderson on the East Coast seal hunt.
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"I feel really sorry for those kids in Canadian Idol cuz they're going absolutely nowhere. I think it's a trick." - Kevin Drew on Canadian Idols.
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"Had I started anywhere else but Vancouver, I would not be here tonight." - Bryan Adams on his Hall of Fame induction.
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"You can never silence the critics. You know who's even more jaded than critics? Your peers. And if your peers will vote for you, that's a pretty good sign. It's more flattering than most people know." - Chad Kroeger on Nickelback's two Juno wins including group of the year.
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"Since when did Hugh Hefner start producing the Junos?" - Jason McCoy on Pamela Anderson hosting the show.
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"My brassiere is entirely made of seal eyelids." - Singer Jann Arden.
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"Canada's a great place. I wish America could learn from Canada." - the Black Eyed Peas's Will.i.am.
Winnipeg bids to host 'Late, Late Show'
WINNIPEG - Winnipeg could be on its way to a starring role on U.S. network television, if a prominent talk-show host brings his late, late night act here.
Mayor Sam Katz and city hall officials are trying to work out an agreement to bring The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson to Winnipeg with a week's worth of programs, the Sun has learned.
The nightly CBS program's stint in the 'Peg -- if the city is prepared to cough up cash to make it happen -- would give Manitoba a taste of the limelight that Toronto enjoyed when NBC's Conan O'Brien took his Late Night show to the Ontario capital's Elgin Theatre for four days in February 2004.
Katz is looking at bringing in Ferguson -- the Scottish actor and comedian who has mentioned Winnipeg on his program several times -- for what would likely be a four- or five-night run.
"He's been to Winnipeg. He likes the city. He refers to it all the time in his humourous way. And there might be some interest in having him come here and do four shows," Katz told the Sun yesterday.
"We're just going to start looking into it now."
The talks got rolling yesterday when Hart Berger, a Florida film and television writer, dropped into Katz's office to make the pitch on behalf of producers of the Los Angeles-based show -- which Ferguson took over last year from former host Craig Kilborn.
"This would be a tremendous benefit to the Winnipeg brand name and in marketing the city to the U.S.," said Berger, a former Winnipeg resident.
"It would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
It's uncertain when any run here could happen, though Berger suggested a slate of dates coinciding with the Winnipeg Folk Festival -- an annual July event -- would help supply a stream of talent easily impressive enough for the show's U.S. audience.
The Late, Late Show and Worldwide Pants, the David Letterman-run production company that controls the show, are eyeing Winnipeg for Ferguson's first stint with the show outside L.A.
Berger didn't reveal details on financial "incentives" that would have to come from city hall, though he made clear a "hospitality offer" covering costs of meals and hotels for the show's staff is necessary.
Kenny Boyce, the city's film and culture manager, is to discuss possibilities with Berger in the coming week. Berger expects to be able to return Winnipeg's offer -- if there is one -- to Ferguson's producers next Friday.
"They've asked me in Los Angeles to bring back the kind of offer Winnipeg would make," Berger said. "They're taking Winnipeg as a serious possibility."
Ferguson's interest in Winnipeg stems partly from time he spent here acting in the film Niagara Motel, which was released a couple of weeks ago.
Berger sees a run in Manitoba's capital -- possibly at the Burton Cummings Theatre -- as a "good counter" to a recent Globe and Mail newspaper feature that criticized Winnipeg's downtown.
O'Brien's stint in Toronto came when officials anted up a rumoured total of between $1 million and $2 million as an incentive to the show's producers, to try to help their tourism industry fight the effects of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) after the disease killed 44 people there in 2003.
The NBC show "showed off a lot of the city and its lifestyle and culture" while attracting top Canadian and Hollywood celebrities, said Don Wanagas, spokesman for Toronto Mayor David Miller. That kind of attention, he said, is something Winnipeg shouldn't brush off quickly.
"It was well worth the money," Wanagas said.
"I wouldn't ignore it. It's good from the perspective of getting your municipality and province known outside the country."
Katz warned Winnipeggers against dreaming of TV Land too quickly.
"Would I like to see it? Absolutely," he said. "But we have all sorts of priorities that take money. I'm not interested in spending money on something that's not a priority.
"By the same token, if it could have a great economic impact at a minimal expense, that's a different story."
Nickelback, Young snag early Junos
HALIFAX -- Neil Young, Nickelback, The Tragically Hip and Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra were early double winners at the non-telecast Juno Awards handed out last night during a gala dinner in this eastern Canadian city.
Young won adult alternative album and producer of the year for his Canadian childhood-inspired folk collection, Prairie Wind, which was released after he underwent surgery for a brain aneurysm last year. The operation prevented him from attending the 2005 Junos in Winnipeg, where he had been scheduled to play.
Young, who is currently in the recording studio and isn't attending Juno weekend, is still up for songwriter of the year tonight at the Juno Awards broadcast (7 p.m. on CTV), where a handful of remaining awards will be presented during an otherwise performance-heavy show.
VANCOUVER ROCKERS
Vancouver rockers Nickelback -- who had a leading six Juno nominations heading into the Junos -- landed best group and rock album of the year honours for All The Right Reasons but lost to Young for producer
However, they can still technically dominate the awards tonight as they compete for the Juno Fan Choice Award, single of the year for Photograph, and album of the year for All The Right Reasons. They are also scheduled to perform on the show being hosted by blond bombshell Pamela Anderson.
The Hip picked up a pair of Junos for music DVD and DVD artwork design for their greatest hits collection, Hipeponymous.
In total, 32 Junos were handed out last night at the World Trade And Convention Centre. Five-time nominees Michael Buble and Diana Krall won one each.
Buble's It's Time was recognized for pop album of the year while Krall's Christmas Songs won for vocal jazz album of year.
Vancouver crooner Buble could also dominate tonight as he's up for for best single for Home, album of the year for It's Time, artist, and the Juno Fan Choice Award.
Krall's Live at The Montreal Jazz Festival lost out to The Hip for best DVD but she's still in the running for album, artist and the Juno Fan Choice Award tonight.
Other early single winners included British pop-rock quartet Coldplay and L.A.- based hip-pop outfit Blackeyed Peas -- both slated to perform tonight -- who tied in a rare occurrence for international album of the year for X&Y and Monkey Business, respectively.
Pop newcomer Daniel Powter was awarded new artist of the year honors -- over the powerful likes of Martha Wainwright -- while Halifax avant-garde hip-hop performer Buck 65 won video of the year for Devil's Eyes over Montreal darling Arcade Fire, who will compete for songwriting honors tonight.
Daniel Lanois, who has worked with U2, Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel and Robbie Robertson among others, won instrumental album of the year for Belladonna.
Juno Awards a missed opportunity
By MARY DICKIE -- Toronto Sun
It's a great time for Canadian music, as everyone will tell you.
In the past couple of years, artists of many musical styles have emerged from thriving scenes across the country to make great records, and bask in an unprecedented amount of international support.
The indie boom is undoubtedly the story of the year, so tonight's Juno Awards will naturally celebrate those artists and their success. Right?
Not exactly.
Broken Social Scene may sell out in London, New York and Tokyo, but the Junos are more about celebrating TV karaoke contests and the priorities of major labels, which seem to be increasingly relying on Canadian Idol judges as their talent scouts.
The list of nominees for the major awards reveals a dependence on characterless, TV-polished material that could have (and in some cases did) come from elsewhere, rather than reflecting the flavour and variety of recent Canadian music.
What's up for album of the year, for instance? Surely The Arcade Fire's Funeral, which has sold half a million copies. No doubt Neil Young's Prairie Wind. Perhaps Jully Black's This Is Me, Blue Rodeo's Are You Ready, Stars' Set Yourself On Fire, K'naan's Dusty Foot Philosopher or The New Pornographers' Twin Cinema?
Oh, no. Those artists are lucky to get nominated for non-televised genre awards.
Instead, the nominees include a Christmas album, a collection of retro standards -- which contain exactly one Canadian song between them -- two forgettable releases by Canadian Idol contestants and Nickelback's All The Right Reasons.
Nearly the same bunch -- Diana Krall, Michael Buble, Kalan Porter and Rex Goudie, plus token francophone Boom Desjardins -- are up for artist of the year. (Rex Goudie for artist of the year? He didn't even win Canadian Idol! Hello?! Neil Young put out an album last year. It didn't have to be his best to top Diana Krall's Jingle Bells.)
The thing is, despite being named after Pierre Juneau -- the CRTC boss who helped give us Canadian content regulations in the '70s -- Juno submissions don't actually have to meet CanCon regulations. As long as the artist was born here, or is a landed immigrant, the album qualifies.
The lack of interest in actual Canadian music is reflected in the fact that no songwriter-of-the-year nominee was also nominated for best album, artist, single or group. How can the best songwriting not be part of the best albums? Only in Junoland.
As well, the Juno show producers felt they needed performances by Coldplay and The Black Eyed Peas to win their TV time slot -- despite a slew of Canadian performers, plus host Pamela Anderson.
It's sad that the folks who should be Canadian music's loudest cheerleaders actually have so little faith in it.
You could give yourself a headache trying to figure out how the Junos work. There are seven different ways to determine the winners: Various combinations of sales figures and voting by members of the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), the public, and the CARAS board and "panels of experts."
Sales factor into album of the year, but not single. Artist and group are partly determined by sales, but new artist and new group are not -- and neither are they subject to the same eligibility period as everything else.
I guess that's why the Pocket Dwellers, now on their third album, were nominated for new group.
By the way, did you know that we had adult alternative radio in Canada? Neither did I. But we do have an adult alternative Juno -- a convenient place to put country-rock artists such as Kathleen Edwards, Blue Rodeo, Luke Doucet and Neil Young so that they're not completely ignored.
I could go on, but I'd just be banging my head against the wall of Juno complacency. I guess all we can do is hope that some Halifax flavour somehow sneaks into the show.
Good luck.
'Ice Age' Debut Nets $70.5M in Cold Cash
LOS ANGELES - "Ice Age: The Meltdown" heated up the box office with a mammoth $70.5 million weekend, while audiences gave the cold shoulder to Sharon Stone, whose "Basic Instinct 2" debuted with a paltry $3.2 million.
The "Ice Age" sequel, from 20th Century Fox, took over the top box office spot from Universal's "Inside Man," which slipped to No. 2 in its second weekend with $15.7 million, raising its 10-day total to $52.8 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
Premiering in third place was the Warner Bros. roller-skating tale "ATL," starring rapper Tip Harris, which took in $12.5 million.
Universal's "Slither," starring Nathan Fillion in a horror comedy about killer slugs from outer space, flopped with $3.7 million, debuting at No. 8.
Sony's MGM release "Basic Instinct 2," the belated sequel to the 1992 sex thriller that made Stone a star, tied for the No. 10 spot with Lionsgate's "Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector," which took in $3.2 million in its second weekend.
The overall box office surged, with the top 12 movies grossing $136.5 million, up 40 percent from the same weekend last year. The upswing followed a stagnant first quarter after a prolonged drought last year, when attendance fell 8 percent compared to 2004.
"Ice Age: The Meltdown" reunites Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo, now joined by Queen Latifah, as voices of prehistoric animals migrating to safety when global warming threatens to flood their home.
The sequel easily surpassed the $46.3 million opening weekend of the original "Ice Age" and broke the record held by the first "Ice Age" for best March opening ever. If the numbers hold when final figures are released Monday, it would tie "The Incredibles" for second-best animated debut ever behind the $108 million first weekend of "Shrek 2."
"No one had any idea it would do this kind of business," said box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian of Exhibitor Relations, who expected the "Ice Age" sequel to debut in the $55 million range.
"The notion that people don't want to go to the movies is dispelled by something like this," he said. "It proves people will line up for the right movie if given the motivation."
Opening in about half the overseas markets, "Ice Age: The Meltdown" also grossed $43.4 million internationally, though it has yet to debut in the biggest foreign markets, including Great Britain, Germany and Japan.
"Basic Instinct 2" features the sexual predator Stone played in the first movie in a new murder thriller in London as she plays mind games with her psychiatrist ( David Morrissey).
Sony opened "Basic Instinct 2" in just 1,453 theaters, a fairly small release for such a high-profile title. "Ice Age: The Meltdown" debuted in 3,964 theaters.
Critics savaged "Basic Instinct 2," many finding its tale of erotic intrigue both laughable and dull. Sony held out hopes the movie would find an audience on DVD.
"I think it's a very sexy film, and Sharon Stone looks great and really worked the film," said Rory Bruer, Sony's head of distribution "It's a movie that probably will have a very strong life in the home-video world."
The 2005 Sundance Film Festival hit "Brick," first-time filmmaker Rian Johnson's throwback to old-style film noir set among modern teens, opened strongly in limited release, with $87,524 in two theaters. Distributor Focus Features plans to expand "Brick" to more theaters this Friday.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "Ice Age: The Meltdown," $70.5 million.
2. "Inside Man," $15.7 million.
3. "ATL," $12.5 million.
4. "Failure to Launch," $6.6 million.
5. "V for Vendetta," $6.5 million.
6. "Stay Alive," $4.58 million.
7. "She's the Man," $4.57 million.
8. "Slither," $3.7 million.
9. "The Shaggy Dog," $3.5 million.
10 (tie). "Basic Instinct 2," $3.2 million.
10 (tie). "Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector," $3.2 million.