(image via harvard.edu)
Legendary music-industry impressario Clive Davis let out some blue-eyed soul with his annual pre-Grammy's joint (2005 ). From Popwatch:
"For music industry insiders, perhaps the most coveted invite of the year is not to 'music’s biggest night,' as the Grammy Awards call themselves, but rather to the unaffiliated pre-party thrown one night before. Its initials: CD. As in Clive Davis. He's the mogul behind dozens of Arista Records success stories (including his date for the night, Whitney Houston), who later launched J Records (home to Alicia Keys) and who now holds the title of SonyBMG chairman. In other words, he's someone with serious cred, both as an industry titan and as a man with an ear for talent and an ability to market both newcomers (like his stable of Idol-minted stars) and vets whose careers had cooled (Carlos Santana, Rod Stewart). Which is why so many stars clamor to be in his presence for this swanky fete, honoring the best of music’s past, present, and future in a black-tie environment that’s rock-n-roll loose.
"So who made the cut this year? Rocker regulars like the Foo Fighters, Kid Rock, Scott Weiland, and Slash (his seventh year!) were back on the Beverly Hilton patio (also known as the smoking section), while hip-hop luminaries P. Diddy, Busta Rhymes, and Russell Simmons mingled inside. Actors and TV personalities were in the mix as well — Bill Maher, Ellen DeGeneres with girlfriend Portia de Rossi... and Jon Voight all made the dinner table rounds, while school buds Terrence Howard and Tara Reid (who knew?) caught up in a corner. Newcomers included chart-toppers like Rihanna, Natasha Bedingfield, and Akon and plenty of recently-christened Idols, among them season five’s Taylor Hicks, Chris Daughtry, and Katharine McPhee. And then there were the divas: Whitney, Mary J., and Christina Aguilera, who kicked off the two-hour-plus show with 'Candy Man,' an appropriate choice, as there were many more treats to come."
And, from honorary African-American Roger Friedman:
"As usual, the room was so overloaded with bold faced names that it was almost dizzying. The best moment? Former vice president Al Gore being introduced to Barry Manilow adjacent to where a sullen Houston — with a dreamy look in her eye as she chatted with sister-in-law Pat Houston — ignored them both.
If Houston was saving all her attention for someone else, it was herself. The only time she stood all evening was to accept kudos at her table from Davis on stage. She clapped with wide-open palms and smiled widely, before quickly sitting down again.
Houston left once the entertainment part of the evening got into full swing, however, so there was no way to ask her about the seven songs that sources say have been chosen for her comeback album. The songwriters include Dianne Warren, R Kelly, Jermaine Dupri and Kenny 'Babyface' Edmonds. Warren’s song is titled 'I Didn’t Know How Much Strength I Had.'
Other than (Whitney) Houston, the guest list for Davis’s party was a staggering mixture of new and old, hip-hop and bebop. Where else could you find Puff Daddy (Sean Combs) and rock-and-roll inventor Dion DiMucci? Soul Man Sam Moore and actress Meg Ryan?
"... And there were some classic moments for Gore too, aside from his Manilow meeting. Songwriter Michael Gore was given the Vice President’s seat by mistake, proving that 'Fame' — which the former Gore wrote — is indeed fleeting!
"A cigar-chomping Kid Rock, accompanied by a dazzling trophy of a date — chatted feverishly with Red Hot Chili Pepper drummer Chad Smith, who in turn sought out … Al Gore, of course, for a quick talk."
Okay, so we're a starfucker, sue us.
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