Why Lemmy said the Grammy Awards were “poisoned” for him
I don’t care if you’re a fan of Motörhead or not; they’re a band that wonderfully embody the spirit of rock music better than any other, and you can’t argue with that.
Oh, you don’t like Lemmy’s voice? Grow up. That gravel, the speed at which he sings, the awkward angle at which he approaches the mic, they all contribute to a vocal tone which is unique and stands out in a market as saturated as rock ‘n’ roll. No one has ever come close to capturing the raw magnetism that sits at the centre of everything Lemmy does, and Motörhead was the best band for him to flaunt his exciting, artistic style.
When you listen to classics like ‘Ace Of Spades’ as well as ‘Bomber’ and ‘Overkill’, you are subject to a level of rock music that other bands can only ever dream of achieving. There is energy injected into every single note that they play, and it bleeds through speakers to give listeners something that remains, to this day, timeless.
Lemmy was absolutely devoted to the music. He passed away just weeks after wrapping up what would be his final tour, fully aware his health was on the decline – but there was no way he was going to let the fans down by cancelling gigs. Mikkey Dee, Motörhead’s drummer at the time, did try to talk him out of it, but Lemmy wasn’t having it. He made whatever tweaks were needed to keep going, because rock ‘n’ roll, the music, and his fans were everything to him – right to the bitter end.
“Instead of arguing with Lemmy, trying to get him off the road, let’s just help him instead,” said Dee. “I remember shows where we had to adjust a lot of stuff, but I think we, and he, did fantastic. Our last show was December 7th in Berlin, and then a couple of weeks later, the man is gone. Trust me, me and Phil put in 150%, Lemmy must have put in 300% to get through the sets.”
Of course, it wasn’t just Lemmy who was unwaveringly devoted to his music, but all of Motörhead were. No matter what iteration of the band you’re listening to, there is no escaping the fact that you have three musicians, a power trio, who were committed to giving listeners the best rock music they had ever heard. These people weren’t just thrashing their instruments, they were well trained and articulate, they could play anything by anyone, as Lemmy quite notably pointed out.
“What people really liked was our attitude – our fuck-you-ness – and our breakneck speed,” he said, “Any lineup of Motörhead could play anything. You can witness it on the covers we’ve done: We even got a Grammy for one [Metallica’s ‘Whiplash’].”
Winning a Grammy represents the pinnacle for many bands’ careers, but Lemmy saw the award as poisoned. As such a flamboyant rock band, it was often hard for them to get people to take Motörhead seriously, and while such a prestigious award might have done the trick, he felt as though the band weren’t given the chance to show onlookers what they were capable of, as they weren’t invited to the actual ceremony.
“Of course, they poisoned it for us by giving us one for somebody else’s song. We didn’t get to go to the real Grammys cause we’re distasteful,” he said, “Us and the Mexican jazz bands all had to line up and get our stuff the previous afternoon.”
