ill
Behind
the Scenes
lights were the performances
of many of those in atten
dance. Among those taking to
i'arty time:
Undeniably the best
parties thrown in
the record industry
all occur during Grammy
week, when the industry
comes together to celebrate
the best and the brightest.
This year’s weekend kicked off
Wonder
Jones
on Feb. 26 with a star-studded
tribute to Qunicy Jones, who
honored as MusicCares' 1996
Person Of The Year" that drew
the likes of Bonnie Raitt,
Coolio, Jon Secada, Gloria
Estefan, Sinbad, and Jones’
latest singing talent, Tamia.
Stevie Wonder had double
duty that night.
Not only did Wonder perform
at the MusicCares Gala, but
later that night, be became the
center of attention as he was
honored at a posh reception
thrown by Motown on a sound
stage at Taleigh Studios.
Presumably the affair was to
celebrate the National
Association of Recording Arts
and Sciences has bestowed
upon him and the label spared
no expense in making Wonder
feel like a king right down to
performances by Brian
McKnight, Johnny Gill, Mary
J Blige, Zhane, Take 6,
D;Angelo, Coolio, and Jon
Secada.
The most exclusive pre-
Grammy party is thrown
annually by Arista Records
president Clive Davis. This
year's, held at the Beverly
Hilton, drew the record indus
try's biggest names, including
Whitney Houston with hubby
Bobby Brown, Natalie Cole,
Quincy Jones, Tony Bennett,
Boyz II Men, Dick Clark,
Kenny G., Paula Abdul,
Antonio “LA” Reid, Toni
Braxton, Mary J. Blige and
teen sensation Monica. One of
the party's signature high-
the stage this year were
Houston, Babyface, Brandy,
Monica and Chaka Khan, who
brought down the house with
her rendition of "My Funny
Valentine." Meanwhile, across
town, the House of Blues was
being rocked by MTVs annual
pre-Grammy "Rock the Vote"
benefit, which drew rapper
Chuck D., Issac Hayes and
Hootie and and the Blowfish.
If that wasn't partying
enough, about 6,000 nominees
and guests turned out to the
Los Angeles Biltmore Hotel for
the official post-Grammy
party. However most of the
biggest superstars attended
parties thrown by their labels.
Perhaps the most posh was the
Polygram bash at Chasen’s.
Over 3,000 guests jammed into
the famed Hollywood
nightspot. Spotted among
them were "Fresh Prince" star
Will Smith with his 3-year-old
son Trey, Russell Simmoms,
Stevie Wonder, Montell
Jordan, Ellen DeGeneres and
Boyz II Men. Of course, the
best fun was had by the night's
big winners. TLC pocketed
Best R&B Album"
("CrazySexyCool") and "Best
R&B Performance by a Duo or
Group With Vocal ("Creep").
Anita Baker was awarded
Best Female R&B Vocal
Performance" ("I Apologize")
and Stevie Wonder walked off
eith "Best Male R&B Vocal
Performance" ("For
Love ”). Coolio topped
rap with "Best Rap
("(jansta's Paradise")
Naughty by Nature pocketed
Best Rap Album" for their
release, "Poverty's Paradise."
And Lena Horne's latest
album, "Evening With Lena
Home" landed her a Grammy
for "Best Jazz Vocal."
Your
off in
Solo"
while
Test Drive
Acura’s RL gets high marks
Continued from page 3B
also very quiet and efficient.
The RL handled very well in
the mountains, exhibiting the
kind of sure-footed confidence
that a luxury car should have.
Coming down was easier
than going up. Rich Thomas,
Acura's executive vice presi
dent, drove back. He had no
trouble in surpassing double
nickel speeds, guiding the car
flawlessly through snake-like
roads.
The ride was excellent on
various road surfaces. The sus
pension soaks up bumps and
keeps all kinds of bad stuff
from getting to the passengers.
So do the seats, which have a
sort of suspension system of
their own. If the standard sus
pension misses something, the
seats don't. They are very com
fortable, coddling driver and
passenger.
The RL's wheelbase isn't
much different from the
Legend it replaces, but there is
much more room in the rear,
nearly on par with the LS400.
Knee room is increased
because the front seat backs
are concave. The seat rails are
moved further outward, allow
ing more room for rear passen
gers's feet. The underside of
the seats are carpeted to pre
vent scuffing your shoes.
Passengers are treated to the
most refined cabin ever offered
on an Acura. The plastic used
in the Legend has been
dropped for more expensive-
looking material. Fake wood
adorns the base model while
real wood is used in the premi
um version.
The cabin is ultra quiet with
very little wind, road or engine
noise making their way in.
The RL, which stands for
"refined luxury," breaks no
new ground for styling,
though. However, I do like the
prominent formal grill, sur
rounded by a hood that widens
into sculpted shoulders. But
the rest of the exterior is
generic. On a casual glance I
mistook a 3.2 TL for the 3.5
RL. The rear ends are similar,
but the RL is a much bigger
car.
All RLs are comprehensively
equipped with extremely soft
leather seats, power windows,
door locks, mirrors and moon-
roof The driver's seat can be
electronically adjusted in eight
different directions.
A CD player is standard as
well as an eight speaker stereo
that's wonderfully balanced.
That will set you back
$41,000. Opt for the premium
package and you get heated
seats, traction control, Bose
stereo upgrade, heated mir
rors and real wood. That's
$44,000, some several thou
sand less than its competitors
with much the same equip
ment.
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