I’ve been in a Stevie frame of mind lately-definitely not a bad place to be. Mr. Wonder has won all sorts of awards during his career, but the feat that impresses most is the fact that he won the Album of the Year Grammy three times in four years-Innervisions won in ’73, Fulfillingness’ First Finale won in ’74, and Songs in the Key of Life won in ’76. Hell, when Paul Simon won the AOTY in ’75 for Still Crazy After All These Years, he thanked Stevie for not making an album that year!

Today’s clip captures Stevie’s second of those three wins. He’s presented the award by Bette Midler, who delivers a hilarious monologue in which she illustrates how winning the Best New Artist Grammy was considered a curse even forty years ago. Watching this makes me wonder (no pun intended) why Bette never hosted a variety show on TV during her heyday. Would’ve beat the shit out of starring in “Beaches”. Of course, Stevie’s no slouch in the comedy department either (the man hosted “SNL”!), and the two combine to form one of Grammy’s funniest moments. Good stuff here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ohdgnvK3bM