I apologize for any misspellings of anyone’s name; it could be from the source, or it could be from my typing.  Please contact me if you need to have something corrected.  Thanks!

For other years, see MINNESOTA MUSIC AWARDS.

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DATE:   May 21, 1984

PLACE:  Carlton Celebrity Room, Bloomington

SPONSOR: City Pages, Great American Music, Wax Museum, Stroh’s

HOST:  Alex Cole

NOTES:

• In 1984 there were six “public” categories, identified with an * below.  Readers wrote in their nominations and the top nominees were submitted to a second vote to determine the winner.
• The other 20 categories were nominated and voted upon by members of the “Minnesota Music Academy” – “past award winners and nominees, members of the music business community, and other musicians.”
• Proceeds went to the Minnesota Songwriters Association, then a “six-year-old nonprofit that assisted songwriters in their attempts to create new works and expose their works to the public.”
• About 2,200 people attended the ceremony, which was still alternately being called the Yammies.
• Greg Linder of the City Pages described the show as “ultimately a show-biz spectacle – glittery, fascinating, repulsive, profoundly silly and, when you toss in the hometown pride that brought everybody together in the first place, utterly irresistible.”

PERFORMERS:

• Baby Doo Caston before the ceremony in the lobby bar
• The Kicksville Breakers – Break Dancing
• Metro All Stars
• Prince, in a much rumored but unscheduled appearance. Midway through the show he did a three song, 20-minute set including “When Doves Cry” from the forthcoming “Purple Rain” soundtrack.
• Leo Kottke
• Dez Dickerson
• Michael Johnson also made an unscheduled appearance, singing “Winner in Your Eyes.”
• Rio Nido
• The Girls (Doris, Germain, and Sheila) in their first live performance
• Tetes Noires, appearing in white wedding gowns, fog billowing at their feet as they unleashed an a capella of ‘White Wedding.’”
• The Suburbs – “three song finale that ended in flaming keyboards and the demolition of an entire drum set.”
• The Michael James Band – After the Ceremony in Carlton Backstage

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1984 NOMINEES AND WINNERS

*** For each category, the winner is at the top of the list in bold; the other nominees follow in alphabetical order. ***

45 OF THE YEAR *

• Love is the Law – Suburbs
  
• Mattie Mae/I Been Watching You – Dave Ray/Tony Glover
• 25 Reasons/Teen Beat – Red House
• The Bird – The Time
• Twas the Night Before Christmas – The Wallets

LP OF THE YEAR *

• Love is the Law – The Suburbs
• Let the Good Times Roll – Michael James Band
• Hootenanny – The Replacements
• Darwin’s Theory of Pelvic Revolution – Urban Guerillas
• Figures – Jeff Waryan

EP OF THE YEAR *

• Catch a Falling Star – Wallets
• Elements – Limited Warranty
• Otto’s Chemical Lounge – Otto’s Chemical Lounge
• More Than I Can Do – Johnny Rey
• Tetes Noires – Tetes Noires

BAND OF THE YEAR *

• Wallets
• Fairchild
• Limited Warranty
• Metro All Stars
• Replacements
• The Suburbs

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR *

• Steve Kramer – The Wallets
• Beej Chaney – Suburbs
• Dan Mangold – Metro All Stars
• Erik Newman – Limited Warranty
• Prince
• Tom Riopelle – Fairchild
• Paul Westerberg – Replacements

 NEW BAND OF THE YEAR *

• Urban Guerrillas
• Babysitters
• Limited Warranty
• Otto’s Chemical Lounge
• Tetes Noires

Rock/Pop Band or Artist

• Metro All Stars
  
• Bingham/McCabe Band
• Chameleon
• Samoa
• Sussman Lawrence
• T.C. Jammers
• Wallets

Top 40/Show Band or Artist

• Westside
• Hitz
• Jumpstreet
• Fragile
• Rocking Hollywoods
• Triple Scale
• Water and Wine
• Zig Zag

Gospel Band or Artist

• J.D. Steele
  
• Sam Davis
• Roberta Davis

R&B/Soul/Funk Band or Artist

• Willie & the Bees
• Alexander
• Sue Ann Carwell
• Michael James Band
• Metropolis
• Prince
• Samoa

Blues Band or Artist

• Doug Maynard
  
• Mojo Buford
• Tony Glover
• Pat Hayes and the Blue Shadows
• Michael James Band
• Lynwood Slim
• Willie Murphy

Folk Group or Artist

• Greg Brown
• Sean Blackburn/Dakota Dave Hull
• Eclectic Brothers
• Larry Long
• Ruth Mackenzie
• Peter Ostroushko
• Ann Reed

Bluegrass Band or Artist

• Stoney Lonesome
  
• Ace in the Whole
• Eclectic Brothers
• Peter Ostroushko

Ethnic Band

• Shangoya
• Boiled in Lead
• Brinx
• Ipso Facto
• Macumba
• Orchestra Sabrason

Country-Oriented Band or Artist

• Becky Reimer Thompson
  
• Mary Jane Alm Band
• Daisy Dillman Band
• Double Nickels
• Firehouse
• Hank Western
• Just Whiskey (Whiskey River)
• Sky Blue Water Boys

Jazz Band

• Rio Nido
• Eddie Berger and the Jazz All Stars
• De Stijlistics
• Flim and the BBs
• Kenny Horst Quartet
• Patty Peterson Group
• Tribute to Mingus

Jazz Instrumentalist

• Billy Peterson
  
• Eddie Berger
  
• Bernie Edstrom
• Eric Graavatt
• Phil Hey
• Dave Karr
• Bobby Peterson
• Jeanne Peterson

Female Vocalist

• Mary Jane Alm
• Margaret Cox
• Prudence Johnson
• Patty Peterson
• Lucia Newell
• Melanie Rosales
• Becky Reimer Thompson

Male Vocalist

• Doug Maynard
• Curtiss A
• Steve Faison
• Jody Hanks
• Greg Inhoffer
• Willie Murphy
• Alexander O’Neill
• Ricky Peterson
• Prince
• J.D. Steele

Electric Guitar

• John Della Selva
  
• Jim Behringer
• Geoff Bouchier
• Rick Cornish
• Lonnie Knight
• Paul Koloc
• Dan Lund
• Dale Strength

Acoustic Guitar

• Leo Kottke
• Adam Granger
• Dakota Dave Hull
• Michael Johnson
• Lonnie Knight
• Tab Laven
• Peter Ostroushko
• Tim Sparks

Keyboards

• Bruce McCabe 
• Andy Bailey
• Bill Barber
• Lee Blaske
• Manfredo Fest
• Greg Inhoffer
• Willie Murphy
• Bobby Peterson
• Butch Thompson

Bass

• Billy Peterson
• Ed Brown
• Andre Cymone
• Terry Grant
• Willie Murphy
• Paul Peterson
• Larry Stock
• Jay Young

Wind/Brass Instrument

• Dave Karr
  
• Eddie Berger
• Dusty Cox
• Bernie Edstrom
• Kenny Holmen
• Pat Macklin
• Butch Thompson
• Irv Williams

Drums

• Gordy Knutson
  
• Charlie Adams
• Andy Gauthier
• Mike Hurley
• Peter Johnson
• Glen Swanson
• Bobby Vandell
• Bobby “Z” Rivkin

Miscellaneous Instrument

• Bruce “Creeper” Kurnow – Harmonica, Harp
  
• Bruce Allard – Violin
• Lee Blaske – Synthesizers
• Pat Fredrick – Violin
• Pat Hayes – Harmonica
• Peter Ostroushko – Violin, Mandolin
  

Record Producer

• Prince
  
• Andre Cymone
• Steve Greenberg
• Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis
• David Rivkin

Recording Engineer

• Steve Wiese
• Dick Hedlund
• Peter Martinsen
• Paul Martinson
• Prince
• David Rivkin
• Jerry Steckliing
• Miles Wilkinson

Songwriter

• Prince
• Mary Jane Alm
• Bill Barber
• Greg Brown
• Mark Freese
• Peter Himmelman
• Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis
• Dan Mangold
• Willie Murphy
• Linda Peterson

Hall of Fame

• Bob Dylan (Tie)
• Willie Murphy (Tie)
• Prince (Tie)
• Lamont Cranston Band
• Jeanne Peterson
• Irv Williams