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Minnesota Music Awards: 1985

Twin Cities Music Highlights Posted on by

The nominees listed below came from a supplement of the City Pages, and the winners came from Jon Bream’s article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune dated May 21, 1985.

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.

 

DATE:   May 20, 1985

PLACE:  Carlton Celebrity Room, Bloomington

SPONSORS: City Pages, Stroh’s, Great American Music, Wax Museum, The Music Connection Inc., Yamaha Combo Products, Cities 97-FM

HOST:

NOTES:

In 1985 there were eight “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.

An MMA Category Committee re-evaluated the categories between Academy and Public voting.  “There was a tremendous effort to expand the categories to include all of the areas which are indigenous to Minnesota music.”  The result was many, many categories and only three nominees per category.  Also eliminated were the awards for the various instruments.  On the Category Committee were:

    • Jon Bream
    • Bob Protzman
    • Martin Keller
    • Jeff Pike
    • Reid McLean
    • Jack Reuler
    • Alan Freed
    • Brian Allen
    • Pete Rhodes
    • Ed Garrett
    • Paul Moe
    • Suzanne Duran Roy Close

Jeff Pike described all the local musical successes in the City Pages, ending with:

What it all points up to, and what clearly separates Minnesota from, say, Nashville, Detroit, or Philadelphia, is the tremendous diversity to be had here in the land of the lakes.  For every sensitive folk-singer, there’s head-bangers cranking on amps that go to 11.  For every crazed rock ‘n’ roll band wearing flannel shirts, there’s a synthesizer-obsessed proponent of the “Minneapolis sound” (that great fiction).  And for every lowdown blues dive, there’s a Mozart connoisseur decked out in tux and tails.  Tonight, we honor the best of them in the last year, and it all adds up to a whole lot of honoring going on.  That’s all it takes to make a great music town.

Although Prince won nine awards, he was not there to receive them.  He was in Boston at a benefit concert with Sheila E, and members of his band and his family accepted for him.  When the show was done he had a total of 20 Minnesota Music Awards.

 

PERFORMERS:

  • Leo Johnson Drum Corps
  • Jevetta Steele with the Mixed Blood Band and Marvette Knight Dancers
  • Spirit
  • J.D. Steele Singers
  • Melanie Rosales
  • Limited Warranty
  • The Jets
  • Alexander O’Neal
  • Husker Du
  • Bonnie Raitt

 

1985 NOMINEES AND WINNERS

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

 

NOTE:  Nominees for the first categories are not on the documentation I got from the City Pages on file at the library.  Can’t say if there were other nominations or not.

45/12 INCH RECORD *

Major Label:

  • When Doves Cry – Prince

Independent Label:

  • Totally Nude – The Wallets

 

ALBUM RELEASE *

Major Label:

  • Purple Rain – Prince Accepted by Revolution drummer Bobby Z

Independent Label:

  • Follow Her Home Tonight – Jumpstreet

 

EP OR CASSETTE  *

  • When the Shit Hits the Fan – Replacements

 

BAND OF THE YEAR *

  • Prince and the Revolution

 

ARTIST OF THE YEAR  *

  • Prince  

 

NEW BAND *

  • Don’t Ask

 

VIDEO *

  • Alexander O’Neal – Innocent

 

COMEDIAN *

  • Scott Hanson

 

Musician of the Year

  • Prince  Accepted by Prince’s sister, calling herself Eveene S. (aka Tyka Nelson) per Jon Bream
  • Jesse Johnson
  • Tom Riopelle

 

Rock/Pop Group

  • Metro All Stars
  • Jumpstreet
  • King’s English

Rock/Pop Vocalist

  • Jody Hanks – Metro All Stars
  • Brian Kinney – Fairchild
  • James Walsh – Jumpstreet

Rock/Pop Instrumentalist

  • Dusty Cox – Sax
  • Tom Riopelle – Guitar
  • Pat Mackin – Sax

 

Heavy Metal Group

  • Obsession
  • Husker Du
  • Dare Force

Heavy Metal Vocalist

  • Neal Sundet – Obsession
  • Bill Lindsey – Impaler
  • Bruce Naumann – Employers

Heavy Metal Instrumentalist

  • Brian Bart – Dare Force
  • Brynn Arens – Obsession
  • Grant Hart – Husker Du

 

Rock Show/Variety Group

  • Wallets
  • Hitz
  • Fairchild

Rock Show/Variety Vocalist

  • Steve Kramer – Wallets
  • Colleen Wold – Water and Wine
  • Debbie Duncan – Ruperts

Rock Show/Variety Instrumentalist

  • Gregg Inhofer
  • Dale Strength
  • Randy Rosenberry – City Beat

 

Gospel Group

  • J.D. Steele Singers
  • Spirit
  • Sam Davis Group

Gospel Vocalist

  • J.D. Steele
  • Jevetta Stelle
  • Roberta Davis

Gospel Instrumentalist

  • Fred Steele – Keyboards
  • Gary Hines – Keyboards
  • Sanford Moore – Keyboards

 

Funk/Dance Group

  • T.C. Jammers
  • Westside
  • Mazarati

Funk/Dance Vocalist

  • Melanie Rosales
  • Alexander O’Neal
  • David Rodriguez – Westside

Funk/Dance Instrumentalist

  • Ricky Peterson – Keyboards
  • Bobby Vandell – Drums
  • David Eiland – Sax

 

Blues Group

  • Bingham-McCabe
  • Minnesota Barking Ducks
  • Lynwood Slim

Blues Vocalist

  • Doug Maynard
  • Lynwood Slim
  • Willie Murphy

Blues Instrumentalist

  • Charlie Bingham
  • Willie Murphy
  • Lynwood Slim

 

Folk Group

  • Paul Metsa
  • Larry Long
  • Leo Kottke

Folk Vocalist

  • Michael Johnson
  • Paul Metsa
  • Greg Brown

Folk Instrumentalist

  • Leo Kottke – Guitar
  • Paul Metsa – Guitar
  • Stevie Beck – Autoharp

 

Bluegrass Group

  • Middle Spunk Creek Boys
  • Hardly Herd
  • Stoney Lonesome

Bluegrass Vocalist

  • Bruce Jaeger – Middle Spunk Creek Boys
  • Brian Barnes – Stoney Lonesome
  • R.W. Johnson – Hardly Herd

Bluegrass Instrumentalist

  • Peter Ostroushko
  • Bruce Jaeger
  • Bill Hinkley

 

Ethnic Group

  • Ipso Facto
  • Boiled in Lead
  • Shangoya

Ethnic Vocalist

  • Wain McFarlane – Ipso Facto
  • Drew Miller – Boiled in Lead
  • Peter Nelson – Shangoya

Ethnic Instrumentalist

  • Mitch Griffin – Drums
  • Todd Menton
  • Lance Polonaise – Steel Pan

 

Country Group

  • Mary Jane Alm Band
  • Nevada
  • Steamboat Willie

Country Vocalist

  • Mary Jane Alm
  • Johnny Holm
  • Donna Proctor – Steamboat Willie

Country Instrumentalist

  • Lonnie Knight – Guitar
  • Cal Hand – Pedal Steel
  • Dan Lund – Guitar

 

Jazz Modern/Mainstream Group

  • Patty Peterson Group
  • Rio Nido
  • Eddie Berger Jazz All Stars

Jazz Modern/Mainstream Vocalist

  • Patty Peterson
  • Shirley Witherspoon
  • Prudence Johnson

Jazz Modern/Mainstream Instrumentalist

  • Billy Peterson
  • Irv Williams
  • Dave Karr

 

Jazz Fusion Group

  • Samoa
  • Dreamscape
  • Sumner-McCray

Jazz Fusion Vocalist

  • Ricky Peterson – Samoa
  • Steve Faison – Samoa
  • Patty Peterson

Jazz Fusion Instrumentalist

  • Ricky Peterson
  • Will Sumner
  • Billy Peterson

 

Traditional Classical Group

  • St. Paul Chamber Orchestra
  • The Dale Warland Singers
  • Minneapolis Artist Ensemble

Traditional Classical Vocalist

  • Janis Hardy
  • Oksana Bryn
  • Vern Sutton

Traditional Classical Instrumentalist

  • Pinchas Zucherman – Violin
  • Robert Levine – Viola
  • Romauld Tecco – Violin

 

Contemporary Classical Performer

  • Richard Dworsky
  • Pat Moriarty
  • Zeitgeist

Contemporary Classical Composer

  • Herb Pilhofer
  • Libby Larson
  • Dominick Argento

 

Female Vocalist

  • Melanie Rosales
  • Patty Peterson
  • Mary Jane Alm

Male Vocalist  

  • Prince    Accepted by Revolution keyboardist Matt Fink
  • J.D. Steele
  • Alexander O’Neal

 

Record Producer

  • Prince – Purple Rain
  • Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis – Flyte Time Productions
  • Steve Raitt, Ricky Peterson, Steve Wiese – What You Really Want, Melanie Rosales

Recording Engineer

  • David Rivkin – Purple Rain, Prince 
  • Dale Goulett – Pop City, Sussman Lawrence
  • Steve Wiese – Plus Six Productions

Songwriter

  • Prince – When Doves Cry  Accepted by bassist Mark Brown
  • Billy Barber – Little Things
  • Prince – Purple Rain

Technical Achievement

  • Prince for Purple Rain Film (Tie)
  • 3M for Digital Processing (Tie)
  • Art Welter for Southern Thunder Sound

Hall of Fame

  • Koerner, Ray and Glover
  • Morris Wilson

Connie Hechter Award:  Twin/Tone Records

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