Too Cool To Boogie

A Taste of Honey :  Boogie Oogie Oogie

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On February 15, 1979 the Los Angeles disco band A Taste of Honey won the Grammy for Best New Artist, beating Elvis Costello, The Cars, Toto and Chris Rea. (Chic, criminally was not nominated). Given, "Boogie Oogie Oogie" was one of 1978's best disco songs and Janice–Marie Johnson is a marvel who can play a funky bass and sing at the same time, the win has largely been ridiculed. Best New Artist has always been a category music fans have used to show out of touch Grammy voters are. In 1978 Debby Boone won. In 1977, the year punk broke, it was the Starland Vocal Band. In 1975 Marvin Hamlisch beat Bad Company.

For a while there, winning a Best New Artist Grammy was a good way to ensure you'd be a one, at most two, hit wonder. Says Starland Vocal Band 's Taffy Danoff: "We got two of the five Grammys – one was Best New Artist. So that was basically the kiss of death and I feel sorry for everyone who's gotten it since."

The artists whose 1979 releases got them nominated are Rickie Lee Jones, Dire Straits, The Knack , The Blues Brothers and Robin Williams.