CBS SETS GRAMMY HISTORY FETE

CBS will kick off the Grammy season with a two-hour special celebrating the 60th anniversary of the awards. Grammys Greatest Stories: A 60th Anniversary Special, produced by The Recording Academy, AEG Ehrlich Ventures and CBS, will air 11/24, the day after Thanksgiving.

The show will feature rare archival footage and exclusive interviews with Christina Aguilera, Aretha Franklin, Dave Grohl, Elton John, Bruno Mars, Paul McCartney, Ed Sheeran, Bruce Springsteen and others.

“This signals the beginning of the Grammy season on television,” Recording Academy CEO/President Neil Portnow told HITS. “When we get to the awards show, we want to have the flavor of the 60th anniversary in the body of the show. It’s a little bit liberating that we get to cover our first 60 years [in this special].”

Segments will cover the music community’s reaction to death of Whitney Houston the day before the ceremony, Franklin's unexpected opera performance at the 40th Grammys, and McCartney’s performance of a chunk of The Beatles’ Abbey Road.

Ken Ehrlich, executive producer of the Grammy Awards for the past 38 years, is doing all of the interviews. “When you see them put together in a parade of amazing clip montages interspersed with the stories behind the performances, it's really pretty unbelievable,” he noted.

The Recording Academy will announce the Grammy nominations four days after the show on 11/28. The 60th Grammy Awards will be held at Madison Square Garden on 1/28.