Sting, Elton John Releasing Albums of New Material in Time for Grammy Deadline

The Grammy year is winding down to its September 30th deadline. Who will make it in time is the big question? Mariah Carey was on track, but now no one knows what will happen. Robin Thicke, John Mayer, Elvis Costello, Drake, Jack Johnson, The Civil Wars and Kings of Leon are all ready to make the deadline. From earlier in the year we have Emeli Sande’s amazing debut, and there will be two Justin Timberlake albums to consider. Daft Punk will make a go of it, although probably for Best Dance Album. “Get Lucky” would be a Best Record nominee.

But in the real Rock Superstar world, two releases on September 24 loom: from Sting, and from Elton John. Sting’s “The Last Ship” and Elton’s “The Diving Board” could so more than just Best Pop Album nominations if the Grammy committees take their jobs seriously this year. In recent years, legacy artists have struggled to get into the Album of the Year category. This past year, Bruce Springsteen wouldn’t appear on the show because he was improperly relegated to Best Rock Album.

But seriously, no one can even think that “Yeezus” or “Magna Carta” are good enough for anything other than Best Rap Album. Timberlake has the lead right now. But Sting and Elton and Kings of Leon– all on the 24–could be big enough deals to be game changers. We’ll know soon enough, as press copies are being mailed shortly.

Here’s the track list for Elton John’s “The Diving Board”: