Cma Embarrassed Itself With Rush To Nonjudgment

Well, this one takes the cake. I mean, I’ve rarely heard of winners having to return awards, much less nominations.

But that’s what happened last week to Allison Krauss, sort of.

Krauss, for the few of those who didn’t know, is the reigning darling of country music’s inner circle. And for good reason. She’s a tremendous bluegrass fiddler with a high, fragile voice that can melt butter.

She took Nashville by storm with her band, Union Station, and even became a member of the Grand Ole Opry at an age when a lot of performers are still hoping to get on the Opry stage.

Krauss’ current album, “Now That I’ve Found You: A Collection,” is all the rage in country these days, and it allowed the mainstream to discover her. But the truth is, the album is a collection of songs recorded over the past several years.

Nonetheless, in its rush to recognize the Krauss juggernaut, the Country Music Association nominated the collection for Album of the Year, even though it was ineligible under the guidelines that state at least 60 percent of the album must be first mastered and released during the eligibility period of June 1, 1994 to May 31, 1995.

Naturally, somebody dutifully pointed it out, and the CMA had to withdraw the nomination.

Of course, if someone had bothered to notice the album was titled “A Collection,” or had looked at the back of the CD to see the recording dates of the various tracks, this foolishness could have been avoided.

All’s fair in love and country music, though, and Patty Loveless’ excellent album, “When Fallen Angels Fly,” was added to the list of album nominees. And don’t cry for Krauss. She remains a top nominee, with nominations for Female Vocalist of the Year, the Horizon Award (for up and coming artists), Single of the Year for “When You Say Nothing At All” and Vocal Event of the Year for “Somewhere in the Vicinity of the Heart” with Shenandoah.