Grammy Winners, A Mix

So, the Grammy's happened. That's cool. I was shocked to learn that Morgan Freeman and Kenny Chesney were friends, that Duffy wasn't a 56-year-old southern woman and that Stevie Wonder agreed to perform with the Jonas Brothers. But, really, what do I know. Oh wait, I DO know that MIA is the shit and kudos to her for showing up to the Grammy's on her due date; that's committment. Furthermore, Jay-Z, JT, TI, Lil' Wayne and Al Green are also the shit.

Here are the results from the 51st Grammy Awards for the categories that seem most interesting and an MP3 from each artist who won.

Record of the Year
Album Of The Year
Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals
Please Read The Letter
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
T Bone Burnett, producer; Mike Piersante, engineer/mixer
Track from: Raising Sand
[Rounder]

*MP3: Robert Plant and Allison Krauss - "Fortune Teller"

Song Of The Year
Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals
Best Rock Album
Viva La Vida
Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion & Chris Martin, songwriters (Coldplay)
Track from: Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends
[Capitol Records; Publishers: Universal Music-MGB Songs]

*MP3: Coldplay - "Viva La Vida"

Best New Artist
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
Chasing Pavements
Adele
Track from: 19
[Columbia/XL]

*MP3: Adele - "Chasing Pavements" (Link Removed)
*MP3: Adele - "Best For Last"

Best Pop Vocal Album
Rockferry
Duffy
[Mercury]

*MP3: Duffy - "Stepping Stone"

Best Dance Recording
Best Electronic/Dance Album
Harder Better Faster Stronger
Daft Punk
Thomas Bangalter & Guy Manuel de Homem-Christo, producers; Thomas Bangalter & Guy Manuel de Homem-Christo, mixers
Track from: Alive 2007
[Virgin Records]

*MP3: Daft Punk - "Harder Better Faster Stronger"

Best Rock Song
Girls In Their Summer Clothes
Bruce Springsteen, songwriter (Bruce Springsteen)
Track from: Magic
[Columbia; Publisher: Bruce Springsteen]

*MP3: Bruce Springsteen - "Girls In Their Summer Clothes"

Best Alternative Music Album
In Rainbows
Radiohead
[TBD Records]
*MP3: Radiohead - "All I Need"

Best R&B Album
Jennifer Hudson
Jennifer Hudson
[Arista Records]
*MP3: Jennifer Hudson - "Pocketbook" (Link Removed)

Best Rap Song
Lollipop
D. Carter, S. Garrett, D. Harrison, J. Scheffer & R. Zamor, songwriters (Lil Wayne Featuring Static Major)
Track from: Tha Carter III
[Cash Money/Universal Motown; Publishers: Young Money Publishing/Warner-Chappell Music, Herbalicious Music/Blackfountain Music/EMI-April Music, JimiPub Music/EMI Blackwood, Three Nails And A Crown Publishing, Roynet Music]

*MP3: Lil' Wayne - "Lollipop"

Best Country Song
Stay
Jennifer Nettles, songwriter (Sugarland)
Track from: Enjoy The Ride
[Mercury Records; Publisher: Jennifer Nettles Publishing]

*MP3: Sugarland - "Stay" (Link Removed)

Best Country Album
Troubadour
George Strait
[MCA Nashville]

*MP3: George Strait - "Clear Blue Sky" (Link Removed)

Video: Feist - 1,2,3,4 (Live At The 2008 Grammys)

Everyone's favorite "new" artist performed her Grammmy-nominated, iPod-selling song "1,2,3,4" at this year's Grammy awards ceremony. This version is pretty subdued compared to versions past, with the backing band only consisting of a few brass players. Still, it was a good performance. Watch it at the top of the post.

(Jonathan Graef)

Herbie Hancock Wins Album Of The Year At The Grammys? Seriously?

Well, I'll give it to the Grammys: At least they're consistent in being wholly, utterly out-of-touch. In the stunner of the year, Herbie Hancock, a pianist/composer who, to be fair, is an incredibly well-regarded and influential jazz musician (though most people probably know his name because of Tommy Boy) and scored a video hit in MTV's early years with the song "Rockit" (see it at the top of this post), won album of the year at the 2008 Grammys over the likes of Kanye West, Amy Winehouse and Foo Fighters, just to name a few. The native Chicagoan (woot! woot!) won for his tribute album to Joni Mitchell, River - Letters To Joni.

This result shouldn't surprise anyone whose paid attention to the Grammys. A few years ago, Steely Dan beat out Eminem for album of the year and, back in 1989, the Grammy gave the first "Best Heavy Metal" album award to Jethro Tull. Their competition that year? Metallica, who the year before put out their poorly-mixed-but-nonetheless-classic-thrash-metal album ...And Justice For All.

And now they've given album of the year to Herbie Hancock.

Congrats?

(Jonathan Graef)