Sam Smith with 4 Grammys, including Best New Artist & Song of the Year
Well, it was all about the performances– mostly. It’s nothing new but this year, it was also about pairing the young and the old, as well. Big winner of the night, Sam Smith, won for and performed, “Stay with Me,” which was Record of the Year (also Song of the Year… don’t ask me the difference…?) with Mary J. Blige. That was a sweet moment. The diva Annie Lennox was perfectly paired with Hozier. Paul McCartney performed with Rihanna and Kanye West on their latest, “FourFiveSeconds”. Kanye, absent from the Grammys for 6 years, performed solo and then rushed the stage when Beck beat out Beyoncé for Album of the Year. It looked like a joke, right? Wrong. He said this after the show:
“I don’t even know what [Beck] said. I just know that, the Grammys, if they want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us. We aren’t going to play with them no more. ‘Flawless.’ Beyoncé’s video. And Beck needs to respect artistry, he should have given his award to Beyoncé. At this point, we tired of it. What happens is, when you keep on diminishing art, and not respecting the craft, and smacking people in the face after they deliver monumental feats of music, you’re disrespectful to inspiration. We, as musicians, have to inspire people who go to work every day, and they listen to that Beyoncé album, and they feel like it takes them to a different place. And then they do this promotional event, and they’ll run the music over somebody’s speech, the artist, because they want commercial advertising. We aren’t playing with them anymore. And by the way, I got my wife, my daughter, and I got my clothing line, so I’m not going to do nothing that would put my daughter at risk, but I am here to fight for creativity. That’s why I didn’t say anything tonight, but you all knew what it meant when ‘Ye stepped on that stage.”
Ugh. For the record, Beck’s album was critically reviewed as one of the best of the year, and I personally liked it, as well. He is an artist in the truest sense, but Kanye never fails to pull focus and he always has the mistaken impression that he’s the only one with any taste. His Beyoncé performed in all white (& is now the most nominated female in Grammy history -not enough, Kanye?) and she DID win for Best R&B performance. The big winner for me personally, on the red carpet and on stage (both times in Givenchy) was that ol’ material girl, Madonna. She showed them how she does, performing “Living For Love” before floating up into the rafters. And even the “losers”, rather ALL nominees (presenters & performers too, I think?), get $25,000 – in (weird) swag, including an $800 candy buffet (?) and a $15,000 rail trip through the Canadian Rockies. (Geez, is Celine Dion the conductor –that is ONE expensive train ride.) Well, Kanye, you can give yours to Bey.
Kanye rushes Beck in what everyone ASSUMED was a joke. Nope.
Sia sang in a corner with Maddie on her right and Kristin Wiig in a wig.
Annie Lennox with Hozier doing “I Put A Spell on You” –she did.
Madonna ascending after “Living for Love”
Below is a list of every dang winner, (including a posthumous Grammy for Joan Rivers!):
Record of the Year
Sam Smith – “Stay With Me”
Song of the Year
Sam Smith – “Stay With Me”
James Napier, William Phillips & Sam Smith, songwriters
Album of the Year
Beck – Morning Phase
Best New Artist
Sam Smith
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
A Great Big World With Christina Aguilera – “Say Something”
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga – Cheek To Cheek
Best Pop Solo Performance
Pharrell Williams – “Happy”
Best Pop Vocal Album
Sam Smith – In The Lonely Hour
Best Rock Performance
Jack White – “Lazaretto”
Best Rock Album
Beck – Morning Phase
Best Rock Song
Paramore – “Ain’t It Fun”
Best Alternative Rock Album
St. Vincent – St. Vincent
Best Metal Performance
Tenacious D – “The Last In Line”
Best Rap Performance
Kendrick Lamar – “I”
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
Eminem Featuring Rihanna – “The Monster”
Best Rap Song
Kendrick Lamar – “I”
Best Rap Album
Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP2
Best R&B Performance
Beyoncé Featuring Jay Z – “Drunk In Love”
Best Traditional R&B Performance
“Jesus Children”
Best R&B Song
Beyoncé Featuring Jay Z – “Drunk In Love”
Best Urban Contemporary Album
Pharrell Williams – Girl
Best R&B Album
Toni Braxton & Babyface – Love, Marriage & Divorce
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
Chris Thile & Edgar Meyer – Bass & Mandolin
Best Dance/Electronic Album
Aphex Twin – Syro
Best Dance Recording
Clean Bandit Featuring Jess Glynne – “Rather Be”
Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
Frozen
Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Best Song Written for Visual Media
“Let It Go” from Frozen
Best Country Album
Miranda Lambert – Platinum
Best Country Solo Performance
Carrie Underwood – “Something In The Water”
Best Country Duo/Group Performance
The Band Perry – “Gentle On My Mind”
Best Country Song
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You”
Glen Campbell & Julian Raymond, songwriters (Glen Campbell)
Best Bluegrass Album
The Earls Of Leicester – The Earls Of Leicester
Best American Roots Performance
Rosanne Cash – “A Feather’s Not A Bird”
Best American Roots Song
Rosanne Cash – “A Feather’s Not A Bird”
Best Americana Album
Rosanne Cash – The River & The Thread
Best Folk Album
Old Crow Medicine Show – Remedy
Best Music Video
Pharrell Williams – “Happy”
Best Music Film
20 Feet From Stardom
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical
Max Martin
Best Instrumental Composition
John Williams – “The Book Thief”
Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
Pentatonix – “Daft Punk”
Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals
Billy Childs – “New York Tendaberry”
Best Recording Package
Pearl Jam – “Lightning Bolt”
Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package
The Rise & Fall Of Paramount Records, Volume One (1917-27)
Best Album Notes
John Coltrane – Offering: Live At Temple University
Best Historical Album
Hank Williams – The Garden Spot Programs, 1950
Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
Beck – Morning Phase
Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical
John Legend – “All Of Me (Tiesto’s Birthday Treatment Remix)”
Best Surround Sound Album
Beyoncé – Beyoncé
Best Regional Roots Music Album
Jo-El Sonnier – The Legacy
Best Reggae Album
Ziggy Marley – Fly Rasta
Best World Music Album
Angelique Kidjo – Eve
Best Children’s Album
Neela Vaswani – I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education
And Changed The World (Malala Yousafzai)
Best Musical Theatre Album
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
Best Blues Album
Johnny Winter – Step Back
Best Spoken Word Album
Joan Rivers – Diary Of A Mad Diva
Best Comedy Album
“Weird Al” Yankovic – Mandatory Fun
Best New Age Album
Ricky Kej & Wouter Kellerman – Winds Of Samsara
Best Improved Jazz Solo
Chick Corea – “Fingerprints”
Best Jazz Vocal Album
Dianne Reeves – Beautiful Life
Best Jazz Instrumental Album
Chick Corea Trio – Trilogy
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band – Life In The Bubble
Best Latin Jazz Album
Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra – The Offense Of The Drum
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