Wednesday night’s Grammy Awards broadcast proved two things. One is that great music is all around us, and the Grammys know how to put on stellar performances. The other is that they are also still out of touch with the mainstream, especially in the three most important categories of the night.
U2’s ballad “Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own” won Song of the Year, an odd move seeing that Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together” and John Legend’s “Ordinary People” have both received recognition for their outstanding songwriting, and “Sometimes You Can’t make It On Your Own” was barely a hit for U2.
The Record of the Year category was even more frustrating when Green Day’s “Boulevard of Broken Dreams,” which was released off their American Idiot album two years ago, won instead of Kanye West’s “Gold Digger,” Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together,” which was the number one single for 2005, the Gorillaz’s “Feel Good Inc.” or even Gwen Stefani’s “Hollaback Girl,” all bigger hits than “Boulevard of Broken Dreams.”
The Album of the Year category saw Kanye West’s Late Registration; the biggest selling album of 2005, Mariah Carey’s The Emancipation of Mimi; Gwen Stefani’s Love, Angel, Music, Baby; and Paul McCartney’s Chaos and Creation in the Back Yard all get beat by U2’s How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, an album that was far less affecting than the other nominees’ albums.
This is not all to say that U2 and Green Day weren’t deserving of their awards; the other nominees were just more deserving, and it was a definite upset when they didn’t win. The look on Kanye West’s smug face after losing in the Record of the Year category was proof that Grammy voters still haven’t quite figured it out yet.
Nevertheless, the whole night was not lost on upsets and strange wins. John Legend deservedly won Best New Artist and Best R&B Album for Get Lifted, while Kanye West won Best Rap Album for Late Registration, and Kelly Clarkson won Best Pop Vocal Album for her surprise hit Breakaway.
In the country genre, Allison Kraus and Union Station took home the Grammy for Best Country Album for Lonely Runs Both Ways, and Rascal Flatts won Best Country Song for “Bless the Broken Road.” U2’s How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb also won Best Rock Album, and the Jay-Z and Linkin Park mash-up hit “Numb/Encore” won the Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.
But what was more exciting than the awards were the show-stopping performances by current artists and classic musicians from decades ago. The first came in the form of a somewhat wooden performance by the cartoon band Gorillaz and Madonna, who performed their hits “Feel Good Inc.” and “Hung Up,” respectively. While Madonna’s performance was great, she hardly danced at all, which was weird to watch while hearing the disco beats of “Hung Up.” And the Gorillaz’s animated performance didn’t translate well onto a live stage. The Gorillaz were so downtrodden on the screen that their usual infectious rhythm of “Feel Good Inc.” barely registered.
The rest of the night saw performances from quiet rockers Coldplay, soul singer John Legend and country band Sugarland. U2 performed their quasi-hit “Vertigo,” but were soon joined by Mary J. Blige for an emotional and spectacular rendition of U2’s ’80s hit, “One.” American Idol Kelly Clarkson, country crooners Keith Urban and Faith Hill and rock legend Bruce Springsteen also performed, while Sir Paul McCartney made his first Grammy appearance a great one with performances of his latest single “Fine Line” and the classic Beatles’ song “Helter Skelter.” Mariah Carey also performed double duty with her number one torch ballad “We Belong Together” and “Fly Like A Bird.”
Dual artists also dominated the Grammy performances with Jay-Z and Linkin Park performing “Numb/Encore,” along with a third appearance by Sir Paul McCartney; Kanye West and Jamie Foxx performing “Gold Digger” and “Touch the Sky” as drum majors in a marching band; and legendary jazz pianist Herbie Hancock performing “A Song for You” off his new album Possibilities with pop siren Christina Aguilera.
Two tributes also saw music’s biggest night at its best when soul singer Joss Stone, John Legend, pop band Maroon 5, R&B star Ciara, steel-guitarist Robert Randolph, Aerosmith’s singer and guitarist Steven Tyler and Joe Perry and others got together to perform songs by Sly and the Family Stone as a tribute to the classic soul band. Another musical tribute to the city of New Orleans and New Orleans’ musicians by Bonnie Raitt, gospel singer Yolanda Adams and Bruce Springsteen, among others, ended the show on a powerful note.
If the Grammys continue to put on such outstanding performances, they’ll be a classic musical fixation for years to come.