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Grammy Awards Recap: Kanye West Pays Homage to His Mom, Hancock Steals Album of the Year, Sen. Obama Scores Another Victory
posted on Feb 11, 2008
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Troubled soulstress Amy Winehouse led with five wins during the
Grammy Awards' 50th anniversary show. Kanye West followed with four
wins. But it was 67 year old jazz veteran Herbie Hancock who stunned
everyone winning the night's big trophy, album of the year for his
tribute to Joni Mitchell,
"River: The Joni Letters." This is the first time in 43 years that a
jazz artist has won the album
of the year award.
Kanye, who had a leading eight nominations, won four awards:
best rap album for "Graduation," best solo performance for "Stronger,"
best rap song for "Good Life" and best rap performance by a duo or
group for his collaboration with Common on "Southside." Album Of The Year eluded Kanye for the third time.
Winehouse won five awards, including Record Of
The Year and Song
Of The Year for her now-prophetic "Rehab." Winehouse performed live
via satellite from London. She received a visa to enter the United
States too late to
perform on the show in Los Angeles.Kanye's rousing glow-in-the-dark rendition of "Stronger" was
followed by his tear-jerking version of "Hey Mama," a tribute to his
mother, Donda West, who died unexpectedly late last year. "Last night I saw you
in my dreams, and now I can't wait to go to sleep," sang West, dressed
in all black and with MAMA etched into his haircut. Singing with emotion and an obvious heavy heart, West left the
stage with nary a dry eye in the house.
When Kanye accepted the best rap album trophy, the orchestra was
trying to play him off the stage when he began speaking about his
mother. "It would be in good taste to stop the music," West said — and the music stopped. "I appreciate everything and I know you're really proud of me right now and I know you wouldn't want me to stop and you'd want me to be the No. 1 artist in the world and Mama," West continued, "all I'm
going to do is keep making you proud. We run this."
On the heels of presidential contender Barack Obama sweeping weekend caucuses in the states of
Maine, Nebraska, Louisiana, Washington, and the
Virgin Islands,
beating Sen. Hillary Clinton, the junior senator from Illinois beat out
another Clinton. Sen. Obama won the spoken word Grammy for the
audiobook version
of his blockbuster "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming
the American Dream," beating out former president Bill Clinton who was
nominated for "Giving: How Each of
Us Can Change the World". The win marked Sen. Obama's second Grammy
statuette. He had a 2006 Grammy win for "Dreams From My Father. " Also
nominated in the category was another former
Democratic president, Jimmy Carter ("Sunday Morning in Plains: Bringing
Peace to a Changing World"), actor Alan Alda and three-time winner,
poet Maya Angelou. Following is a complete list of winners at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards: Album of the Year: "River: The Joni Letters," Herbie Hancock. Record of the Year: "Rehab," Amy Winehouse. Song of the Year: "Rehab," Amy Winehouse (Amy Winehouse). New Artist: Amy Winehouse. Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Mark Ronson. Pop Vocal Album: "Back to Black," Amy Winehouse. Female Pop Vocal Performance: "Rehab," Amy Winehouse. Male Pop Vocal Performance: "What Goes Around...Comes Around," Justin Timberlake. Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: "Makes Me Wonder," Maroon 5. Pop Collaboration With Vocals: "Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)," Robert Plant & Alison Krauss. Pop Instrumental Album: "The Mix-Up," Beastie Boys. Pop Instrumental Performance: "One Week Last Summer," Joni Mitchell. Traditional Pop Vocal Album: "Call Me Irresponsible," Michael Buble. Alternative Music Album: "Icky Thump," The White Stripes. Rock Album: "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace," Foo Fighters. Rock Song: "Radio Nowhere," Bruce Springsteen, songwriter (Bruce Springsteen). Solo Rock Vocal Performance: "Radio Nowhere," Bruce Springsteen. Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: "Icky Thump," The White Stripes. Hard Rock Performance: "The Pretender," Foo Fighters. Metal Performance: "Final Six," Slayer. Rock Instrumental Performance: "Once Upon a Time in The West," Bruce Springsteen. Rap Album: "Graduation," Kanye West. Rap Solo Performance: "Stronger," Kanye West. Rap Performance by a Duo or Group: "Southside," Common, featuring Kanye West. Rap/Sung Collaboration: "Umbrella," Rihanna Featuring Jay-Z.
Rap Song: "Good Life," Aldrin Davis, Mike Dean, Faheem Najm & Kanye
West, songwriters (J. Ingram & Q. Jones, songwriters) (Kanye West
Featuring T-Pain). Country Album: "These Days," Vince Gill. Country Song: "Before He Cheats," Josh Kear & Chris Tompkins, songwriters (Carrie Underwood). Female Country Vocal Performance: "Before He Cheats," Carrie Underwood. Male Country Vocal Performance: "Stupid Boy," Keith Urban. Country Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: "How Long," Eagles. Country Collaboration With Vocals: "Lost Highway," Willie Nelson & Ray Price. Country Instrumental Performance: "Throttleneck," Brad Paisley. R&B Album: "Funk This," Chaka Khan. R&B Song: "No One," Dirty Harry, Kerry Brothers & Alicia Keys, songwriters (Alicia Keys). Contemporary R&B Album: "Because of You," Ne-Yo. Female R&B Vocal Performance: "No One," Alicia Keys. Male R&B Vocal Performance: "Future Baby Mama," Prince. R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals: "Disrespectful," Chaka Khan, featuring Mary J. Blige. Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: "In My Songs," Gerald Levert. Urban/Alternative Performance: "Daydreamin'," Lupe Fiasco, featuring Jill Scott.
Dance Recording: "LoveStoned/I Think She Knows," Justin Timberlake,
Nate (Danja) Hills, Timbaland & Justin Timberlake, producers; Jimmy
Douglass & Timbaland, mixers. Electronic/Dance Album: "We Are the Night," The Chemical Brothers. Bluegrass Album: "The Bluegrass Diaries," Jim Lauderdale.
Traditional Blues Album: "Last of the Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen:
Live In Dallas," Henry James Townsend, Joe Willie "Pinetop" Perkins,
Robert Lockwood Jr. & David "Honeyboy" Edwards. Contemporary Blues Album: "The Road to Escondido," JJ Cale & Eric Clapton. New Age Album: "Crestone," Paul Winter Consort. Contemporary Jazz Album: "River: The Joni Letters," Herbie Hancock. Jazz Vocal Album: "Avant Gershwin," Patti Austin. Jazz Instrumental Solo: "Anagram," Michael Brecker, soloist. Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group: "Pilgrimage," Michael Brecker. Large Jazz Ensemble Album: "A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina)," Terence Blanchard. Latin Jazz Album: "Funk Tango," Paquito D'Rivera Quintet. Latin Pop Album: "El Tren De Los Momentos," Alejandro Sanz. Latin Rock or Alternative Album: "No Hay Espacio," Black:Guayaba. Latin Urban Album: "Residente O Visitante," Calle 13. Tropical Latin Album: "La Llave De Mi Corazon," Juan Luis Guerra. Mexican/Mexican-American Album: "100 (Percent) Mexicano," Pepe Aguilar. Tejano Album: "Before the Next Teardrop Falls," Little Joe & La Familia. Norteno Album: "Detalles Y Emociones," Los Tigres Del Norte. Banda Album: "Te Va A Gustar," El Chapo. Traditional Folk Album: "Dirt Farmer," Levon Helm. Contemporary Folk/Americana Album: "Washington Square Serenade," Steve Earle. Native American Music Album: "Totemic Flute Chants," Johnny Whitehorse.
Hawaiian Music Album: "Treasures of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar," Various
Artists, Daniel Ho, George Kahumoku Jr., Paul Konwiser & Wayne
Wong, producers. Zydeco or Cajun Music Album: "Live! Worldwide," Terrance Simien & The Zydeco Experience. Reggae: "Mind Control," Stephen Marley. Traditional World Music Album: "African Spirit," Soweto Gospel Choir. Contemporary World Music Album: "Djin Djin," Angelique Kidjo. Polka Album: "Come Share the Wine," Jimmy Sturr and His Orchestra.
Gospel Performance: "Blessed & Highly Favored," The Clark Sisters;
"Never Gonna Break My Faith," Aretha Franklin & Mary J. Blige
(Featuring The Harlem Boys Choir). (Tie.) Gospel Song: "Blessed & Highly Favored," Karen Clark-Sheard, songwriter (The Clark Sisters). Rock or Rap Gospel Album: "Before the Daylight's Shot," Ashley Cleveland. Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album: "A Deeper Level," Israel and New Breed. Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album: "Salt of the Earth," Ricky Skaggs & The Whites. Traditional Gospel Album: "Live -- One Last Time," The Clark Sisters. Contemporary R&B Gospel Album: "Free to Worship," Fred Hammond.
Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other
Visual Media: Love (The Beatles) George Martin & Giles Martin,
producers (Apple Records/Capitol Records). Score Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Ratatouille," Michael Giacchino, composer.
Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media:
"Love You I Do (From Dreamgirls)," Siedah Garrett & Henry Krieger,
songwriters (Jennifer Hudson). Musical Show Album: "Spring
Awakening," Duncan Sheik, producer; Duncan Sheik, composer; Steven
Sater, lyricist (Original Broadway Cast With Jonathan Groff, Lea
Michele & Others). Musical Album for Children: "A Green and Red Christmas," The Muppets. Spoken Word: "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream," Barack Obama. Spoken Word Album for Children: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," Jim Dale. Comedy Album: "The Distant Future," Flight of the Conchords. Instrumental Composition: "Cerulean Skies," Maria Schneider, composer (Maria Schneider Orchestra). Instrumental Arrangement: "In a Silent Way," Vince Mendoza, arranger (Joe Zawinul). Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s): "I'm Gonna Live Till I Die," John Clayton, arranger (Queen Latifah).
Engineered Album, Non-Classical: "Beauty & Crime," Tchad Blake,
Cameron Craig, Emery Dobyns & Jimmy Hogarth, engineers (Suzanne
Vega). Remixed Recording, Non-Classical: "Bring the Noise (Benny Benassi Sfaction Remix)," Benny Benassi, remixer (Public Enemy).
Surround Sound: "Love," Paul Hicks, surround mix engineer; Tim Young,
surround mastering engineer; George Martin & Giles Martin, surround
producers (The Beatles). Classical Album: "Tower: Made in
America," Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Tim Handley, producer; Tim
Handley, engineer/mixer (Nashville Symphony). Orchestral Performance: "Tower: Made in America," Leonard Slatkin, conductor (Nashville Symphony). Producer of the Year, Classical: Judith Sherman.
Engineered Album, Classical: "Grechaninov: Passion Week," John Newton,
engineer (Charles Bruffy, Phoenix Bach Choir & Kansas City Chorale).
Opera Recording: "Humperdinck: Hansel & Gretel," Sir Charles
Mackerras, conductor; Rebecca Evans, Jane Henschel & Jennifer
Larmore; Brian Couzens, producer (Sarah Coppen, Diana Montague &
Sarah Tynan; New London Children's Choir; Philharmonia Orchestra).
Choral Performance: "Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem," Simon Rattle,
conductor; Simon Halsey, chorus master (Thomas Quasthoff & Dorothea
Roschmann; Rundfunkchor Berlin; Berliner Philharmoniker).
Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (With Orchestra):
"Barber/Korngold/Walton: Violin Concertos," Bramwell Tovey, conductor;
James Ehnes (Vancouver Symphony Orchestra). Instrumental Soloist Performance (Without Orchestra): "Beethoven Sonatas, Vol. 3," Garrick Ohlsson. Chamber Music Performance: "Strange Imaginary Animals," Eighth Blackbird.
Small Ensemble Performance: "Stravinsky: Apollo, Concerto in D;
Prokofiev: 20 Visions Fugitives," Yuri Bashmet, conductor; Moscow
Soloists. Classical Vocal Performance: "Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
Sings Peter Lieberson: Neruda Songs," Lorraine Hunt Lieberson (James
Levine; Boston Symphony Orchestra). Classical Contemporary Composition: "Made in America," Joan Tower (Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Nashville Symphony Orchestra). Classical Crossover Album: "A Love Supreme: The Legacy of John Coltrane," Turtle Island Quartet. Short Form Music Video: "God's Gonna Cut You Down," Johnny Cash. Long Form Music Video: "The Confessions Tour," Madonna. Recording Package: "Cassadaga," Zachary Nipper, art director (Bright Eyes). Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: "What It Is!: Funky Soul and Rare Grooves (1967-1977)," Masaki Koike, art director. Album Notes: "John Work, III: Recording Black Culture," Bruce Nemerov, album notes writer.
Historical Album: "The Live Wire -- Woody Guthrie in Performance 1949,"
Nora Guthrie & Jorge Arevalo Mateus, compilation producers; Jamie
Howarth, Steve Rosenthal, Warren Russell-Smith & Dr. Kevin Short,
mastering engineers (Woody Guthrie).
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