Daft Punk, Macklemore, basic existence of The Beatles win big at 56th Grammy Awards
The music industry celebrated its slow but opulent crawl toward death at last night’s Grammy Awards. The night’s big winner was Daft Punk, who nabbed both Album and Record Of The Year, as well as Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, and cut stark, romantic figures in their matching suits and robot helmets. Random Access Memories also won Best Dance/Electronica Album and Best Engineered LP. Of course, the actual members of Daft Punk—Guy Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter—were tucked away in robot helmets and didn’t actually speak, leaving Williamses Pharrell and Paul to do that for them when it came time to accept awards.
Macklemore And Ryan Lewis also came away with a number of awards, including Best New Artist, Best Rap Song, Best Rap Album, and Best Rap Performance for “Thrift Shop.” While it might seem a bit questionable that the Seattle duo beat out acts like Kanye West, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Jay Z, and ASAP Rocky to nab those hip-hop nods, animosity may have been slightly softened by the duo’s Grammy performance of “Same Love,” which featured Queen Latifah either marrying or remarrying 33 couples, some gay and some straight. And then Madonna came out with a grill and a cane and warbled part of “Open Your Heart.”
Other big winners from the night included Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Pat Smear, who won Best Rock Song for the collaboration “Cut Me Some Slack,” and the adorably awkward Lorde, who won Song Of The Year and Best Vocal Pop Performance. Imagine Dragons both gave an excellent and paint-soaked performance with Kendrick Lamar and won Best Rock Performance, while Led Zeppelin’s Celebration Day won Best Rock Album, beating out hot young rockers like David Bowie, Black Sabbath, and Neil Young. Vampire Weekend’s Modern Vampires Of The City won Best Alternative Album, proving that even Vampire Weekend is an alternative to something.
Other notable performers included Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Jay Z and Beyonce, and Kris Kristofferson, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, and Blake Shelton.
A full list of who won what is below.
RECORD OF THE YEAR
Get Lucky
Daft Punk Featuring Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers
Thomas Bangalter & Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo, producers; Peter Franco, Mick Guzauski, Florian Lagatta & Daniel Lerner, engineers/mixers; Antoine "Chab" Chabert & Bob Ludwig, mastering engineers
Track from: Random Access Memories
Label: Columbia Records
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Random Access Memories
Daft Punk
Julian Casablancas, DJ Falcon, Todd Edwards, Chilly Gonzales, Giorgio Moroder, Panda Bear, Nile Rodgers, Paul Williams & Pharrell Williams, featured artists; Thomas Bangalter, Julian Casablancas, Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo, DJ Falcon & Todd Edwards, producers; Peter Franco, Mick Guzauski, Florian Lagatta, Guillaume Le Braz & Daniel Lerner, engineers/mixers; Antoine "Chab" Chabert & Bob Ludwig, mastering engineers
Label: Columbia Records
SONG OF THE YEAR
Royals
Joel Little & Ella Yelich O'Connor, songwriters (Lorde)
Track from: Pure Heroine
Label: Universal Music; Publishers: Copyright Control/Sony ATV
BEST NEW ARTIST
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
BEST POP SOLO PERFORMANCE
Royals
Lorde
Track from: Pure Heroine
Label: Universal Republic
BEST POP DUO/GROUP PERFORMANCE
Get Lucky
Daft Punk Featuring Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers
Track from: Random Access Memories
Label: Columbia Records
BEST POP INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM
Steppin' Out
Herb Alpert
Label: Shout! Factory
BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM
Unorthodox Jukebox
Bruno Mars
Label: Atlantic
BEST DANCE RECORDING
Clarity
Zedd Featuring Foxes
Zedd, producer; Zedd, mixer
Track from: Clarity
Label: Interscope Records
BEST DANCE/ELECTRONICA ALBUM
Random Access Memories
Daft Punk
Label: Columbia Records
BEST TRADITIONAL POP VOCAL ALBUM
To Be Loved
Michael Bublé
Label: 143/Reprise
BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE
Radioactive
Imagine Dragons
Track from: Night Visions
Label: Kidinakorner/ Interscope
BEST METAL PERFORMANCE
God Is Dead?
Black Sabbath
Track from: 13
Label: Vertigo/Republic
BEST ROCK SONG
Cut Me Some Slack
Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Krist Novoselic & Pat Smear, songwriters (Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, Pat Smear)
Track from: Sound City – Real To Reel
Label: RCA Records / Roswell Records; Publishers: MPL Communications, Inc./M.J.-Twelve
BEST ROCK ALBUM
Celebration Day
Led Zeppelin
Label: Swan Song/Atlantic
BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM
Modern Vampires Of The City
Vampire Weekend
Label: XL Recordings
BEST R&B PERFORMANCE
Something
Snarky Puppy With Lalah Hathaway
Track from: Family Dinner Volume One
Label: Ropeadope Records
BEST TRADITIONAL R&B PERFORMANCE
Please Come Home
Gary Clark Jr.
Track from: Blak And Blu
Label: Warner Bros Records
BEST R&B SONG
Pusher Love Girl
James Fauntleroy, Jerome Harmon, Timothy Mosley & Justin Timberlake, songwriters (Justin Timberlake)
Track from: The 20/20 Experience – The Complete Experience
Label: RCA Records; Publishers: Tennman Tunes/Universal Music- Z – Tunes/Virginia Beach Music/WB Music Corp./Jerome Harmon Publishing/Warner-Chappell Music, Inc./James Fauntleroy Music/Almo Music
BEST URBAN CONTEMPORARY ALBUM
Unapologetic
Rihanna
Label: Def Jam Records
BEST R&B ALBUM
Girl On Fire
Alicia Keys
Label: RCA Records
BEST RAP PERFORMANCE
Thrift Shop
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Featuring Wanz
Track from: The Heist
Label: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis LLC
BEST RAP/SUNG COLLABORATION
Holy Grail
Jay Z Featuring Justin Timberlake
Track from: Magna Carta…Holy Grail
Label: Roc Nation
BEST RAP SONG
Thrift Shop
Ben Haggerty & Ryan Lewis, songwriters (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Featuring Wanz)
Track from: The Heist
Label: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis LLC; Publishers: Macklemore Publishing/Ryan Lewis Publishing
BEST RAP ALBUM
The Heist
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Label: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis LLC
BEST COUNTRY SOLO PERFORMANCE
Wagon Wheel
Darius Rucker
Track from: True Believers
Label: Capitol Records Nashville
BEST COUNTRY DUO/GROUP PERFORMANCE
From This Valley
The Civil Wars
Track from: The Civil Wars
Label: Sensibility Recordings / Columbia Records
BEST COUNTRY SONG
Merry Go 'Round
Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves & Josh Osborne, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves)
Track from: Same Trailer Different Park
Label: Mercury Records
BEST COUNTRY ALBUM
Same Trailer Different Park
Kacey Musgraves
Label: Mercury Records
BEST NEW AGE ALBUM
Love's River
Laura Sullivan
Label: Sentient Spirit Records
BEST IMPROVISED JAZZ SOLO
Orbits
Wayne Shorter, soloist
Track from: Without A Net (The Wayne Shorter Quartet)
Label: Blue Note Records
BEST JAZZ VOCAL ALBUM
Liquid Spirit
Gregory Porter
Label: Blue Note Records
BEST JAZZ INSTRUMENTAL ALBUM
Money Jungle: Provocative In Blue
Terri Lyne Carrington
Label: Concord Jazz
BEST LARGE JAZZ ENSEMBLE ALBUM
Night In Calisia
Randy Brecker, Włodek Pawlik Trio & Kalisz Philharmonic
Label: Summit Records
BEST LATIN JAZZ ALBUM
Song For Maura
Paquito D'Rivera And Trio Corrente
Label: Sunnyside Records/Paquito Records
BEST GOSPEL/CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC PERFORMANCE
Break Every Chain [Live]
Tasha Cobbs
Track from: Grace [Live]
Label: EMI Gospel/ Motown Gospel
BEST GOSPEL SONG
If He Did It Before… Same God [Live]
Tye Tribbett, songwriter (Tye Tribbett)
Track from: Greater Than [Live]
Label: Motown Gospel; Publisher: Everything Fresh Entertainment LLC
BEST CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC SONG
Overcomer
David Garcia, Ben Glover & Christopher Stevens, songwriters (Mandisa)
Track from: Overcomer
Label: Sparrow Records; Publishers: Ariose Music/9T One Songs/Meaux Mercy/LarryDavid Music/Capitol CMG Publishing/Universal Music – Brentwood Benson Publishing/D Soul Music
BEST GOSPEL ALBUM
Greater Than [Live]
Tye Tribbett
Label: Motown Gospel
BEST CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC ALBUM
Overcomer
Mandisa
Label: Sparrow Records
BEST LATIN POP ALBUM
Vida
Draco Rosa
Label: Sony Music Latin
BEST LATIN ROCK, URBAN OR ALTERNATIVE ALBUM
Treinta Días
La Santa Cecilia
Label: Universal Music Latino Y Arju Productions, Inc.
BEST REGIONAL MEXICAN MUSIC ALBUM (INCLUDING TEJANO)
A Mi Manera
Mariachi Divas De Cindy Shea
Label: East Side Records/Shea Records
BEST TROPICAL LATIN ALBUM
Pacific Mambo Orchestra
Pacific Mambo Orchestra
Label: Tumalanmusic / Stefrecords
BEST AMERICAN ROOTS SONG
Love Has Come For You
Edie Brickell & Steve Martin, songwriters (Steve Martin & Edie Brickell)
Track from: Love Has Come For You
Label: Rounder; Publishers: LA Films Music/Brick Elephant Music
BEST AMERICANA ALBUM
Old Yellow Moon
Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell
Label: Nonesuch Records
BEST BLUEGRASS ALBUM
The Streets Of Baltimore
Del McCoury Band
Label: McCoury Music
BEST BLUES ALBUM
Get Up!
Ben Harper With Charlie Musselwhite
Label: Stax
BEST FOLK ALBUM
My Favorite Picture Of You
Guy Clark
Label: Dualtone
BEST REGIONAL ROOTS MUSIC ALBUM
Dockside Sessions
Terrance Simien & The Zydeco Experience
Label: Musicmatters Records
BEST REGGAE ALBUM
Ziggy Marley In Concert
Ziggy Marley
Label: Tuff Gong Worldwide
BEST WORLD MUSIC ALBUM – TIE
Savor Flamenco
Gipsy Kings
Label: Knitting Factory Records
Live: Singing For Peace Around The World
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Label: Ladysmith Black Mambazo
BEST CHILDREN'S ALBUM
Throw A Penny In The Wishing Well
Jennifer Gasoi
Label: Sparkling Productions
BEST SPOKEN WORD ALBUM (INCLUDES POETRY, AUDIO BOOKS & STORYTELLING)
America Again: Re-becoming The Greatness We Never Weren't
Stephen Colbert
Label: Hachette Audio
BEST COMEDY ALBUM
Calm Down Gurrl
Kathy Griffin
Label: Back Lot Music
BEST MUSICAL THEATER ALBUM
Kinky Boots
Billy Porter & Stark Sands, principal soloists; Sammy James Jr., Cyndi Lauper, Stephen Oremus & William Wittman, producers; Cyndi Lauper, composer & lyricist (Original Broadway Cast With Stark Sands, Billy Porter & Others)
Label: Masterworks Broadway
BEST COMPILATION SOUNDTRACK FOR VISUAL MEDIA
Sound City: Real To Reel
Butch Vig, compilation producer
Label: RCA Records/Roswell Records
BEST SCORE SOUNDTRACK FOR VISUAL MEDIA
Skyfall
Thomas Newman, composer
Label: Sony Classical
BEST SONG WRITTEN FOR VISUAL MEDIA
Skyfall
Adele Adkins & Paul Epworth, songwriters (Adele)
Track from: Skyfall
Label: Columbia Records/ XL Recordings; Publishers: Universal Music Publishing Ltd./EMI Music Publishing Ltd.
BEST INSTRUMENTAL COMPOSITION
Pensamientos For Solo Alto Saxophone And Chamber Orchestra
Clare Fischer, composer (The Clare Fischer Orchestra)
Label: Clavo Records
BEST INSTRUMENTAL ARRANGEMENT
On Green Dolphin Street
Gordon Goodwin, arranger (Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band)
Label: Telarc International
BEST INSTRUMENTAL ARRANGEMENT ACCOMPANYING VOCALIST(S)
Swing Low
Gil Goldstein, arranger (Bobby McFerrin & Esperanza Spalding)
Label: Masterworks
BEST RECORDING PACKAGE
Long Night Moon
Sarah Dodds & Shauna Dodds, art directors (Reckless Kelly)
Label: No Big Deal Records
BEST BOXED OR SPECIAL LIMITED EDITION PACKAGE
Wings Over America (Deluxe Edition)
Simon Earith & James Musgrave, art directors (Paul McCartney And Wings)
Label: Hear Music
BEST ALBUM NOTES
Afro Blue Impressions (Remastered & Expanded)
Neil Tesser, album notes writer (John Coltrane)
Label: Pablo/Concord Music Group
BEST HISTORICAL ALBUM – TIE
Charlie Is My Darling – Ireland 1965
Teri Landi, Andrew Loog Oldham & Steve Rosenthal, compilation producers; Bob Ludwig, mastering engineer (The Rolling Stones)
Label: ABKCO
The Complete Sussex And Columbia Albums
Leo Sacks, compilation producer; Joseph M. Palmaccio, Tom Ruff & Mark Wilder, mastering engineers (Bill Withers)
Label: Columbia/Legacy Recordings
BEST ENGINEERED ALBUM, NON-CLASSICAL
Random Access Memories
Peter Franco, Mick Guzauski, Florian Lagatta & Daniel Lerner, engineers; Antoine "Chab" Chabert, Bob Ludwig, mastering engineers (Daft Punk)
Label: Columbia Records
PRODUCER OF THE YEAR, NON-CLASSICAL
Pharrell Williams
BBC (Jay Z) (T) • Blurred Lines (Robin Thicke Featuring T.I. & Pharrell) (S) • Happy (Pharrell Williams) (T) • I Can't Describe (The Way I Feel) (Jennifer Hudson Featuring T.I.) (S) • Nuclear (Destiny's Child) (T) • Oceans (Jay Z Featuring Frank Ocean) (T) • Reach Out Richard (Mayer Hawthorne) (T) • The Stars Are Ours (Mayer Hawthorne) (T)
BEST REMIXED RECORDING, NON-CLASSICAL
Summertime Sadness (Cedric Gervais Remix)
Cedric Gervais, remixer (Lana Del Rey)
Label: Interscope/Polydor UK
BEST SURROUND SOUND ALBUM
Live Kisses
Al Schmitt, surround mix engineer; Tommy LiPuma, surround producer (Paul McCartney)
Label: Eagle Rock Entertainment
BEST ENGINEERED ALBUM, CLASSICAL
Winter Morning Walks
David Frost, Brian Losch & Tim Martyn, engineers; Tim Martyn, mastering engineer (Dawn Upshaw, Maria Schneider, Australian Chamber Orchestra & St. Paul Chamber Orchestra)
Label: ArtistShare
PRODUCER OF THE YEAR, CLASSICAL
David Frost
Andres: Home Stretch (Timo Andres, Andrew Cyr & Metropolis Ensemble) • Angel Heart, A Music Storybook (Matt Haimovitz & Uccello) • Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 2 (Jonathan Biss) • Ben-Haim: Chamber Works (ARC Ensemble) • Celebrating The American Spirit (Judith Clurman & Essential Voices USA) • Elgar: Enigma Variations; Vaughan Williams: The Wasps; Greensleeves (Michael Stern & Kansas City Symphony) • Guilty Pleasures (Renée Fleming, Sebastian Lang-Lessing & Philharmonia Orchestra) • Verdi: Otello (Riccardo Muti, Aleksandrs Antonenko, Krassimira Stoyanova, Carlo Guelfi, Chicago Symphony Chorus & Chicago Symphony Orchestra) • Winter Morning Walks (Dawn Upshaw, Maria Schneider, Australian Chamber Orchestra & St. Paul Chamber Orchestra)
BEST ORCHESTRAL PERFORMANCE
Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 4
Osmo Vänskä, conductor (Minnesota Orchestra)
Label: BIS Records
BEST OPERA RECORDING
Adès: The Tempest
Thomas Adès, conductor; Simon Keenlyside, Isabel Leonard, Audrey Luna & Alan Oke; Jay David Saks, producer (The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus)
Label: Deutsche Grammophon
BEST CHORAL PERFORMANCE
Pärt: Adam's Lament
Tõnu Kaljuste, conductor (Tui Hirv & Rainer Vilu; Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir; Sinfonietta Riga & Tallinn Chamber Orchestra; Latvian Radio Choir & Vox Clamantis)
Label: ECM New Series
BEST CHAMBER MUSIC/SMALL ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE
Roomful Of Teeth
Brad Wells & Roomful Of Teeth
Label: New Amsterdam Records
BEST CLASSICAL INSTRUMENTAL SOLO
Corigliano: Conjurer – Concerto For Percussionist & String Orchestra
Evelyn Glennie; David Alan Miller, conductor (Albany Symphony)
Track from: Corigliano: Conjurer; Vocalise
Label: Naxos
BEST CLASSICAL VOCAL SOLO
Winter Morning Walks
Dawn Upshaw (Maria Schneider; Jay Anderson, Frank Kimbrough & Scott Robinson; Australian Chamber Orchestra & St. Paul Chamber Orchestra)
Label: ArtistShare
BEST CLASSICAL COMPENDIUM
Hindemith: Violinkonzert; Symphonic Metamorphosis; Konzertmusik
Christoph Eschenbach, conductor
Label: Ondine
BEST CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL COMPOSITION
Schneider, Maria: Winter Morning Walks
Maria Schneider, composer (Dawn Upshaw, Jay Anderson, Frank Kimbrough, Scott Robinson & Australian Chamber Orchestra)
Track from: Winter Morning Walks
Label: ArtistShare
BEST MUSIC VIDEO
Suit & Tie
Justin Timberlake Featuring Jay Z
David Fincher, video director; Timory King, video producer
Label: RCA Records
BEST MUSIC FILM
Live Kisses
Paul McCartney
Jonas Åkerlund, video director; Violaine Etienne, Aron Levine & Scott Rodger, video producers
Label: Eagle Rock Entertainment