The 53rd annual Grammy Awards brought together the music biz’s biggest names at the Staples Center in Los Angeles Sunday, with the night’s performances proving to be amazing but the awards going to some surprising recipients.
Yolanda Adams, Martina McBride, Christina Aguilera, Florence Welch and Jennifer Hudson started off the night with a lengthy tribute to Aretha Franklin, singing a medley of the legend’s many soulful hits. Franklin, who has won 18 Grammy Awards, appeared in a taped video segment. She could not attend because she is recovering from surgery for an undisclosed condition.
The first of the 109 awards given out during the three-and-a-half hour show, Best Pop Performance by a Group or Duo, went to Train for “Hey, Soul Sister,” with lead singer Pat Monahan joking, “Thanks, Justin Beiber, for not being a duo or group.”
Lady Gaga, who won Best Pop Vocal Album for “The Fame Monster,” arrived on the red carpet in a jumbo-sized egg, “incubating” for the night’s much-anticipated performance of her new single, “Born This Way.”
According to Ryan Seacrest on the E! “Red Carpet” show, Mama Monster had been “incubating” for three hours before the show, equipped with her Blackberry, an oxygen mask and a fan to fight the L.A. heat.
Perhaps the most anticipated appearance of the show, Gaga, who opened last year’s Grammys alongside Elton John in an awe-inspiring and glamorous mashup of “Poker Face,” “Speechless” and John’s “Your Song,” solidly showcased her new smash hit but didn’t shock or add any expected “wow” to her act. Dressed in a Jane from Tarzan-esque, canary yellow get-up, Gaga left die-hard fans wanting a little more.
Country artist Miranda Lambert, who had three nominations and won her first Grammy ever for Female Country Vocal, kept things a little more low-key, delivering a heart-warming performance of “The House That Built Me,” complete with an introduction from hubby Blake Shelton and a slide show of childhood photos rolling throughout the sentimental song.
British rock band Muse, which won the night’s award for Best Rock Album, picked things back up with “Uprising.” Lead singer, guitarist and pianist Matthew Bellamy, who has recently gained fame as actress Kate Hudson’s “baby daddy,” looked and sounded sharp in a silver sequin blazer, while playing a two-neck guitar.
In what might have been the most epic showing of the evening, Mumford & Sons, The Avett Brothers and the legendary Bob Dylan took the stage for respective performances of “The Cave,” “Head Full of Doubt / Road Full of Promise” and a collaborative “Maggie’s Farm.” It was quite amazing to see the ruby-red curtain and 20-somethings equipped with banjos, acoustic guitars, basses and keyboards, backing up the 69-year-old rocker, despite Dylan’s rough-around-the-edges vocals.
Lady Antebellum cleaned up for the night with five awards, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year for “Need You Now,” shocking many by beating out the likes of Eminem and Cee Lo Green.
Green, dressed like something between Big Bird and Elton John, was accompanied on stage by Gwyneth Paltrow for a winning performance of his hit single “Forget You,” followed by a stripped-down and rather sweet swing-top song by Katy Perry, leading into a crowd-pleasing “Teenage Dream.” Rihanna, Adam Levine, Eminem, Skylar Grey and Dr. Dre joined forces for a fierce act, which lived up to all expectations.
The night came to a close with more shocking awards, including Esperanza Spalding in the category of Best New Artist. Beating out Mumford & Sons, Justin Beiber, and Florence + The Machine, who had all performed earlier in the night, the jazz artist had viewers across the country asking, “Who?”
Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire was an odd choice for a closing performance, almost inducing seizures with strobe lights flashing to the rhythm of single “Month of May.” The band continued to stun, taking home the Grammy for Album of the Year for “The Suburbs” against superpowers Lady Gaga, Eminem, Lady Antebellum and Katy Perry. The members of Arcade Fire, also stunned by the win, ran back to their microphones for an encore performance, as lead singer Win Butler shouted, “We are going to play another song because we like music!” to the crowd.
This year’s Grammys were certainly impressive, with ingenious collaborations and unmatchable performances rounding out the night. Although the actual awards came as a surprise to many, the winning acts were gracious and talented.