Taylor Swift spoke about Glen Campbell, who recently announced he is suffering from Alzheimer’s and will head out on one final tour. She then introduced a tribute to the singer, which kicked off with The Band Perryperforming their take on Glen’s tune “Gentle on My Mind.” Blake Shelton then took on “Southern Nights” before Glen came out and performed his classic song, “Rhinestone Cowboy.”
Carrie Underwood and Tony Bennett performed their duet of “It Had to Be You” then announced the winner of the GRAMMY for Best New Artist. It went to Bon Iver who said it was hard to accept the award since there is so much talent both in the venue and not there.
Next up was the “In Memoriam” part of the show, where those in the music industry who passed away this past year are remembered. Among them were Any Winehouse, Nick Ashford, Steve Jobs, Nate Dogg, GaryMoore, Clarence Clemons and of course, Whitney Houston. Jennifer Hudson then sang “I Will Always Love You” under a spotlight on the darkened stage with a photo of Whitney high above her. She fought back tears during the chilling performance and was rewarded with a standing ovation.
While standing outside the venue, LL Cool J paid tribute to late Soul Train host Don Cornelius, describing the importance of his contributions to dance and music. Then ?uestlove introduced a performance of today’s dance music – electronic music. First up, Chris Brown came into the tent outside of the Staples Center withDavid Guetta DJing. Breezy sang “I Can Only Imagine” as the audience waved glowing tubes. Lil Wayneperformed his verse then Foo Fighters played “Rope.” After a bit, Deadmau5 remixed the track as the Foo Fighters continued singing it. Then he played his single, “Raise Your Weapon.”
Drake introduced Nicki Minaj who started to sing “Roman’s Revenge” before a movie played with the singer climbing walls, in need of an exorcism. Minaj then performed “Roman Holiday” while standing with her arms up and strapped to a board. She freed herself and stepped onto the stage, which was set like a church interior. She floated upward on her back and ended the set mid-air.
Lady Antebellum announced the winner of Record of the Year. The trophy went to Adele for “Rolling in the Deep.” This time on the stage, she thanked radio programmers for playing the song.
Diana Ross presented the Album of the Year award to, who else, Adele for 21. Once again, the singer took the stage, hugging Diana and LL Cool J. This time, however, she was very emotional. She thanked her mother and producer Rick Rubin. She said the album is about something everyone has dealt with, a “rubbish relationship” and noted how this has been a “life-changing year.” Then she commented on how she had a little bit of snot coming out of her nose.
Paul McCartney closed out the show with some of “Medley” from The Beatles’ Abbey Road album. The singer took on “Golden Slumbers,” “Carry That Weight” and “The End.” For the last part, Paul was joined on guitar by the likes of Joe Walsh, Dave Grohl and Bruce Springsteen, who all traded off solos with the legendary Beatle and his band members.
WHAT YOU DIDN’T SEE…
The Foo Fighters treated fans in the tent outside the Staples Center to a rendition of Wings’ “Jet” before playing “Walk” on the GRAMMY telecast. Dave Grohl also teased Van Halen’s “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love.”
