And now for a few of our own award winners from the night’s nationally televised performances, speeches and other tomfoolery:
The saints go marching in: The Black Keys stormed down the streets of Treme, rocking up “Lonely Boy” with a jazz band and Dr. John in ceremonial, feathered “Night Tripper” head dress.
Revenge of the nerds: Though fun. often comes across as just another bland pop-rock band in the tradition of Train, matchbox20 and Hootie and the Blowfish, at least they have a self-deprecating sense of humor. In winning song of the year for “We are Young” over some strong competition, fun. singer Nate Ruess acknowledged, "We are not very young" and guitarist Jack Antonoff thanked "our families” who “let us live at home" for 12 years.
Best promotional plug: Justin Timberlake paved the way for his new album by fusing a ‘40s Cotton Club vibe, with the musicians and backing singers arrayed behind him on a Duke Ellington-style band stand, and then brought out Jay-Z, while channeling some Michael Jackson falsetto.
Least likely acid head: Taylor Swift got her surrealism on as she opened the broadcast by recasting her single “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” as a kind of Little Bunny Foo Foo/Alice in Wonderland fantasia. Somewhere Lady Gaga was cackling. It sure put a new spin on Swift’s ultra-earnest, ultra-confessional singer-songwriter persona. Could a meat dress be next?
Country time machine: Last year it was electronic dance music, so this year the Grammys took a hard right and went for some Nashville twang as they presented a series of country entertainers. Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley may have been playing new tunes from their recent albums, but they weren’t that far removed from vintage ‘70s-style country-rockers.
Soul lives: Dapper Miguel, on bended kneed, crooned “Adore,” even with the distraction of Wiz Khalifa, who seemed greatly under-utilized in one of those duets-that-didn't work.
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Live Grammy Awards updates from the LA Times:
8:22 p.m. (Central time): A clearly nervous Frank Ocean accepted his Grammy for urban contemporary album. He made a nod to the old adage that you imagine a crowd naked if you want to calm your nerves, but the adventurous artist said, “I want to look at you as kids in tuxedos and being fancy and all that.” In the category, he was competing against albums from Miguel and Chris Brown. Ocean and Brown, of course, were recently in the gossip pages, but Pop & Hiss is going to try and mention’s the latter’s name as little as possible tonight. OK, just one last time: Our reporters in Staples Center tell us that it was dead silent when Brown’s name was read.
8:20 p.m.: The Grammy for rock performance goes to the Black Keys' "Lonely Boy."
8:15 p.m.: Justin Timberlake has a new album -- his first since 2006 -- and it will be treated as a Super Bowl-like event all year by the industry. Though he has six Grammys to his name, Timberlake isn’t here to celebrate a nomination; he is here to promote his upcoming “The 20/20 Experience.” Said Beyoncé, “This performance marks the return of a man born to make music.”
And yes, it was Timberlake who nearly an hour into the show gave this Grammy telecast something to cheer about. His “Suit & Tie” was old-school refined, like a soul song rescued from the mid-‘70s. Timberlake is maturing into a rather fine R&B singer, and “Suit & Tie” sounded even better live than it does on record. This isn’t a song that caters to the latest production trends, but instead celebrates traditional songcraft. Still, it does not need a verse from Jay-Z. But even better was “Pusher Love Girl,” a call-and-response big-band number more suited for a jazz club than a dance club. It was a worthy tease for “The 20/20 Experience,” as Timberlake seemed more suited for the Cotton Club than the pop charts.
8:12 p.m.: The Grammy for urban contemporary album goes to Frank Ocean's "Channel Orange."
8:03 p.m.: With Fun. winning song of the year, the race for album of the year has opened up a bit. Fun. should still be considered a long shot, but this will add some drama to the new artist category, where Fun. will battle Frank Ocean. Nevertheless, the band gave an enjoyable acceptance -- one that was far more entertaining than its earlier performance -- as band members referenced having to spend a decade living with their parents. “If this is in HD, everyone can see our faces, and we are not very young,” said singer Nate Ruess. “We’ve been doing this for 12 years.”
Up next was arena folk band Mumford & Sons to perform its “I Will Wait.” This is the acoustic equivalent of a superhero action film. It starts with a bang and gets faster and faster and louder and louder until suddenly it’s not. And then -- boom -- it’s back to furious strumming. Having to write, I didn’t look up until the end of the performance, and that was when I finally noticed a horn section was performing with the band, as most sounds were drowned out by the rush.
7:51: Song of the year goes to Fun.'s "We Are Young" featuring Janelle Monae.
7:47 p.m.: When the Grammys get things right, they still manage to get things wrong. Miguel is an R&B voice worth paying attention to. He’s old-fashioned without being tied to a time period and knows how to swing and soon with deftness. He’s the exact sort of newer voice the Grammys should be championing, but here they paired him with rapper Wiz Khalifa for his "Adorn," as if producers were unsure whether Miguel was a big-enough name to appear solo. Yes, Khalifa is on the song’s remix, but let Miguel have the spotlight for his song of the year-nominated tune.
Moments later, Carrie Underwood received the award for country solo performance for her “Blown Away.”
7:43 p.m.: Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley, who just happen to be touring together (golly, what a coincidence) gave the Grammys their first medley of the night. Underneath what looked like a giant dead Christmas tree, Lambert sang her ballad “Over You.” Lambert’s better when she’s pretending she’s crazy, but her voice isn’t anything to trifle with. Yet by the time Bentley appeared onstage, Lambert’s melody was starting to sound too close to Tom Petty’s “Free Falling” to not be daydreaming of better songs. Bentley’s “Home,” however, was a real mismatch here. With its images of blood-scarred landscapes, this is a song written to be played at military tributes, not awards shows.
Grammy Awards: Fun., Frank Ocean, Adele win
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