The Grammy Awards ceremony opened with a bang with U2 performing "Walk On," which went on to win Best Pop Song. Bono, the lead singer, is a very quotable guy. He waxes eloquent in almost any situation…what a great showman! On being nominated eight times, Bono waxed philosophical: "It's an extraordinary thing to behold: a rock n' roll band in full flight. The promise that your friendship will survive; that maybe 20 years later you may find yourself on the stage with the people you started out with." After winning the first out of four awards, Bono quipped "Being Irish, if you get eight nominations and don't win anything, they won't let you back into the country." They went on to win Best Rock Duo or Group with Vocal for "Elevation." When Stevie Wonder, Celine Dion and Bonnie Raitt presented U2 with Record of the Year for "Walk On," Bono said "It's a gift rather than a craft. We depend on God walking through the room." I think I'll put Bono on my lunch list.

The night was saturated with sex appeal...as we all know, it's not just about the music anymore. It's about youth and tight abs, hot pants and plunging necklines. Nowadays, forty-year old ghostwriters pen hits for the young performers who are extremely easy on the eyes. Also interesting to note: isn't it ironic that the people who perform at the ceremony are the ones who win, and that they always seem to be waiting backstage? The only exception was India Arie, who was clinging to Bono during the award fanfare, hoping her name would be called, but U2 won again. So much for her not being the "average girl you see on the video" and intermittently shaving her legs…Hey, India, I'm with ya.

Maya, Pink, Little Kim, and Christina Aguilera performed a strip tease version "Lady Marmelade" with guest Patti LaBelle. Miss LaBelle still has the lungs to put the finale over the top, clearly trumping her skinny rivals with her powerful pipes. The sexy superstars soon won for Best Pop Collaboration. (Surprise?) Then Train performed "Drops of Jupiter," which promptly won for Best Rock Song. Alicia Keys, barely 21 years old, had six nominations and took home Best R&B album for "Songs in A Minor," Best New Artist, and Best Female Vocal Performance. She said that the album was a lot of years in the making…seems music is being created in the womb these days. She encouraged young hopefuls to "think outside the box" and to "not be afraid of who you are" and "believe in yourself, believe in your dreams." Having a perfect face doesn't hurt, either. She later gave an inventive hip hop fandango version of her song "Fallin'," which won Song of the Year.

Billy Joel and Tony Bennet, a class act duo, performed "New York State of Mind." Tony is looking good and proves he can still thrill audiences. Britney Spears did not win anything, but she made an appearance as a presenter and seemed to have her own camera...trained on her at all times. Britney and Janet Jackson seem to spend half their lives doing situps when they might spend more time working on their music. N'Sync performed "Won't You Be My Girlfriend," a "West Side Story" style gangsta dance number with rapping rivals. In the great American tradition of elaborate staging and musical hoopla, they danced on car tops while fog machines poured onto the set. In contrast, Canadian Nellie Furtado gave a surprisingly good rendition of "I'm Like a Bird" accompanied by electric guitar, proving that the song can hold its own without immense orchestration.

A favorite of the night was the Soggy Bottom Boys bluegrass offering of "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" with Dan Tyminski. "Bluegrass kicks ass," asserted the Dixie Chicks. It strikes a chord with the patriotic passions of America right now. The album was an unexpected commercial sensation of 2001-its 4 million copies sold made it among the year's top releases. The "O Brother" soundtrack features such artists as Ralph Stanley, Emmylou Harris and Alison Krauss & Union Station, and creates the backdrop to the film's rendition of Homer's "Odyssey" with a trio of escaped convicts on the run in the surly South. Also reminding us of our roots was a bluesy, hoarse performance by folk icon Bob Dylan…how many people do we know in California who named their boy or girl Dylan? Alan Jackson capped off the patriotic proclivity with "Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning?" off his number one selling album "Drive."

Another highlight was when Mary J. Blige sang her hit "No More Drama," which takes its main inspiration from the familiar riff off the soap theme from "The Young and the Restless." To say that she "sang" the song was an understatement. She really throws her whole emotional catalog into her art, delivering a truly gripping performance that ended with a standing ovation. Five-time Grammy nominee OutKast created an instant party onstage with "Ms. Jackson," complete with pint-size break dancers, little girls jumping rope, thunderstorms, and a choir of backup singers. Their latest CD, "Stankonia," won Best Rap Album.

Reverend Al Green capped off the show with a good old-fashioned gospel revival. I guess America really needs to be cheered up by any means possible. When we hurt, we look to music for solace. The National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences has 13,000 voting members who chose our ambassadors. Out of the considerable cornucopia of talent available in the music industry today, it's difficult for even major signed artists to even generate a blip on the radar screen. The Academy always has a formidable task. As usual, they seemed to compromise and overload a few with their accolades, while ignoring talent that doesn't have the millions of investment dollars needed to get noticed--comparable to funding a presidential campaign. Nevertheless, the performances were incredible and the talent they recognized was undeniable. This year was skewed towards remembering our musical heritage with the resurgence of bluegrass, and it seems like we're ready for some happier offerings these days. All in all, it was great entertainment, and that's what it's all about anyway, right?

Leslie Waller is Music Editor of Valley Scene, Internet talk show host of "Sound and Source" at www.filmmusicchannel.com, and she's also the Marketing Manager at West L.A. Music. She composes trip hop spoken word beatnik music that can be found at www.mp3.com/incantare. She has scored several short films and has over 50 radio sound library tracks to her credit. Write to her at lesliew@pacbell.net. Read more music articles by Leslie at www.express-impress.com, hear her music at www.mp3.com/incantare

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