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'O Brother,' Keys, U2 dominate Grammys

(CNN) -- The soundtrack to the movie "O Brother, Where Art Thou?," R&B singer Alicia Keys, and U2 were the big winners at Wednesday's Grammy Awards.

"O Brother," a bluegrass soundtrack that topped the country charts last year, won five Grammys, including an upset award for album of the year, defeating works by U2, Bob Dylan, OutKast and India.Arie. Keys also took home five awards -- including song of the year and best new artist -- and U2 won four, including record of the year.

The "O Brother" crew was pleased with their honors. "It's one happy ending after another," said album producer T Bone Burnett, who was honored with a Grammy as producer of the year earlier in the day.

The album also won best compilation disc, country collaboration with vocals (for "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow"), and best male country vocal. The male country vocal award was the first Grammy ever awarded to 75-year-old Ralph Stanley, who sang "O Death."

The music's popularity and Wednesday's awards proved there is an audience for traditional country music, Burnett said Wednesday afternoon. Country radio shunned the album and most people thought it wouldn't sell, he said.

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"Everybody thought I was insane," he said.

Keys won for song of the year ("Fallin' ") and best new artist, along with best R&B album, female R&B vocal performance and R&B song.

"I'd like to dedicate this to just thinking outside the box and not being afraid of who you are no matter what you do," Keys said after winning best R&B album.

U2 also does well

U2 won four awards. Besides record of the year for "Walk On," the Irish band, which led all nominees with eight nominations, won best rock album for "All That You Can't Leave Behind," and best rock performance by a duo or group with vocal for "Elevation." The band's song "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" won the first award of the evening, best pop performance by a duo or group.

"Being Irish, if you get eight nominations and got no awards they wouldn't let you back in the country," lead singer Bono joked early in the evening. "So this is a public safety issue."

Last year, U2 won song of the year, record of the year and best rock performance by duo or group for the hit single "Beautiful Day." But the album it came from, "All That You Can't Leave Behind," wasn't eligible, so the band is back for more.

The band is no stranger to Grammy fame. In 1987, it won album of the year for "The Joshua Tree."

Acoustic R&B artist India.Arie, who was nominated for seven Grammys, including record of the year, song of the year, and album of the year ("Acoustic Soul"), was shut out.

Rousing performances

U2 opened the show with a performance of "Walk On."

Host Jon Stewart followed, immediately striking a humorous tone with a routine in which he walked through an arch that beeped like an airport security scanner. After being stripped down to his boxers by some beefy guards, he addressed the audience.

"Remember when security was tight because Elton John was going to sing with Eminem?" he asked, referring to last year's duet between the pop star and the controversial rapper.

Not long after, Christina Aguilera. Pink, Lil' Kim, Missy Elliott and Mya performed their Grammy-nominated rendition of "Lady Marmalade." They were joined for the song's climax by hurricane-voiced Patti LaBelle, who first recorded the song in 1975.

That song won the next Grammy awarded, for pop collaboration with vocals, defeating songs by Tony Bennett and Billy Joel, Ricky Martin and Aguilera, Brian McKnight and Justin Timberlake, and Shaggy featuring Ricardo "RikRok" Ducent.

Other performances were equally energetic, though they lacked the buzz of last year's Elton-Eminem duet. Billy Joel and Tony Bennett teamed up for a jazzy version of Joel's "New York State of Mind," and Bob Dylan, looking like a 1950s country gentleman and sounding like a barroom bluesman, also was on hand to sing "Cry Awhile."

Early awards

The majority of Grammys were given out at an afternoon ceremony.

U2
U2 picked up four awards, including record of the year for "Walk On."  

Country and bluegrass artist Alison Krauss and Union Station picked up two Grammys, for country performance by duo or group with vocal and bluegrass album, the latter for the band's "New Favorite." A song they performed, "The Lucky One," picked up a Grammy for best country song for songwriter Robert Lee Castleman.

Lenny Kravitz picked up a Grammy for best male rock vocal for the song "Dig In" from his album "Lenny." It's Kravitz's fourth award, and it was in a category crowded with veterans, including Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and Eric Clapton, along with newcomer Ryan Adams.

Lucinda Williams won her third Grammy, this one for best female rock vocal for "Get Right with God," from her album "Essence." Linkin Park, up for a new artist Grammy, won the award for best hard rock performance. Tool won a Grammy for metal performance, British guitar veteran Jeff Beck won for rock instrumental, and Coldplay won in the alternative music category.

Also winning Grammys: Bob Dylan (contemporary folk album), Sade (pop vocal album), Harry Connick Jr. (traditional pop vocal album), Eric Clapton (pop instrumental performance), OutKast (rap performance by duo or group), and Sonny Rollins (jazz instrumental album).

On the red carpet

As befitting the wide variety of music presented at the Grammys, artists showed up wearing clothes ranging from ritzy to rough.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?
The soundtrack to "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" a 2000 movie starring George Clooney, had won five awards.  

Britney Spears wore a conservative red dress -- a far cry from one of her usual belly-baring numbers, and an either further cry from the snaky getup she wore at the MTV awards last year. Joel and Bennett wore classically tailored tuxedos that wouldn't have looked out of place at a posh supper club.

At the opposite extreme was roots-rocker Ryan Adams, who -- with his sloppily knotted rep tie, T-shirt and unruly hair -- looked like he'd woken up minutes before arriving.

Ageless funkster Bootsy Collins outdid the men -- and most women -- with a brown leather jacket with leopard accents, high-rise hat, and rhinestone-studded glasses with star cutouts.

"The mothership has landed," he told The Associated Press. "This is the way I always dress."

The awards show aired on CBS from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.



 
 
 
 


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