February 12, 2011
Most Celebrated Albums in Grammy History
From Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" to Michael Jackson's "Thriller," take a look back at the albums which gained the most accolades in Grammy history.
From Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" to Michael Jackson's "Thriller," take a look back at the albums which gained the most accolades in Grammy history.
In 2008, Amy Winehouse claimed the Grammy Award for Best New Artist and Album of the Year for her second album Back to Black. The album's smash single "Rehab" won three awards, including Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Song of the Year and Record of the Year.
The seventh studio album for the country trio Dixie Chicks earned them both Album of the Year and Best Country Album in 2006. The album's first commercially released single, "Not Ready to Make Nice," also won in the three categories for which it was nominated; Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
With their fourth studio album in 1983, Toto earned their first Grammy Awards - six in all - including Album of the Year and Producer of the Year. The album also won Record of the Year for its opening track, "Rosanna," which was named for Rosanna Arquette, ex-girlfriend of bandmate Steve Porcaro.
In 2009, the unlikely duo of Led Zeppelin's lead singer Robert Plant and country/bluegrass singer Allison Krauss turned out a critically acclaimed, award-winning album. In addition to the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, the pair claimed Best Country Collaboration with Vocals, Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album, Record of the Year ("Please Read the Letter") and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals ("Rich Woman").
Simon and Garfunkel's fifth and final studio album earned the pop duo five Grammy Awards in 1970, including their first Album of the Year Award. The title track, "Bridge Over Troubled Water," garnered three Grammy statues for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Contemporary Pop Song.
Beyonce's alter ego, Sasha Fierce, took home five Grammy Awards, including Best Contemporary R&B Album. The R&B superstar also claimed Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Halo" and three more for the smash hit "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" (Song of the Year, Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance).
In 1991, famed music producer Quincy Jones' Back on the Block garnered seven Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Producer of the Year. The album's star-studded lineup included jazz, R&B and hip-hop stars helped secure awards in several genres, including Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for the title track (Big Daddy Kane, Ice T, Kool Moe Dee, Melle Mel, Quincy Jones III), Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (Ray Charles, Chaka Khan on "I'll Be Good To You") and Best Jazz Fusion Performance (Joe Zawinul on "Birdland").
Eric Clapton's recording for MTV's Unplugged series earned seven Grammy Awards in 1993, including Album of the Year and Best Rock Male Performance. An acoustic version guitar god's "Layla" enjoyed another successful Billboard chart run and won the Grammy for Best Rock Song. "Tears in Heaven," a tribute to Clapton's son (who died in a fall from a high-rise window at age 4) claimed awards for Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Male Pop Vocal Performance.
All That You Can't Leave Behind is the only album ever to win two consecutive Record of the Year Awards -- "Beautiful Day" in 2001 and "Walk On" in 2002. In all, U2's sixth studio album garnered seven Grammy Awards, but failed to claim the coveted Album of the Year Award.
Michael Jackson's sixth studio album scored eight Grammy Awards in 1984, a record at the time. In addition to Album of the Year, Thriller also won two each for its chart-topping singles, "Beat It" and "Billie Jean." Thriller also won several American Music Awards and MTV Music Video Awards, and is the best-selling album of all time — with an estimated 110 million copies sold worldwide.
Ray Charles' posthumously-released album, Genius Loves Company, was nominated for 10 and won 8 Grammys in 2004, including Album of the Year, and two for the Norah Jones duet "Here We Go Again" (Record of the Year and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals).
Jazz pianist and singer Norah Jones took home eight Grammy Awards in 2003, including Best New Artist. Her debut album, Come Away With Me, claimed eight, including Album of the Year, and Record of the Year and Song of the Year for her critically acclaimed cover of Jesse Harris & the Ferdinandos' "Don't Know Why."
Santana won nine Grammy Awards in 2000, including Album of the Year, three awards for the smash single "Smooth," featuring Matchbox Twenty vocalist Rob Thomas (Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals) and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "Put Your Lights On," featuring Everlast. Supernatural is the most commercially successful of the Latin rock band's 18 studio albums.
U2's eleventh studio album was nominated for nine Grammy Awards and claimed them all. In addition to the 2005 Album of the Year and Song of the Year ("Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own"), the album garnered three 2004 awards for opening track "Vertigo" (Best Rock Performance By a Duo or Group with Vocal, Best Rock Song and Best Music Video). Throughout their career, U2 has won a total of 22 Grammy Awards, the most of any band.