The 50th GRAMMY Awards!
"Record of the Year"

Irreplaceable (Track from: B'Day)

Beyoncé

'B'Day' is a celebration and a milestone. Soulfully deep, emotionally expansive, musically far reaching and filled with banging beats, muscular rhythms and lyrics that are grown, smart and just flat out sexy, 'B'Day' is the sound of an artist raising the bar. 'B'Day' was brought to fruition by Beyonce, who co-wrote and co-produced the albums 11 songs, with the help of an all-star team which includes Swizz Beatz, Rich Harrison, The Neptunes, Sean Garrett, Star Gate, Jay- Z, Solange Knowles, Angela Beyince, Makeeba and Rodney Jerkins.

The Pretender (Track from: Echoes Silence Patience & Grace)

Foo Fighters

Ithe Foos gently slide from side to side, easing from delicate fingerpicked folk (including "Ballad of the Beaconsfield Miners," an instrumental duet between Dave Grohl and guitarist Kaki King) to the surging, muscular hard rockers that have been the group's modern rock radio signature. Echoes never lingers too long in either camp, as it's sequenced with a savvy professionalism that only veteran rockers have.

Umbrella (Track from: Good Girl Gone Bad)

Rihanna Featuring Jay-Z

The album's lead song, "Umbrella," is her best to date, delivering mammoth if spacious drums, a towering backdrop during the chorus, and vocals that are somehow totally convincing without sounding all that impassioned — an ideal spot between trying too hard and boredom, like she might've been on her 20th take, which only adds to the song's charm. The album's 2nd half is varied and a little heavier on acoustic guitar use, but it's not lacking additional standouts.

What Goes Around…Comes Around (Track from:
Future Sex / Love Sounds)

Justin Timberlake
There is no subtlety to his music, nor is there much style — he's charmless in his affectations, and there's nothing but affectations in his music. At least this accumulation of affectations does amount to a semblance of personality this time around — he's still a slick cipher as a singer, yet he is undeniably an auteur of some sort, one who has created an album that's stilted and robotic, but one who doggedly carries it through to its logical conclusion, so the club jams and slow jams both feel equally distant and calculated.

Rehab (Track from: Back To Black)

Amy Winehouse

With producer Salaam Remi returning from Frank, plus the welcome addition of Mark Ronson (fresh off successes producing for Christina Aguilera and Robbie Williams), Back to Black has a similar sound to Frank but much more flair and spark to it. Winehouse was inspired by girl group soul of the '60s, and fortunately Ronson and Remi are two of the most facile and organic R&B producers active. As before, Winehouse writes all of the songs from her experiences, most of which involve the riotous and bittersweet vagaries of love.