Winners in the 63rd Grammy Awards’ American Roots Music Field were recognized during a Premiere Ceremony that took place prior to The Recording Academy’s televised awards show on Sunday, March 14, 2021 from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, while singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile paid tribute to the late John Prine, one of the winners, during the awards show that aired on CBS television stations.
Prine, an internationally acclaimed and revered singer-songwriter who toured and plied his craft for nearly 50 year, posthumously received a Grammy for Best American Roots Performance for “I Remember Everything” and shared the Grammy for it as Best American Roots Song with co-writer Pat McLaughlin. Americana and folk-rock singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile performed the song during the telecast in honor of Prine, who died last April 7 at the age of 73 from complications of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
Here’s a link to view Brandi Carlile’s performance:
“John Prine is a hero and one of the most important and significant songwriters of our time,” said Carlile, who was, herself, the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards in February 2019, with Grammy Awards for Best American Album, Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song. “I feel so lucky to have called him a friend. It was an absolute honor of my life to pay tribute to him on the Grammy Stage. His songs will live forever.”
Brandi Carlile performs John Prine’s “I Remember Everything” during the 63rd Grammy Awards Show. (Photo courtesy of Oh Boy Records)
Known for his well crafted, observant, often-humorous story songs featuring indelible characters and vivid imagery. Prine previously won Grammy Awards for his albums The Missing Years (1991) and Fair and Square (2005) and was honored by The Recording Academy with its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020.
“My sons and I thank The Recording Academy for recognizing John’s final recording. Brandi’s beautiful performance was perfect,” said Fiona Prine, his widow. “We miss John but are grateful too for the incredible legacy he left us – songs to enjoy and to learn about his capacity to love unconditionally.”
Named as Best Americana Album was World on the Ground by Sarah Jarosz, a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist (mandolin, claw hammer banjo and guitar) who previously won Grammy Awards for Best Folk Album and Best American Roots Music Performance in 2017, was an occasional guest host on Garrison Keillllor’s A Prairie Home Companion, and also has performed with Sara Watkins and Aoife O’Donovan in the trio I’m With Her.
All The Good Times by Gillian Welch & David Rawlings won the Grammy Award for Best Folk Album. The Nashville-based acoustic roots artists — whose music fuses elements of Appalachian, old time, classic country, bluegrass and Americana — are also recipients of the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting (2015), while she was named Artist of the Year (2012) in its Americana Music Honors & Awards.
The Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album went to Billy Strings for Home. He was previously named Guitar Player of the Year in the 2019 International Bluegrass Music Awards.
Blues Hall of Famer Bobby Rush’s Rawer Than Raw, was chosen as Best Traditional Blues Album — an honor the 87-year-old bluesman previously won for Porcupine Meat in 2017 — while the award for Best Contemporary Blues Album went to Fantastic Negrito for Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? The singer-songwriter also won the award in 2017 for The Last Days of Oakland.
New Orleans Nightcrawlers’ Atmosphere was named Best Regional Roots Album. It’s the first Grammy Award for the brass band.
Other Grammy Award winners that may be of particular interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers include:
Best Country Song: “Crowded Table,” written by Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hembry and Lori McKenna for The Highwomen – a group featuring Carlile, Hembry, Amanda Shires and Maren Morris that burst on the country-American scene during the 2019 Newport Folk Festival and was the big winner in the 2020 American Awards & Honors — taking home awards for Album, Song (“Crowded Table”) and Duo/Group of the Year.
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: American Standard by James Taylor
Best Music Film: Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
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