1985 Grammy Awards Database

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1985 Grammy Awards

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About The Show

This is truly the grand-daddy of all awards shows. The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences recognizes outstanding musical achievements. The Grammys always prove to be a night of spectacle and performance that truly can't be missed.

Host: John Denver
Date: February 25, 1985
City: Los Angeles

This Year's Performers

The Nominees

Album Of The Year

Best Album Notes

Best Album Of Original Score Written For A Motion Picture Or Television Special

  • Winner:
    Prince & the Revolution, John L. Nelson, Lisa & Wendy     Purple Rain
  • Ray Parker Jr., Kevin O'Neal, Brian O'Neal, Bobby Alessi, David Immer, Tom Bailey, Graham Russell, David Foster, Jay Graydon, Diane Warren & the Doctor Mick Smiley, Elmer Bernstein Ghostbusters
  • Phil Collins, Stevie Nicks, Peter Gabriel, Stuart Adamson, Mike Rutherford, August Darnell, Michel Colombier, Larry Carlton Against All Odds
  • Michel Legrand, Alan Bergman, Marilyn Bergman Yentl
  • Bill Wolfer, Dean Pitchford, Kenny Loggins, Tom Snow, Sammy Hagar, Michael Gore, Eric Carmen, Jim Steinman Footloose

Best Album Package

Best Arrangement On An Instrumental

Best Cast Show Album

  • Jimmy McHugh, Arthur Malvin, Dorothy Fields, George Oppenheim, Harold Adamson, music and lyrics Sugar Babies

Best Chamber Music Performance

  • Winner:
    Juilliard String Quartet     Beethoven: The Late String Quartets
  • Itzhak Perlman, Daniel Barenboim Mozart: Violin Sonatas K. 301-4
  • Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Ikwhan Bae, Carol Shive, Karen Dreyfus, Fred Sherry Corea: Lyric Suite for Sextet
  • Guarneri Quartet, Pinchas Zukerman Brahms: The String Quintets in F & G
  • The Cleveland Quartet with Emanuel Ax Brahms: Piano Quintet in F Minor, Op. 34

Best Choral Performance

  • Winner:
    Margaret Hillis, choral conductor, Chicago Symphony Chorus; James Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony     Brahms: A German Requiem
  • Riccardo Chailly conducting the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus; Cleveland Orchestra Prokofiev: Alexander Nevsky, Op. 78
  • Riccardo Chailly conducting the RSO Berlin Chorus; RSO Berlin Orchestra Orff: Carmina Burana
  • Christopher Hogwood conducting the Westminster Cathedral Boys' Choir; Chorus and Orchestra of the Academy of Ancient Music Mozart: Requiem
  • Simon Rattle conducting the City of Birmingham Orchestra Chorus and Boys of Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford; City of Birmingham Symphony Britten: War Requiem

Best Classical Album

  • Winner:
    Neville Marriner conducting the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields; Ambrosian Opera Chorus; Choristers of Westminster Abbey; soloists     Amadeus (soundtrack)
  • Raymond Leppard conducting the English Chamber Orchestra (solos: Wynton Marsalis, Edita Gruberova) Wynton Marsalis, Edita Gruberova: Handel, Purcell, Torelli, Fasch, Molter
  • Leonard Slatkin conducting the St. Louis Symphony Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 in B Flat, Op. 100
  • James Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus (solos: Kathleen Battle, Hakan Hagegard) Brahms: A German Requiem
  • James Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony (solo: Alfred Brendel) Beethoven: The 5 Piano Concertos

Best Classical Orchestral Recording

  • Winner:
    Leonard Slatkin conducting the St. Louis Symphony     Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 in B Flat, Op. 100
  • Morton Gould conducting the American Symphony Gould: Burchfield Gallery and Apple Waltzes
  • Neville Marriener conducting the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields Amadeus (soundtrack)
  • James Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony Schubert: Symphony No. 9 in C Major (The Great)
  • Georg Solti conducting the Chicago Symphony Mahler: Symphony No. 4 in G Major
  • Claudio Abbado conducting the Chicago Symphony Berlioz: Symphony Fantastique, Op. 14

Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist(s) With Orchestra

  • Winner:
    Wynton Marsalis, Edita Gruberova (Leppard conducting the English Chamber Orchestra)     Wynton Marsalis, Edita Gruberova: Handel, Purcell, Torelli, Fasch, Molter
  • Itzhak Perlman (Barenboim conducting the Orchestre de Paris) Wieniawski: Violin Concerto No. 2 in D Minor, Op. 22; Saint-Saens: Violin Concerto No. 3 in B Minor,
  • Julian Bream (Gardiner conducting the Chamber Orchestra of Europe) Rodrigo: Concierto de Aranjuez, Invocation and Dance; 3 Spanish Pieces (Music of Spain, Vol. 8)
  • Emanuel Ax (Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony) Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor
  • Alfred Brendel (Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony) Beethoven: The 5 Piano Concertos

Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist(s) Without Orchestra

Best Classical Performance - Vocal Soloist

  • Winner:
    Jessye Norman, Jose van Dam, Heather Harper (Boulez conducting the members of the Ensemble Intercontemporain and BBC Symphony)     Ravel: Songs of Maurice Ravel
  • Kiri Te Kanawa (Solti conducting the Chicago Symphony) Mahler: Symphony No. 4 in G Major, 4th Movement
  • Jessye Norman (Maazel conducting the Wiener Philharmonic) Mahler: Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
  • Dame Janet Baker (George Parsons, accompanist) Mahler's Songs of Youth
  • Hakan Hagegard, Kathleen Battle (James Levine, accompanist) Brahms: Songs of Brahms

Best Comedy Recording

Best Country & Western Performance - Duo Or Group With Vocal

Best Country & Western Song

Best Country & Western Vocal Performance - Female

Best Country & Western Vocal Performance - Male

Best Country Instrumental Performance

Best Engineered Recording

Best Engineered Recording - Classical

  • Winner:
    Slatkin conducting the St. Louis Symphony     Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5 in B Flat, Op. 100
  • Leppard conducting the English Chamber Orchestra; solo: Marsalis, Editz, Gruberova Wynton Marsalis, Edita Gruberova: Handel, Purcell, Torelli, Fasch, Molter
  • Solti conducting the Chicago Symphony; solo: Te Kanawa Mahler: Symphony No. 4 in G Major
  • Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony; solo: Ax Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor
  • Levine conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus; solo: Battle, Hagegard Brahms: A German Requiem

Best Ethnic Or Traditional Folk Recording

  • Winner:
    Elizabeth Cotten     Elizabeth Cotten Live!
  • Rocking Dopsie Good Rockin'
  • Queen Ida On a Saturday Night
  • Boys of the Lough Open Road
  • Buckwheat Zydecko 100% Fortified Zydeco

Best Gospel Performance - Duo Or Group

  • Winner:
    Debby Boone, Phil Driscoll     Keep the Flame Burning
  • Petra Not Of This World
  • New Gaither Vocal Band New Point of View
  • Steve Camp, Michele Pillar Love's Not a Feeling
  • Mylon LeFevre, Broken Heart Live Forever

Best Gospel Performance - Female

Best Gospel Performance - Male

Best Historical Album

Best Inspirational Performance

Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)

Best Instrumental Composition

Best Jazz Fusion Performance - Vocal Or Instrumental

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance - Big Band

  • Winner:
    Count Basie & His Orchestra     88 Basie Street
  • Woody Herman Big Band World Class
  • Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra Ten Gallon Shuffle
  • Carla Bley Band Misterioso
  • Bob Florence Limited Edition Magic Time

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance - Group

  • Winner:
    Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers     New York Scene
  • Clare Fischer Whose Woods Are These
  • Frank Foster, Frank Wess Two for the Blues
  • Phil Woods, Chris Swansen Piper at the Gates of Dawn
  • Philly Joe Jones Dameronia: Look Stop Listen

Best Jazz Instrumental Performance - Soloist

Best Jazz Vocal Performance

Best Latin Pop Performance

Best Mexican-american Performance

Best New Classical Composition

  • Winner:
    Samuel Barber     Antony and Cleopatra
  • Vincent Persichetti Winter Cantata
  • Morton Gould Apple Waltzes
  • Joseph Schwantner Magabunda (4 Poems of Agueda Pizzaro)
  • Frank Zappa The Perfect Stranger

Best Opera Recording

  • Winner:
    Loren Maazel conducting the Orchestre National de France; Choeurs et Maitrise de Radio France (solos: Julia Migenes-Johnson, Faith Esham, Placido Domingo, Ruggero Raimondi)     Bizet: Carmen (film soundtrack)
  • Riccardo Muti conducting the Coro e Orchestra del Teatro alla Scala (solos: Placido Domingo, Mirella Freni, Renato Bruson, Nicolai Ghiaurov) Verdi: Ernani
  • Colin Davis conducting the members of the Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden (solos: Helen Donath, Heather Harper, Robert Tear) Britten: The Turn of the Screw
  • Charles Mackerras conducting the Vienna Philharmonic (solos: Elisabeth Soderstrom, Peter Dvorsky, Wieslav Ochman, Eva Randova) Janacek: Jenufa
  • Bernard Haitink conducting the London Philharmonic; Glyndebourne Chorus (solos: Thomas Allen, Carole Vaness, Richard Van Allan, Maria Ewing, Elizabeth Gale, Keith Lewis, John Rawnsley, Dimitri Kavrakos) Mozart: Don Giovanni

Best Pop Instrumental Performance

Best Recording For Children

  • Winner:
    Where the Sidewalk Ends     Shel Silverstein
  • Singsational Servants Kids Praise 4
  • Flashbeagle Peanuts
  • Agapleland at Play with Holly Heart Holly Heart
  • film soundtrack The Muppets Take Manhattan

Best Reggae Recording

Best Rhythm & Blues Song

Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Duo Or Group

  • Winner:
    James Ingram, Michael McDonald     Yah Mo B There
  • Joyce Kennedy, Jeffrey Osborne The Last Time I Made Love
  • Jermaine Jackson, Michael Jackson Tell Me I'm Not Dreamin' (Too Good to Be True)
  • Kashif, Al Jarreau Edgartown Groove
  • Shalamar Dancing In The Sheets

Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Female

Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance - Male

Best Rock Instrumental Performance

Best Rythm & Blues Instrumental Performance

Best Soul Gospel Performance - Duo Or Group

Best Soul Gospel Performance - Female

Best Soul Gospel Performance - Male

Best Spoken Word Or Nonmusical Recording

  • Winner:
    Ben Kingsley     The Words of Gandhi
  • Rev. Jesse Jackson Our Time Has Come
  • Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close The Real Thing (Broadway Cast)
  • John Lennon, Yoko Ono Heart Play (Unfinished Dialogue)

Best Traditional Blues Recording

Best Tropical Latin Performance

  • Winner:
    Palo Pa Rumba     Eddie Palmieri
  • Y Ahora! Los Socios del Ritmo
  • Criollo Willie Colon
  • Buscando America Ruben Blades
  • Breaking the Ice El Gran Combo
  • Bien Sabroso! Poncho Sanchez

Best Video - Short Form

Best Video Album

Best Vocal Arrangement For Two Or More Voices

Classical Producer Of The Year

  • Winner:
    Steven Epstein
  • Robert E. Woods
  • Jay David Saks
  • Marc Aubort, Joanna Nickrenz
  • Thomas Z. Shepard

Hall Of Fame

Lifetime Achievement Awards

New Artist

Pop Female Vocalist

Pop Male Vocalist

Pop Vocal Group

Producer Of The Year

  • Winner: David Foster
  • Winner:
    Lionel Richie, James Anthony Carmichael
  • Michael Omartian
  • Robert John Mutt Lange, Cars
  • Prince & the Revolution

Record Of The Year

Rock Female Vocalist

Rock Male Vocalist

Rock Vocal Group

Song Of The Year

Trustees Award

  • Winner:
    Eldridge R. Johnson
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