Grammy predix: Coldplay, Alicia Keys, the Eagles and Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are front-runners for best-album award
Those are the bold forecasts of our resident sages and the moderators of our Grammy forum, David "Guru" Schnelwar and Darrin "DoubleD" Dortch. See and compare their lists below. Also, check out their views on the race for record of the year - CLICK HERE.
ALBUM OF THE YEAR - GURU'S PREDIX
(Front-runners)
"Viva la Vida" -- Coldplay
"Long Road Out of Eden" -- The Eagles
"As I Am -- Alicia Keys
"Raising Sand" -- Robert Plant & Alison Krauss
(Possibles)
"Rockferry" -- Duffy
"Lay It Down" - -Al Green
"Tha Carter III" -- Lil Wayne
"Hard Candy" -- Madonna
"In Rainbows" -- Radiohead
(Long shots)
"Modern Guilt" -- Beck
"Exclusive" -- Chris Brown
"E=MC2" -- Mariah Carey
"Detours" -- Sheryl Crow
"Home Before Dark" -- Neil Diamond
"American Gangster" -- Jay-Z
"Sleeping Through The Static" -- Jack Johnson
"Two Men With the Blues" -- Willie Nelson & Wynton Marsalis
"Accelerate" - R.E.M.
ALBUM OF THE YEAR - DOUBLED'S PREDIX
(Front-runners)
"As I Am," Alicia Keys
"Long Road Out of Eden," The Eagles
"Raising Sand," Alison Krauss & Robert Plant
"Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends," Coldplay
(Possibles)
"Detours," Sheryl Crow
"Hard Candy," Madonna
"Tha Carter III," Lil Wayne
(Long shots)
"In Rainbows," Radiohead
"Lay It Down," Al Green
"Rockferry," Duffy
Commentary by DoubleD: The Eagles released their comeback record last year to good reviews and monster sales. They've only won four Grammys to date (including a win earlier this year) and I suspect NARAS will play catch-up with them. Keys is the epitome of a Grammy favorite and "As I Am" is one of the most successful discs of the eligibility period; she's in. Coldplay returned strong with a solid album and excellent sales and will surely make the cut. Krauss has won a staggering 21 Grammys and her critically hailed duet album with Robert Plant, which already won them a pop collaboration Grammy earlier this year, will definitely get them recognized here.
The last spot is tricky. Will voters be able to ignore the breakout success of Lil Wayne? Can headline-grabbing, recent Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Madonna sneak in? Crow made the best, most socially conscious album of her career, yet audiences didn't bite. Will voters shun her too? Radiohead, a previous nominee here, and best new artist contender Duffy are the critically acclaimed indie acts that NARAS sometime throw into this category. And Al Green's critically acclaimed disc could get him an overdue, veteran spot in this race much like Herbie Hancock earlier this year.
