Grammy nominations likely to include Winehouse, Springsteen, Underwood and West

Do we trust Grammy voters to nominate the very best recordings of the past year? Not really. But the Recording Academy will go ahead and announce their choices in over 100 categories on December 6. In a less than stellar year in music, I hope Grammy voters (and my fellow colleagues) paid attention to work found on smaller, independent labels. That said, here’s a peek at key categories going into Thursday morning’s nominations.

Record of the Year

Strong contenders:
• “Before He Cheats” -
   Carrie Underwood 
• “Umbrella” -
   Rihanna featuring Jay-Z 
• “Stronger” - Kanye West 
• “Radio Nowhere” -
   Bruce Springsteen 
• “Irreplaceable” - Beyonce

Could surprise:
• “Makes Me Wonder” -
   Maroon 5 
• “Rehab” - Amy Winehouse 
• “Glamorous” - Fergie 
• “What Goes Around” -
   Justin Timberlake 
• “No One” - Alicia Keys

My picks:
• “Before He Cheats” 
• “Stronger” 
• “Rehab” 
• “Keep the Car Running” -
   Arcade Fire 
• “Icky Thump” -
   The White Stripes

Album of the Year

Strong contenders:
• Magic - Bruce Springsteen 
• Graduation - Kanye West 
• Back to Black -
   Amy Winehouse 
• Once Again - John Legend 
• Icky Thump -
   The White Stripes

Could surprise:
• Neon Bible - Arcade Fire 
• Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga - Spoon 
• Not Too Late - Norah Jones 
• It Won’t Be Soon Before Long -
   Maroon 5 
• Memory Almost Full -
   Paul McCartney 
• Revival - John Fogerty

My picks:
• Neon Bible 
• Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga 
• Icky Thump 
• Back to Black 
• Children Running Through -
   Patty Griffin

Best New Artist

Strong contenders:
• Amy Winehouse 
• Daughtry 
• Taylor Swift 
• Robin Thicke
• Sean Kingston

Could surprise:
• Klaxons 
• Jason Isbell 
• Rodney Atkins 
• Colbie Caillat 
• Paul Potts

My picks:
• Amy Winehouse 
• Daughtry 
• Taylor Swift 
• Klaxons 
• White Rabbits

Best Female
Pop Vocal Performance

Strong contenders:
• “Rehab” - Amy Winehouse 
• “Thinking About You” - Norah Jones 
• “Girlfriend” - Avril Lavigne 
• “Glamorous” - Fergie 
• “Say It Right” - Nelly Furtado

Could surprise:
• “U + Ur Hand” - Pink 
• “Smile” - Lily Allen 
• “Bubbly” - Colbie Caillat 
• “Candyman” - Christina Aguilera 
• “Early Winter”- Gwen Stefani

My picks:
• “Rehab” 
• “Girlfriend” 
• “U + Ur Hand” 
• “Jimmy” - M.I.A. 
• “Don’t Stop the Music” - Rihanna

Best Rock Album

Strong contenders:
• Magic - Bruce Springsteen 
• Revival - John Fogerty 
• Echoes  Silence  Patience & Grace -
   Foo Fighters 
• Into the Wild (Soundtrack) -
   Eddie Vedder 
• Sam’s Town - The Killers

Could surprise:
• Minutes to Midnight - Linkin Park 
• Daughtry - Daughtry 
• Libertad - Velvet Revolver 
• Lost Highway - Bon Jovi 
• The Open Door - Evanescence

My picks:
• Magic 
• Easy Tiger 
• Sam’s Town 
• Minutes to Midnight 
• Because of the Times - Kings of Leon

Best Alternative
Music Album

Strong contenders:
• Neon Bible - Arcade Fire 
• Icky Thump - The White Stripes 
• Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga - Spoon 
• The Information - Beck 
• Volta - Bjork

Could surprise:
• American Doll Posse - Tori Amos 
• Cassadaga - Bright Eyes 
• Our Love to Admire - Interpol 
• Favourite Worst Nightmare -
   Arctic Monkeys 
• White Chalk - PJ Harvey 
• Wincing the Night Away - The Shins

My picks:
• Neon Bible 
• Icky Thump 
• Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga 
• Favourite Worst Nightmare 
• Myths of the Near Future - Klaxons