The 2008 Grammys

I didn't get much of a chance to comment on the Grammy Awards, so why don't I do that right now?

Herbie Hancock, in a major surprise, won the Album of the Year Grammy for his tribute to Joni Mitchell, River: The Joni Letters, which featured performers such as Corinne Bailey Rae and Norah Jones offering gentle renditions of Ms. Mitchell’s songs. It was the first time in 43 years that a jazz album won the Album of the Year award, and prize, and though the National Academy of the Arts and Sciences got mildly criticized for not honoring a more contemporary album - instead, honoring one veteran performer paying tribute to another - it was a testament both to Hancock's musicianship and the quality of Mitchell's songs and how they lend themselves to such diverse musical interpretation.

There was also a tribute to the Beatles - there's been a tribute to the Beatles going on somewhere in the world since at least 1971 - in which the acrobatic cast of the Cirque du Soleil production "Love," based on the group's music, performed, to be followed by the performers from the Julie Taymor-directed film musical Across the Universe singing "Let It Be" on a full stage - "under glowing circular peace signs," one source reported. (I didn't see the actual awards show, but then I understand that most people didn't.)

The Beatles remix album Love, comprised of remixes used in the Cirque de Soleil show, won the Grammy for best compilation soundtrack album. Ringo Starr accepted the award with the Beatles’ producer George Martin, nearly 45 years to the day after the group recorded their first album. Martin, the quintessential British gentleman, is 82, and the ideas for "new" Beatles releases have likely been played out.

This - not Paul McCartney's impending divorce - marked the end of an era.