Grein on Grammy snubs

GRAMMY SNUBS & SURPRISES: It’s hardly surprising that Beer and Trakin’s Grammy nomination picks were way off this year, but even Grammy guru Paul Grein, who was kind enough to give us his picks last week, was flummoxed by the number of curve balls thrown by the voters. As Grein wrote in his Grammy blog on Yahoo, “Artists who did better than expected include Bruno Mars, who, like Adele, is nominated for Record, Album and Song of the Year, and alternative artist Bon Iver, who is up for Record and Song of the Year as well as Best New Artist. Artists who did worse than expected include rapper Nicki Minaj, who was passed over for Record, Album and Song of the Year (though she is nominated for Best New Artist); Grammy veteran Paul Simon, whose critically-lauded So Beautiful or So What had seemed to be a shoo-in for an Album of the Year nom; and Foster the People and Christina Perri, who seemed likely to be in the running for Best New Artist. Also missing from the marquee categories: the Maroon5/Christina Aguilera collabo "Moves Like Jagger," which had seemed a lock for a Record of the Year nomination (especially since both artists are past winners of the Grammy for Best New Artist.)” Read Paul’s complete take here, and see more critical reactions below. (12/1a)