Amy Winehouse topped the Grammys with five awards including record of the year for ``Rehab,'' about her previous defiance over treatment for addiction. Herbie Hancock's jazz tribute to Joni Mitchell won album of the year.
Kanye West's ``Graduation'' won best rap album at the 50th annual ceremony last night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. He took home four awards including best rap song for ``Good Life.'' Best rock song went to Bruce Springsteen for ``Radio Nowhere.'' The Recording Academy also recognized Vince Gill, the Foo Fighters and Justin Timberlake.
The wins by Winehouse, West and Hancock may help their record company, Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group, the world's largest. Grammy awards typically bolster sales for albums and artists. Record companies, already struggling with a 16 percent decline in compact disc sales this year, are counting on the publicity to lure consumers to stores.
``
Amy Winehouse will sell a few more albums,'' said Jon Zellner, senior vice president of music programming for XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. ``We've seen the Grammys have a pretty large impact in the past. It affects downloads more than records now,'' he said in an interview.
Hancock's ``River: the Joni Letters'' on Universal's Verve label has sold 56,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. It beat ``Back to Black'' by Winehouse, ``Graduation'' by West, ``Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace'' by the Foo Fighters and ``These Days'' by country singer Vince Gill.
`Personal Struggles'
``Back to Black'' has sold 1.5 million copies in the U.S. Winehouse, who was initially denied a U.S. visa and then granted one days before the presentation, performed on the show via satellite from the U.K. She has struggled with drug and alcohol abuse and entered a treatment program last month. `Rehab,' the first single from the album, also won song of the year, which is given to songwriters.
``Winehouse deserved her awards,'' said Zellner at XM, the largest U.S. satellite radio service. ``The Academy has often been afraid of controversy in the past. But they looked beyond her personal struggles.''
Winehouse won again for best new artist, beating out Feist, Ledisi, Paramore and Taylor Swift.
``Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace'' won best rock album, and has sold 594,000 copies in the U.S. for Sony BMG Music Entertainment's RCA label. Gill's ``These Days,'' which captured best country album, has sold 345,000 units for Universal's MCA Nashville label.
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