GRAMMY.com

The GRAMMY Awards honor recordings in 108 categories across 31 fields, from rap to classical. To help readers get a better sense of the nominees and the wealth of recordings they’ve created over the past year, GRAMMY.com has prepared these field Roundups, which give quick details on the nominees in an easy-to-read format.

There's a tremendous range of talents represented in this year's BEST SOLO ROCK VOCAL PERFORMANCE category, and the competition includes a couple of rock and roll legends up against a newer spin on a legendary rock-and-roll tune. Eight-time GRAMMY winner Bob Dylan is in the running with "Someday Baby," from his remarkably vital Modern Times album, while Neil Young — a nominee in this category last year for his gently reflective "The Painter" — returns powerfully with "Lookin' For A Leader" from his scorching Living With War. Crafty veteran Tom Petty looks to add to his two previous GRAMMY wins with the bluesy "Saving Grace" from his third solo outing, Highway Companion, and the always inventive Beck, a three-time GRAMMY winner, is a nominee for his cagy, funkified delivery of "Nausea" from The Information. Another three-time winner, John Mayer, rounds out this category with his sly, spirited update of the classic "Route 66," a track from the soundtrack to the film Cars.

Last year, U2 scored one of their phenomenal 22 previous GRAMMY wins in the BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE BY A DUO OR GROUP WITH VOCAL category, and they're back again — this time teamed up with Green Day on a cover of the Skids' "The  Saints Are Coming," from the U218 Singles collection. That potent collaboration faces some heated competition from four-time winners Coldplay, who took the 2002 trophy in this category for "In My Place," and this year are in contention with "Talk" from their X&Y album. The ever-excitable Red Hot Chili Peppers are in the running for their second GRAMMY win with the catchy, poignant tale of "Dani California" from their double-disc album Stadium Arcadium. Jack White's hiatus from the White Stripes pays off musically on Broken Boy Soldiers, the debut album from the Raconteurs, who are represented here with the spirited "Steady, As She Goes." Also nominated is "How To Save A Life," the title track from the debut album of Denver-based arena-rocking newcomers the Fray.

Things get expectedly noisy in this year's BEST HARD ROCK PERFORMANCE category, but all five nominees demonstrate exceptional musicianship and highly individual approaches to their craft. Last year's winner, the politically charged System Of A Down, are in the running this year with the dramatic build of "Lonely Day" from their Hypnotize. Trent Reznor's Nine Inch Nails is also a returning nominee from last year, this time with the cranked up pessimism of "Every Day Is Exactly The Same," from the highly anticipated With Teeth. Tool fans found that the wait was worth it with the 2006 release of 10,000 Days, and that record's indicting "Vicarious" scores them a nomination here. Revamped L.A.-rockers Buckcherry hit their hard-riffing stride on their recent album 15, and earn a nomination for the not-so-subtly titled track "Crazy B****." Heavy-duty Australian power-trio Wolfmother are also contenders on the strength of "Woman" from their self-titled debut album. 
 
For those about to shred, this year's BEST METAL PERFORMANCE category provides a master class in heavy guitars and heady themes. Al Jourgensen's pioneering, industrial-grade outfit Ministry returns to this category with "Lies, Lies, Lies" from the scathing political attack album Rio Grande Blood. Longtime thrashers Slayer delighted longtime fans by reuniting their original lineup for their raging Christ Illusion album, and are recognized here for the harrowing, anti-war cry "Eyes Of The Insane." The intense and inventive Stone Sour garner their third GRAMMY nomination in this category for the explosive, metal-bending of "30/30-150" from their Come What(Ever) May. Virginia-based din-makers Lamb Of God capture the fury of their sound on the snarling "Redneck" from their Sacrament album. And the hard-to-pigeonhole progressive metal of Mastodon is represented by "Colony Of Birchmen," from the album Blood Mountain.

You don't need a vocalist to make a song sing, as is proved by the trio of guitar heroes and pair of iconoclastic bands that make up the nominees in this year's BEST ROCK INSTRUMENTAL PERFORMANCE category. Peter Frampton's phenomenal chops are properly showcased on his cover of Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun," a standout track from his Fingerprints album that has him trading licks with Pearl Jam's Mike McCready. David Gilmour — a previous winner in this category for Pink Floyd's "Marooned" — effectively lets his guitar do the talking on "Castellorizon," the moody opening track from this third solo album, On An Island. Guitar ace Joe Satriani has made a career out of doing the seemingly impossible with his six strings, and he's equally impressive on the title track from his album Super Colossal. The Arctic Monkeys and the Flaming Lips aren't thought of primarily as instrumental bands, but both envelope-pushing acts are nominees; the former for "Chun Li's Flying Bird Kick" from their I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor CD single, and the latter — previous winners here — for "The Wizard Turns On..." from the album At War With The Mystics.

Rocking songwriters are celebrated in the BEST ROCK SONG category, and this year's nominees show the craft of writing at its best. Neil Young gets the nod for the powerful "Lookin For A Leader," from his searing Living With War, while fellow legend Bob Dylan is recognized for the tenderly bluesy "Someday Baby" from his rollicking Modern Times album.  Vegas-based quartet the Killers earned four GRAMMY nominations for their debut album, Hot Fuss, and keep up the strong work on sophomore effort Sam's Town. The band members — Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Mark Stoermer and Ronnie Vannucci — earn a nomination for the Bruce Springsteen-inspired track "When You Were Young." The Red Hot Chili Peppers — Flea, John Frusciante, Anthony Kiedis and Chad Smith — are nominated as the creators of the affecting tune "Dani California," and the members of Scotland's Snow Patrol — Nathan Connolly, Gary Lightbody, Jonny Quinn, Tom Simpson and Paul Wilson — score a nomination for "Chasing Cars" from their Eyes Open album.

Five powerful and wide-ranging works vie for the top honor in this year's BEST ROCK ALBUM category. Neil Young is nominated for the charged-up, full-throttle rabble-rousing of Living With War. Taking a break from head-Heartbreaker duties, Tom Petty is a contender for the gritty tales of the road on his Highway Companion solo album. The Raconteurs score a nomination for the deep, smart pleasures of their debut album Broken Boy Soldiers, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are in the running with one of the finest and most ambitious albums of their career, Stadium Arcadium. The category is rounded out by a remarkable live album Try!, by the John Mayer Trio, which features Mayer with bassist Pino Palladino and drummer Steve Jordan.

Some of the most exciting and innovative sounds of GRAMMY night can often be found in the BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM category, and the music of this year's nominees is no exception. GRAMMY winners the Flaming Lips effectively mixed playfulness and political statements on At War With The Mystics, while the Arctic Monkeys packed a highly impressive wallop with their debut album, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not. Producer Danger Mouse and vocalist Cee-Lo Green — better known in collaborative form as Gnarls Barkley — garner a nomination for their mind-boggling mix of rap, pop, soul and oddball humor on their debut effort St. Elsewhere. Art-punkers Yeah Yeah Yeahs are nominated for their outstanding sophomore album Show Your Bones, and Radiohead's Thom Yorke earns a nomination for his electronics-driven solo album The Eraser.