3 Classic Rock Grammy Award Winners From 1981 We Still Love

Every decade has its own collection of stars. Every generation has its heroes—those people who inspire others by their high-minded actions. And when it comes to the 1980s, there were plenty of people creating work that enlivened and encouraged. That’s what we wanted to explore here below.

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We wanted to highlight several artists who received awards at the onset of the decade. Indeed, as the 70s ended and the 80s kicked off, who were the musical heroes of the day? Who won the awards for their creativity? These are three classic rock Grammy Award winners from 1981 we still stan.

Bob Seger

While names like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, and Pink Floyd often rise to the top of mind when we think of classic rock, Bob Seger is as big a contributor to the genre as just about anyone. And in 1981, he took home some hardware for his hard work. Indeed, Seger and his group The Silver Bullet Band won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for their 1980 LP, Against The Wind. And for good measure, the LP’s artwork also won the Grammy for Best Album Package.

Christopher Cross

While there were plenty of people who took home trophies at the 1981 Grammy Awards, really the show only needed one person to show up on the night. Indeed, during the evening, Christopher Cross became the first artist to take home awards for all four major general categories in one night—Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist. It was a stunning feat for the yacht rocker who rose to fame thanks to his song “Sailing”.

The Police

In 1980, the Grammy Awards created the first categories to formally honor rock music. And a year later, one of the recipients of that was the British-born rock band The Police, who took home the trophy in 1981 for Best Rock Instrumental Performance for their song “Reggatta De Blanc” from the album of the same name. Sting and company were a significant act in the 1980s and the awards show knew it in real-time.

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