Grammy Awards of 1961

The 3rd Grammy Awards were held in 1961. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year.

• Record of the Year
  • Percy Faith for "Theme From A Summer Place"

• Album of the Year
  • Bob Newhart for The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart

• Song of the Year
  • Ernest Gold for "Theme From Exodus"

• Best New Artist
  • Bob Newhart

Children's

• Best Album Created for Children
  • Ross Bagdasarian Sr for Let's All Sing With the Chipmunks performed by David Seville & the Chipmunks

Classical

• Best Classical Performance - Orchestra
  • Fritz Reiner (conductor) & the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for Bartók: Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste
• Best Classical Performance - Vocal Soloist
  • Leontyne Price for A Program of Song - Leontyne Price Recital
• Best Classical Opera Production
  • Erich Leinsdorf (conductor), Birgit Nilsson, Giorgio Tozzi, Jussi Bjoerling, Renata Tebaldi & the Rome Opera Orchestra for Puccini: Turandot
• Best Classical Performance - Choral (including oratorio)
  • Thomas Beecham (conductor) & the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra & Chorus for Handel: Messiah
• Best Classical Performance - Concerto or Instrumental Soloist
  • Erich Leinsdorf (conductor), Sviatoslav Richter & the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2 in B Flat
• Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist or Duo (other than with orchestral accompaniment)
  • Laurindo Almeida for The Spanish Guitars of Laurindo Alemida
• Best Classical Performance - Vocal or Instrumental - Chamber Music
  • Laurindo Almeida for Conversations With the Guitar
• Best Contemporary Classical Composition
  • Aaron Copland (composer & conductor) & the Boston Symphony Orchestra for Orchestral Suite From Tender Land Suite

Comedy

• Best Comedy Performance - Spoken Word
  • Bob Newhart for The Button-Down Mind Strikes Back!
• Best Comedy Performance - Musical
  • Jo Stafford & Paul Weston for Jonathan and Darlene Edwards in Paris performed by Jo Stafford & Paul Weston and as "Jonathan & Darlene Edwards"

Composing and arranging

• Best Sound Track Album or Recording of Music Score from Motion Picture or Television
  • Ernest Gold (composer) for Exodus
• Best Arrangement
  • Henry Mancini (arranger) for Mr. Lucky

Country

• Best Country & Western Performance
  • Marty Robbins for "El Paso"

Folk

• Best Folk Performance
  • Harry Belafonte for "Swing Dat Hammer"

Jazz

• Best Instrumental Jazz Performance, Individual or Group
  • Andre Previn for West Side Story
• Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance
  • Henry Mancini for Blues and the Beat
• Best Original Jazz Composition
  • Gil Evans for Sketches of Spain performed by Gil Evans & Miles Davis

Musical Show

• Best Sound Track Album
  • Cole Porter (composer) for Can Can performed by Frank Sinatra & the original cast
• Best Musical Show Album
  • Oscar Hammerstein II & Richard Rodgers (composers) for The Sound of Music performed by Mary Martin & the original Broadway cast

Packaging and Notes

• Best Album Package - Incl. Album Cover, Graphic Arts, Photography
  • Marvin Schwartz (art director) for Latin a la Lee performed by Peggy Lee

Pop

• Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Single or Track
  • Ella Fitzgerald for "Mack the Knife"
• Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, Album
  • Ella Fitzgerald Mack the Knife - Ella in Berlin
• Best Male Pop Vocal Performance Single or Track)]]
  • Ray Charles "Georgia on My Mind"
• Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, Album
  • Ray Charles for Genius of Ray Charles
• Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
  • Eydie Gorme & Steve Lawrence for "We Got Us"
• Best Performance by a Chorus
  • Norman Luboff for Songs of the Cowboy performed by the Norman Luboff Choir
• Best Performance By a Band for Dancing
  • Count Basie for Dance With Basie
• Best Pop Instrumental Performance
  • Henry Mancini for Mr. Lucky
• Best Performance by a Pop Single Artist
  • Ray Charles for "Georgia on My Mind"

Production and engineering

• Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical
  • Luis P. Valentin (engineer) for Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook performed by Ella Fitzgerald
  • John Kraus (engineer) for The Old Payola Roll Blues performed by Stan Freberg
• Best Classical Engineered Recording
  • Hugh Davies (engineer) for The Spanish Guitars of Laurindo Almeida performed by Laurindo Almeida

R&B

• Best Rhythm & Blues Performance
  • Ray Charles for "Let the Good Times Roll"

Spoken

• Best Spoken Word or Non-musical Album
  • Robert Bialek (producer) for FDR Speaks

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Other Grammy Award Years

1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003