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Held during a period of tremendous cultural transition for the country and only a matter of months before the Summer of Love, the 9th Annual GRAMMY Awards reflected a certain amount of love and peace between music’s past, present and future. This was, for instance, a year when The Academy recognized the achievements of both the Chairman of the Board and the Fab Four. <a href="/grammys/artists/frank-sinatra">Sinatra</a>’s recording of “Strangers in the Night” was named Record of the Year and Sinatra: A Man and His Music was awarded Album of the Year. Sinatra also received the Best Vocal Performance, Male, award for “Strangers in the Night.”

The Song of the Year GRAMMY, on the other hand, went to <a href="/grammys/artists/john-lennon">John Lennon</a> and <a href="/grammys/artists/paul-mccartney">Paul McCartney</a> for “Michelle” recorded by the Beatles, and McCartney also won the Best Contemporary (R&amp;R) Solo Vocal Performance, Male or Female, for “Eleanor Rigby” — with that abbreviation of “rock and roll” in parentheses perhaps grammatically reflecting some slight ambivalence about the rock music now impacting the pop categories. The Beatles’ groundbreaking Revolver was also honored for Best Album Cover, Graphic Arts, for the work of Klaus Voormann, a friend of the band since their days in Hamburg, Germany.

When “The Best on Record” show aired in May, it too reflected the marked duality of the music that was on the airwaves in 1966. After a show introduction from Steve Lawrence in which he noted, “If music happens to be your bag, I know we couldn’t drive you away from this set with a long-playing used car commercial,” Tony Randall introduced the first musical number of the show: a retro yet trippy performance of “Winchester Cathedral” by the New Vaudeville Band, which won the Best Contemporary (R&amp;R) Recording, despite not being terribly R or R. During the song, at least one member of the group could be seen sipping tea. Afterwards, Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits fame noted, “I must be honest, personally I found them a bit raucous—musically.”

Restoring some order, Robert Preston, star of Meredith Willson’s Music Man, introduced a candle-lit performance by Eydie Gorme, the GRAMMY winner for Best Vocal Performance, Female (“If He Walked Into My Life”)—a decision that he declared was “more unanimous than a Russian election.” The win for Jerry Herman in the Best Score from an Original Cast Show Album for Mame was celebrated with a rousing appearance by Louis Armstrong singing the Broadway smash’s title song. Actress Edie Adams saucily referenced Herman’s earlier success with Hello, Dolly! by noting, “He scored with Dolly and he scored with Mame and got a GRAMMY for both—which makes him one of the most celebrated bigamists on Broadway.”

After singing a few bars of “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” Frankie Avalon and Buddy Greco joked that anyone who sings like <a href="/grammys/artists/ray-charles">Ray Charles</a> was “Italian, whether he wants to be or not.” They then introduced Charles as “one of the greatest Italian singers,” before the Genius of Soul performed his classic version of “Crying Time” for which he had won the GRAMMYs for Best Rhythm &amp; Blues Recording and Best R&amp;B Solo Vocal Performance, Male or Female. The most surreally intriguing introduction on this “Best on Record,” however, had to be Liberace’s comments before a fantastically psychedelic rock video for “Strawberry Fields Forever” was played: “England has produced a variety of talent ranging all the way from Richard Burton to Twiggy. This next group is somewhere in between.”

On a show where almost every presenter and performer wore formal evening wear, Liberace continued a running joke about the wild fashions currently enjoyed by the younger generation. The long-haired Beatles, he said, could take some credit for kicking off the Carnaby Street mod clothing fad “that all the kids are wearing today. I guess if you’re young and enjoy wearing garish clothing, there’s really no harm in it,” he said.

Before introducing the Anita Kerr Singers—winners of the Best Performance by a Vocal Group (“A Man and a Woman”)—comedian Godfrey Cambridge got off a few topical lines, again taking a swing at the hippies’ affinity for long hair and boots: “I guess you’ve heard that the Mamas and the Papas are expecting a baby. They can hardly wait. It’ll be the first time they really know which is the Mamas and which is the Papas.” (The California quartet took home the Best Contemporary [R&amp;R] Group Performance, Vocal or Instrumental, GRAMMY for their radiant hit “Monday, Monday.”)

Pat Boone then awarded Ella Fitzgerald the Bing Crosby Award for outstanding artistic contribution, after which she performed “Satin Doll” and “Don’t Be That Way,” bedecked in a shimmery red gown. She was ably backed by the telecast’s music director, Les Brown, who helmed the show’s house band.

Finally, Sammy Davis Jr. wrapped up the hour with a true touch of Rat Pack genius as only he could. Dramatically smoking a cigarette, Davis explained, “A phonograph record can be a magical thing. It can make you laugh, make you cry, lift you up, let you down easy. It can make you wig out, and even more important—if you’ve got the right kind of sounds, man—it can make her wig out over you.”

Winchester Cathedral (Single)

What Now My Love (Single)

Strangers In The Night

Monday, Monday (Single)

Almost Persuaded (Single)

Record Of The Year

What Now My Love (Album)

A Man And His Music

Revolver (Album)

Dr. Zhivago (Motion Picture Soundtrack) (Album)

Color Me Barbra (Album)

Album Of The Year

The Impossible Dream

Strangers In The Night (Single)

Somewhere My Love (Lara's Theme From "Dr. Zhivago") (Album)

Michelle

Born Free

Song Of The Year

Who's Afraid?

Trumpet Pickin'

Prissy

Batman Theme

Arabesque

Best Instrumental Theme

These Boots Are Made For Walkin' (Single)

If He Walked Into My Life

Ella At Duke's Place (Album)

Born A Woman (Single)

Best Vocal Performance, Female

The Shadow Of Your Smile (Album)

The Impossible Dream (Single)

Eleanor Rigby (Single)

Distant Drums (Single)

Best Vocal Performance, Male

What Now My Love

Dr. Zhivago (Soundtrack)

Chet Atkins Picks On The Beatles

Batman Theme (Album)

Best Instrumental Performance (Other Than Jazz)

Monday, Monday

Guantanamera

Good Vibrations (Single)

Cherish

A Man And A Woman

Best Performance By A Vocal Group

Somewhere My Love (Lara's Theme From Dr. Zhivago)

Rococo A' Go Go (Album)

Henry Mancini Presents The Academy Award Songs (Album)

Basie Swingin', Voices Singin'

Best Performance By A Chorus

Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?

Alfie - Original Music From The Score

Dr. Zhivago

Arabesque (Motion Picture)

Best Original Score Written For A Motion Picture Or Television Show

The Apple Tree (Album)

Sweet Charity (Album)

Skyscraper (Album)

Man Of La Mancha (Album)

Mame

Best Score From An Original Cast Show Album

Wonderfulness

Wanted For Murder (Album)

Have A Laugh On Me (Album)

Funny Way To Make An Album (Album)

Downtown

Best Comedy Performance

The Stevenson Wit (Album)

History Repeats Itself (Album)

Edward R. Murrow - A Reporter Remembers Vol. I The War Years

Death Of A Salesman (Album)

Day For Decision

Best Spoken Word, Documentary Or Drama Recording

The Christmas That Almost Wasn't (Album)

Happiness Is

For The Children Of The World Art Linkletter Narrates "The Bible" (Album)

Dr. Seuss Presents - "If I Ran The Zoo" And "Sleep Book"

Alice Through The Looking Glass (Album)

Best Recording For Children

The Ellington Era, Vol. II (Album)

Sinatra At The Sands

Edward R. Murrow - A Reporter Remembers - Vol. 1 The War Years (Album)

Dr. Zhivago (Album)

Ben Colder Strikes Again

Best Album Notes

Woody's Winners

Stan Kenton Conducts The Los Angeles Neophonic Orchestra (Album)

John Handy Recorded Live At The Monterey Jazz Festival (Album)

Intermodulation

Goin' Out Of My Head

Concert Of Sacred Music (Album)

Bill Evans Trio With Symphony Orchestra (Album)

At The "Golden Circle"

Best Instrumental Jazz Performance - Group Or Soloist With Group

Time Remembered (Single)

Marquis De Sade

Jazz Samba

In The Beginning God

If Only We Knew

ABC Blues

Best Original Jazz Composition

Winchester Cathedral

Last Train To Clarksville

Best Contemporary (R&R) Recording

You Don't Have To Say You Love Me

If I Were A Carpenter (Single)

Eleanor Rigby

Best Contemporary (R&R) Solo Vocal Performance - Male Or Female

Best Contemporary (R&R) Group Performance, Vocal Or Instrumental

When A Man Loves A Woman

Uptight

Love Is A Hurtin' Thing

It's A Man's Man's Man's World

Crying Time

Best Rhythm & Blues Recording

When A Man Loves A Woman (Single)

Uptight (Single)

Love Is A Hurtin' Thing (Single)

It's A Man's Man's Man's World (Single)

Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Male Or Female

Spanish Harlem

I'm Your Puppet (Single)

Hold On, I'm Comin' (Single)

Hold It Right There

Cool Jerk (Single)

Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance, Vocal Or Instrumental

Violets Of Dawn

Sound Of The Sitar

Reflections In A Crystal Wind

Oliver Smith

Leadbelly

Hurry Sundown

God Bless The Grass

Blues In The Street

Best Folk Recording

The Oak Ridge Boys At Their Best

Southland Songs That Lift The Heart (Album)

How Big Is God

Grand Old Gospel

Connie Smith Sings Great Sacred Songs (Album)

Bigger 'n' Better

Best Sacred Recording (Musical)

There Goes My Everything

I'm A Nut

Don't Touch Me

Distant Drums

Almost Persuaded

Best Country & Western Recording

Would You Hold It Against Me (Single)

Evil On Your Mind

Don't Come Home A Drinkin'

Ain't Had No Loving

Best Country & Western Vocal Performance - Female

There Goes My Everything (Single)

Just Between You And Me (Single)

Almost Persuaded #2 (Single)

Best Country & Western Vocal Performance, Male

Streets Of Baltimore

Husbands And Wives (Single)

Best Country & Western Song

Michelle (Single)

Best Instrumental Arrangement

These Boots Are Made For Walkin'

Best Arrangement Accompanying A Vocalist Or Instrumentalist

The Last Word In Lonesome Is Me

Presenting Thad Jones - Mel Lewis And The Jazz Orchestra

Joe Williams And Thad Jones - Mel Lewis And The Jazz Orchestra

Arabesque (Album)

Best Engineered Recording - Non Classical

Wagner: Lohengrin

Vivaldi: Gloria In D (Album)

Varese: Arcana (Album)

Mahler: Symphony No. 6 In A Minor (Album)

Ives: Symphony No. 1 In D Minor (Album)

Best Engineered Recording - Classical

Turn! Turn! Turn! (Album)

The Time Machine (Album)

Sammy Davis Jr. Sings - Laurindo Almeida Plays (Album)

Guantanamera (Album)

Confessions Of A Broken Man

Blonde On Blonde (Album)

Best Album Cover, Photography

Revolver

Talk That Talk (Album)

Charlie Byrd Christmas Carols For Solo Guitar (Album)

Baroque Fanfares And Sonatas For Brass (Album)

Best Album Cover, Graphic Arts

Wagner: Die Walkuere (Album)

Presenting Montserrat Caballe (Bellini And Donizetti Arias) (Album)

Opening Nights At The Met (Album)

9th Annual GRAMMY Awards