Santana Spreads The Wealth In Grammy Noms Into Modern Rock World

01/04/2000 8:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Craig Rosen

(1/4/00, 8 p.m. ET) - Guitar master Carlos Santana is not an artist normally mentioned in the genre of alternative rock, but his 10 Grammy nominations today (Jan. 4) -- tops for all artists this year -- were in part a result of the company he has kept on his massive comeback effort, Supernatural (LAUNCH, 1/4). Sharing in the wealth were album collaborators Everlast , Dave Matthews , and Matchbox 20 's Rob Thomas -- with Thomas scoring three nods for his vocals and co-songwriting work on the hugely popular "Smooth." Everlast was also feted in the Best Male Rock Vocal Category for his own gritty single, "What It's Like."

Meanwhile, Melissa Etheridge and Sarah McLachlan earned three nominations of their own. Etheridge was tabbed in the Best Rock Album category for her latest, Breakdown , as well as earning two nods for the tune "Angels Will Fall" in the Best Rock Song and Best Female Rock Vocal groupings. McLachlan will compete against Etheridge in the vocal category for her work on "Possession (Live)," along with Tori Amos , Sheryl Crow , and Ani DiFranco . She was also acknowledged for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance ("I Will Remember You") and Best Pop Album (Mirrorball ).

McLachlan, who was on hand to help announce the Grammy nominees in Beverly Hills, Calif. today, learned of her own success as she stood on the stage awaiting her turn to announce another category. Launch caught up with the Canadian singer-songwriter soon after she learned the news. "It feels very good; very, very good. I'm very happy," she said. "They bring you here and you have no idea what, you know, if you're nominated for anything, so it's very nice."

Here are some of the other Grammy nominations in the alternative rock world:
Kid Rock scored two nominations, including one for Best New Artist, where he will be competing against a quartet of women: teen-poppers Christina Aguilera and Britney Spears , modern soul singer Macy Gray , and blues guitarist Susan Tedeschi .

The Best Alternative Music Performance category find's Beck 's Mutations -- an album often considered nothing more than a side project -- earning a nomination, along with works by four double nominees: Tori Amos's To Venus And Back , Fatboy Slim 's You've Come A Long Way, Baby , Moby 's Play , and Nine Inch Nails ' The Fragile .

Brand New Day brought two nominations to Sting , one in the category of Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and another for Best Pop Album.

The Best Male Rock Vocal Performance category finds Everlast facing off against Chris Cornell ("Can't Change Me"), Lenny Kravitz ("American Woman"), Bruce Springsteen ("The Promise"), and Tom Waits ("Hold On").

Rock veterans Springsteen, Waits, Tom Petty , and guitar hero Jeff Beck each earned two nominations overall. Other double nominees included the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Garbage .

-- Neal Weiss, Los Angeles

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