GRADING THE GRAMMYS

Here are the grades for select performances that took place Sunday night during the 49th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles:

THE POLICE: The recently reunited trio looked good and sounded good, offering a slightly altered arrangement of "Roxanne" to open the show in fine fashion. Grade: A-

CORINNE BAILEY RAE, JOHN MAYER AND JOHN LEGEND: Three young solo artists playing together, and not once did they step on each other's toes. That's a minor miracle in this age of self-indulgence (see last entry). Grade: A

SHAKIRA AND WYCLEF JEAN: All the midriff-bearing, dancing and stage-show flash in the world can't cover up the fact that Shakira is a terrible singer, and "Hips Don't Lie" is a horrible song. Think about it: Would Dolly Parton ever stoop so low as to perform a song about her most famous physical attribute? Grade: F

GNARLS BARKLEY: Yawn -- this rendition of "Crazy" was boring and overdone, featuring an army of backing singers and musicians. Those pilot uniforms worn by Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo didn't help matters, either. Grade: D

CHRISTINA AGUILERA: Clueless as always, she suffocated "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" with her vocal acrobatics and theatrics during a tribute to James Brown. Someone really needs to give her a lesson in dynamics and pacing. Grade: F