Chris Martin of Coldplay performs at the 51st annual Grammy Awards on Sunday in Los Angeles. His band captured honours for rock album of the year, as well as song of the year for Viva La Vida. (Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press)The Grammy Awards kicked off Sunday night with an energetic performance by Irish band U2, who blasted out Get on Your Boots from their upcoming album, No Line on the Horizon, backed by a kaleidoscope of colours, images and text projected on a giant screen.

A glamorous Whitney Houston swept onstage in the Los Angeles venue in a blue and white gown to hand out the trophy for best R&B album, which went to Jennifer Hudson's self-titled album.

Jennifer Hudson accepts the award for best R&B album for her self-titled release. (Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press)

"I'm just in awe," said the 27-year-old ex-American Idol singer, who lost her brother, mother and nephew in a horrific murder spree last October in Chicago. Hudson's brother-in-law was arrested in connection with the killings.

Hudson thanked God and her late mother in her quick acceptance speech.

Coldplay performed its mega-hit Viva la Vida, which also won for song of the year.

The band — which apologized to Paul McCartney for "recycling the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club uniforms" — thanked their fans and management.

They were up again 20 minutes later after their album won in the rock category. Singer Chris Martin called his brand of music a "kind of limestone rock" and then thanked McCartney.

Plant and Krauss get triple honours

Teen queens Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift teamed up for the first time to perform. The pair gave out the accolade for best pop collaboration with vocals to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss for Rich Woman.

Plant said the song was "the heart of the American underworld of blues."

From left, Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift present the Grammy to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss for the best pop collaboration with vocals, for their song Rich Woman. (Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images)

Plant and Krauss accepted a second honour for record of the year for their recording of the song Please Read the Letter.

"Good things happen out of nowhere," said the track's producer, T. Bone Burnett, who shared the award.

The trio returned to the stage at the end of the evening after the album that birthed the two winning songs, Raising Sand, nabbed album of the year. It outpaced Coldplay's album, Radiohead's In Rainbows, Ne-Yo's Year of the Gentleman and Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III.

Lil Wayne had already collected another trophy, the award for best rap album.

"I just wanna say thank God, thank New Orleans and... thank you," said the rapper, who had just performed a rousing act with Robin Thicke and Alain Toussaint that paid homage to Lil Wayne's hometown.

The Grammy for best country performance by a duo or group was handed to the two-person band Sugarland for their song Stay.

"I told myself I was going to be cool because Paul McCartney and Coldplay were here, but I'm not cool!" said singer Jennifer Nettles, who added a thanks to McCartney at the end of her acceptance speech.

A nine-months pregnant M.I.A. — due Sunday and dressed like a rebellious ladybug — performed with the "Rap Pack" of four other rappers, including Kanye West and Jay-Z, on Swagga Like Us, which is based on a sample of M.I.A.'s Paper Planes.

Meanwhile John Mayer beat out the likes of McCartney and Kid Rock for best male pop vocal performance for Say.

Best new artist went to British soul singer Adele, who beat out Duffy, the Jonas Brothers, Lady Antebellum and Jazmine Sullivan.

Canada scored one win prior to the televised show as Montreal-born film director Jason Reitman picked up a prize for the soundtrack to his teenage pregnancy movie, Juno.

Reitman called the Grammy an "enormous surprise," adding that music had always been "a character in the film."

The soundtrack beat out the songs of co-nominees Mamma Mia! and American Gangster.

It was a hard night for other Canadian nominees.

Rocker Neil Young's Grammy drought continued as he lost to Mayer for best solo rock vocal performance. Toronto band Rush still hasn't won a Grammy, either — they lost in the category of best rock instrumental performance.

Lil Wayne, left, M.I.A. and Jay Z perform Swagga Like Us. M.I.A. was due to give birth on Sunday. (Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press)

A majority of the 110 trophies were handed out prior to Sunday night's event at the Staples Center.

Other performers included Kanye West with Estelle, Radiohead with a full court of two high school bands, Kid Rock, Katy Perry (I Kissed a Girl), McCartney doing I Saw Her Standing There with the Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl drumming, and Stevie Wonder uniting with teen-pop act the Jonas Brothers for a medley of Burnin' Up and Superstition

Northern Cree, Walter Ostanek lose

Montreal-raised singer Rufus Wainwright; Joel Zimmerman, a Niagara Falls, Ont., DJ who performs as Deadmau5; Alberta band Northern Cree; polka king Walter Ostanek of St. Catharines, Ont.; and pianist Marc-André Hamelin of Montreal all failed to win in their categories.

A pall was cast over the Grammys after Los Angeles police confirmed late Sunday that they are investigating nominee Chris Brown for felony battery.

A police statement said that the 19-year-old R&B singer argued with an unidentified woman Saturday night, and that the fight escalated. The woman told authorities that her attacker was Brown, who was not at the scene when police arrived. Brown has long been dating pop star Rihanna, who was slated to perform early in Sunday's show. But she dropped out, the Recording Academy said in a statement less than an hour before the ceremony began.

Brown and Rihanna were both nominated in the pop collaboration with vocals category. Brown was also nominated for male R&B vocal performance for Take You Down.