Nobody can keep up with the Jones girl at Grammys

The sultry vocalist and songwriter Norah Jones was the unexpected darling of this year's Grammy awards, winning in all eight categories in which she was nominated, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Pop Vocal Album and Best New Artist.

On a night that brought the music industry awards ceremony back to New York for the first time in five years, the Grammy voters stunned just about everyone by favouring Jones's cool, utterly apolitical album Come Away With Me over Bruce Springsteen's The Rising, with its many resonances of New York and the events of 11 September.

In the closing stages of Sunday night's ceremony, somebody in the audience at Madison Square Gardens even shouted out "Bruce!" in disappointment as Jones's name was called out for the umpteenth time.

Nobody seemed more surprised than Jones, 23, the daughter of Ravi Shankar and a Texan music promoter, who seemed genuinely overawed to be stepping in the footsteps of such multiple Grammy winners as Aretha Franklin and Bonnie Raitt. Her smooth jazz-inflected album, featuring original compositions including the prize-winning "Don't Know Why" as well as covers of Hank Williams and Hoagy Carmichael, has sold 6 million copies worldwide.

Although derided in some quarters as just another tasteful, good-looking female musician plonked behind a piano, Jones has been lionised by others as a worthy successor to Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. Unlike many new artists, she was not packaged and promoted by marketing executives but rather made her way entirely on the merits of the music; her following grew largely through word of mouth.

"I just want to say that at a time when this world is very weird, I feel really blessed and really lucky to have had the year I've had. Thank you very much," she said on receiving the Album of the Year award.

Springsteen had to content himself with three Grammys in lesser categories. The tongue-in-cheek country act the Dixie Chicks, rapidly becoming Grammy fixtures, won four awards.

The ceremony opened with a somewhat reluctant reunion of Simon and Garfunkel singing "Sounds of Silence" and included an all-star tribute to Joe Strummer of the Clash, who died last year. Springsteen – with Steve Van Zandt, Elvis Costello and Tony Kanal – belted out a rousing version of the Clash's "London Calling".

Grammy participants were specifically instructed not to mention the looming war against Iraq, although a few, including Fred Durst of Limp Bizkit and Bonnie Raitt, sneaked in references. Sheryl Crow had the words "No War" stamped on her guitar strap.

Other winners included the new (India.Arie) the once controversial (Eminem) and the tried and tested (Tony Bennett, Johnny Cash and BB King). It was an indifferent night for British acts, although Coldplay picked up two awards for their album A Rush Of Blood To The Head.

Winners in the main categories

Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
"Hey Baby", No Doubt

Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
"In My Place", Coldplay

Best Pop Vocal Album
"Come away with Me", Norah Jones

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
"Your Body Is A Wonderland" John Mayer

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
"Don't Know Why" Norah Jones

Best Rap Album
"The Eminem Show", Eminem

Best Country Album
"Home", Dixie Chicks

Best Spoken Comedy Album
"Robin Williams – Live 2002" Robin Williams

Best Hard Rock Performance
"All My Life", Foo Fighters

Best Song of the Year
"Don't Know Why", Jesse Harris, (performed by Norah Jones)

Best Record of the Year
"Don't Know Why" Norah Jones

Best New Artist
Norah Jones

Album of the Year
"Come Away With Me" Norah Jones

Best Contemporary Folk Album
This Side, Nickel Creek

Best Reggae Album
"Jamaican ET," Lee "Scratch" Perry.

Best World Music Album
"Mundo", Rubén Blades

Best Short Form Music Video
"Without Me", Eminem

Best Long Form Music Video
"Westway to the World"

The Clash

Best Latin Pop Album
"Caraluna", Bacilos.

Best Contemporary Jazz Album
"Speaking of Now"

Pat Metheny Group

Best Alternative Music Album
"A Rush of Blood to the Head"

Coldplay

Best Metal Performance
"Here to Stay", Korn

Best Rock Song
"The Rising", Bruce Springsteen

Best Rock Album
"The Rising," Bruce Springsteen