| Record of the Year |
"Higher Love", Steve Winwood |
| Album of the Year |
Graceland, Paul Simon (Warner Bros.) |
| Song of the Year |
"That's What Friends Are For", Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager, songwriters |
| Best New Artist |
Bruce Hornsby and the Range |
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male |
"Higher Love", Steve Winwood |
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female |
The Broadway Album, Barbra Streisand |
| Best Pop Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal |
"That's What Friends Are For", Dionne Warwick and Friends Featuring Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder |
| Best Pop Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist) |
"Top Gun Anthem", Harold Faltermeyer and Steve Stevens |
| Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male |
"Addicted to Love", Robert Palmer |
| Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female |
"Back Where You Started", Tina Turner |
| Best Rock Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal |
"Missionary Man", Eurythmics |
| Best Rock Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist) |
"Peter Gunn", Art of Noise featuring Duane Eddy |
| Best Rhythm and Blues Song |
"Sweet Love", Anita Baker, Louis A. Johnson and Gary Bias, songwriters |
| Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Male |
"Living in America", James Brown |
| Best Rhythm and Blues Vocal Performance, Female |
Rapture, Anita Baker |
| Best Rhythm and Blues Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal |
"Kiss", Prince and the Revolution |
| Best Rhythm and Blues Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist) |
"And You Know That", Yellowjackets |
| Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Male |
"Round Midnight", Bobby McFerrin |
| Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female |
Timeless, Diane Schuur |
| Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group |
Free Fall, 2 + 2 Plus (Clare Fischer and His Latin Jazz Sextet) |
| Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist |
Tutu, Miles Davis |
| Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group |
J Mood, Wynton Marsalis |
| Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band |
The Tonight Show Band With Doc Severinsen, The Tonight Show Band With Doc Severinsen |
| Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal or Instrumental |
Double Vision, Bob James and David Sanborn |
| Best Country Song |
"Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)", Jamie O'Hara, songwriter |
| Best Country Vocal Performance, Male |
Lost in the Fifties Tonight, Ronnie Milsap |
| Best Country Vocal Performance, Female |
"Whoever's in New England", Reba McEntire |
| Best Country Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocal |
"Grandpa (Tell Me 'Bout the Good Old Days)", Judds |
| Best Country Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist) |
"Raisin' the Dickens", Ricky Skaggs |
| Best Gospel Performance, Male |
Triumph, Philip Bailey |
| Best Gospel Performance, Female |
Morning Like This, Sandi Patti |
| Best Gospel Performance By a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus |
"They Say", Sandi Patti and Deniece Williams |
| Best Soul Gospel Performance, Male |
"Going Away", Al Green |
| Best Soul Gospel Performance, Female |
"I Surrender All", Deniece Williams |
| Best Soul Gospel Performance By a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus |
Let My People Go, Winans |
| Best Latin Pop Performance |
"Lelolai", José Feliciano |
| Best Tropical Latin Performance |
Escenas, Ruben Blades |
| Best Mexican/American Performance |
Ay Te Dejo en San Antonio, Flaco Jimenez |
| Best Traditional Blues Recording |
Showdown!, Albert Collins, Robert Cray and Johnny Copeland (Alligator) |
| Best Traditional Folk Recording |
Riding the Midnight Train, Doc Watson (Sugar Hill) |
| Best Contemporary Folk Recording |
Tribute to Steve Goodman, Arlo Guthrie, John Hartford, Richie Havens, Bonnie Koloc, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, John Prine and others (Red Pajamas) |
| Best Reggae Recording |
Babylon the Bandit, Steel Pulse (Elektra) |
| Best New Age Recording |
Down to the Moon, Andreas Vollenweider (FM/CBS) |
| Best Polka Recording (tie) |
Another Polka Celebration, Eddie Blazonczyk's Versatones (Bel Aire) |
|
I Remember Warsaw, Jimmy Sturr and His Orchestra (Starr) |
| Best Arrangement on an Instrumental |
"Suite Memories", Patrick Williams, arranger |
| Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) |
"Somewhere", David Foster, arranger |
| Best Instrumental Composition |
Out of Africa (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), John Barry, composer |
| Best Musical Cast Show Album |
Follies in Concert (RCA) |
| Best Classical Album |
Horowitz: The Studio Recordings, New York 1985, Vladimir Horowitz (Deutsche Grammophon) |
| Best Contemporary Composition |
Symphony No. 3, Witold Lutoslawski, composer |
| Best Classical Orchestral Recording |
Liszt, A Faust Symphony, Sir Georg Solti conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (London) |
| Best Chamber Music Performance, Instrumental or Vocal |
Beethoven, Cello and Piano Sonata No. 4 in C Major and Variations, Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax |
| Best Classical Performance, Instrumental Soloist(s) (With or Without Orchestra) |
Horowitz, The Studio Recordings, New York 1985, Vladimir Horowitz |
| Best Opera Recording |
Bernstein, Candide, John Mauceri conducting New York City Opera Chorus and Orchestra; solos: Mills, Eisler, Lankston, Castle, Reeve, Harrold, Billings and Clement (New World) |
| Best Choral Performance (Other Than Opera) |
Orff, Carmina Burana, James Levine conducting Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus |
| Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance |
Mozart, Kathleen Battle Sings Mozart, Kathleen Battle |
| Best Comedy Recording |
Those of You With or Without Children, You'll Understand, Bill Cosby (Geffen) |
| Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Recording |
Interviews From the Class of '55 Recording Sessions, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, Sam Phillips, Rick Nelson and Chips Moman (America Record Corp.) |
| Best Recording for Children |
The Alphabet, Sesame Street Muppets; Jim Henson (Golden Books) |
| Best Album Package |
Tutu, Eiko Ishioka, art director (Warner Bros.) |
| Best Album Notes |
The Voice, the Columbia Years 1943–1952, Gary Giddins, Wilfrid Sheed, Jonathan Schwartz, Murray Kempton, Andrew Sarris, Stephen Holden and Frank Conroy, annotators (Columbia/CBS) |
| Best Historical Album |
Atlantic Rhythm and Blues 1947–1974 vols. 1–7, various artists (Atlantic) |
| Best Music Video, Short Form (Vhs) |
"Dire Straits Brothers in Arms", Dire Straits |
| Best Music Video, Short Form (Vhs) (beta) (disk) |
"Bring on the Night", Sting |
| Producers of the Year (Non-Classical) |
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis |
| Classical Producer of the Year |
Thomas Frost |
