Adele wins four early Grammys, Foo Fighters five

British soul singer Adele won four early Grammys on Sunday, including song of the year for her smash hit "Rolling in the Deep," in a show that began on a somber note with a prayer for late pop superstar Whitney Houston.

Adele, whose album "21" was among the smash hits of 2011, took the stage and thanked her doctors, who performed surgery on her throat last year. "Seeing as it's a vocal performance I need to thank my doctors, I suppose, who brought my voice back," she said.

Aside from surgery, the British singer has enjoyed a stellar year. Her sophomore album "21" has sold more than 6.3 million copies in the U.S. and broken many sales records, including spending 19 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart.

She has thrilled fans singing about personal heartbreak in a raw, soulful manner in singles including "Rolling in the Deep," "Someone Like You," which earned her a second Grammy for best solo pop performance, and "Set Fire to the Rain."

Adele also sang for the first time in front of a public audience since her operation, belting out a rendition of "Rolling In the Deep." She earned a standing ovation and basked in the limelight.

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Rockers Foo Fighters were the other big winners early in the show, picking up five Grammys in rock music categories, including best rock performance for their hit "Walk."

"This is a great honor because this record was a special record for our band. Rather than go to the best studio ... we made this one in my garage with some microphones and a tape machine," said frontman Dave Grohl. "It shows that the human element of making music is what's most important."

But as jubilant as the audiences was for Adele and as much as Foo Fighters rocked the house, the Grammys audience was equally serious about the death of Houston on Saturday in a Beverly Hills hotel room.

Host LL Cool J took the stage and offered a prayer for Houston, her fans and her family. "Although she is gone too soon, we remain truly blessed by her musical spirit," he said.

Organizers played a video of Houston performing her hit "I Will Always Love You" from a previous Grammy show. Later, actress and singer Jennifer Hudson, who won an Oscar for her role in movie musical "Dreamgirls," is expected to perform the same song in a tribute to the singer.

MANY WINNERS

Grammy organizers give out awards in more than 75 categories and many early winners mentioned Houston. Singer Melanie Fiona, who won with Cee Lo Green for traditional R&B performance for "Fool For You," said she was inspired by Houston.

"Whitney Houston, I would not be standing up here if not for you," Fiona said. Backstage, she told reporters her mother had rocked her in the cradle to Houston's songs when she was a baby.

Major winners included Jay-Z and Kanye West for best rap performance with their song, "Otis" from the album "Watch the Throne," but they failed to show up to claim their prize. Chris Brown won the Grammy for best R&B album "F.A.M.E.", and Lady Antebellum took home best country album with "Own the Night."