In the not-so-distant past, the Grammys' red carpet has delivered an abundance of skin, and a dearth of taste. This year, the ceremony's 50th anniversary, was different. Alicia Keys was a knockout in a high-necked, back-baring Armani Privé gown complete with a train. And she wasn't the only one to go with a big-name designer. Fergie, who was front-row at the Marc by Marc Jacobs show last week, wore a lemon-yellow Calvin Klein dress, while Rihanna, who also made the rounds at the New York Fall collections, donned an electric-blue Zac Posen frock and neon-colored nails. Carrie Underwood and Corinne Bailey Rae chose Zuhair Murad and Luella, respectively. Their male counterparts didn't look too shabby, either. Tom Ford dressed music and fashion impresario Jay-Z, Armani had John Legend in his camp, and YSL scored Seal.

Onstage, of course, skin was still in, especially during Tina Turner and Beyoncé's duet. The dancing divas both wore silver—the former a metallic bustier and matching leggings that few, if any, other 68-year-olds could pull off. Upstaging everyone without even being present, though, was Amy Winehouse, who performed via satellite from London wearing a little black dress that showed off her tattoos, and won five of the six awards she was nominated for. And what a weekend Barack Obama is having. After four straight victories in Washington, Louisiana, Nebraska, and Maine, he took home the Best Spoken Word Album prize for his book, The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream.