As the Grammy Awards rules and guidelines state, when the committee gives out the award for the Record of the Year, they do it to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency, and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to sales or chart position."
Yet, it seems that the Grammys themselves close their eyes (and ears) or disregard the chart position of some of the greatest modern songs around.
Sure, there could be quite a number of number-one songs the Grammy Awards need to pick, but what criteria did they use when they missed the songs that follow? Maybe the tunes were just a bit ahead of their time. Either way, the Grammys should be embarrassed.
The Grammy Awards completely whiffed on giving these song Record of the Year nods
The Rolling Stones - "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" (1965)
Was it the suggestive lyrics, or was it that incessant Brian Jones fuzz riff that everybody tried to copy afterward? Or did it come out too soon? Whatever the reason, this one not only did not win a Grammy but didn’t even get nominated at the time. The snub clearly did not set the Rolling Stones back much.
Al Green - "Let's Stay Together" (1971)
When this single came out back in 1971, Al Green was the soul and crossover king, and this song became a sort of his signature tune. No record of the year, not even a nomination in one of the R&B categories. Big miss.
Prince - "Little Red Corvette" (1982)
It is not the question of whether Prince won any Grammy. The late legend has seven of them under this belt. Yet when it came to a Record of the Year, this one wasn’t even nominated. (Of course, the first three songs on the album the song is off of, 1999, are all bangers.)
Bruce Springsteen - "Born in the U.S.A." (1984)
Sure, “Dancing In The Dark,” which won a Grammy as the song coming from the same-titled album is a brilliant song, but this one should have been it. Maybe it came down to how the song lyrics were interpreted.
Nirvana - "Smells Like Teen Spirit" (1991)
Some say this one missed it because the ballots for the year were already in. Yet, did one have any chance at all at the time? Nope. Grunge was just beginning to be found and sounded foreign to many Grammy voters.