Top 5 things we liked about the Grammy Awards

Todd Leopold

CNN

(CNN) — The 2014 Grammy Awards are in the books, and in typical fashion, there were some notable moments.

These five were among the best:

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1. Daft Punk and their dancin’ friends perform “Get Lucky.”

The recorded version of “Get Lucky” — which went on to win record of the year — already featured Pharrell’s vocals and Nile Rodgers’ distinctive guitar. But the Grammys’ added attraction was Stevie Wonder, who dominated the awards in the mid-’70s (he has three album of the year honors).

Wonder can still bring out the best in his collaborators — including the robot-headed Daft Punk, who played from the “control room” of the recording studio set and moved like, well, robots. Still, the group would make for a great tour.

2. Old royalty, new royalty

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The Beatles’ Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr were in the audience and earned frequent shout outs from such presenters as host LL Cool J, Dave Grohl and Jamie Foxx. (You’d think there was some kind of Beatles’ anniversary coming up.)

But there was also plenty of deference to Jay Z and Beyonce. The pair led off the show with a rousing version of “Drunk in Love,” and Jay Z later won a Grammy for rap/sung collaboration. Jay Z mentioned his child-in-waiting, baby Blue, in his acceptance speech.

3. Nifty performances, as usual

The Grammys always try hard to match known names with rising stars, and this year, the pairings paid off with several performances.

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There was the Daft Punk melange, of course, but also the combination of Imagine Dragons and Kendrick Lamar (with an electric “Radioactive”) and the duet of classical pianist Lang Lang and metal stars Metallica.

4. The new faces did well

Early on, it looked like it was going to be a huge night for Macklemore & Ryan Lewis — especially after they won three of the rap categories over competition that included Jay Z and Kanye West. The duo also won best new artist.

Later in the show, it was Lorde who shined, picking up song of the year for “Royals.” The 17-year-old New Zealander seemed particularly taken aback by her win, letting co-writer Joel Little give his speech first.

5. Pharrell’s hat

What can be said about the chapeau that launched at least four Twitter accounts with a combined 10,000-plus followers? It looked like something Smokey the Bear might wear. Or maybe Dudley Do-Right.

Either way, it became a source of fun for Grammy watchers throughout the evening. Watch out: Given the way things work these days, it could get a show of its own by March.