Musical Tribute to Columbia Crew Nominated for Grammy

On Sunday, Feb. 1, 2004, international star Josh Groban honored the NASA Space Shuttle Columbia crew with a performance of his new hit "You Raise Me Up" from his multi-platinum CD "Closer" at Super Bowl XXXVIII at Reliant Stadium in Houston. Accompanied by an 80 person local choir, Groban performed as part of the pregame show prior to Houston's own Beyoncé Knowles, singing the National Anthem before the start of Super Bowl XXXVIII. Crew members from the next Space Shuttle STS-114 joined Groban on the field as part of the NFL's salute to NASA.

While the song was not written with the Columbia in mind, it was a beautiful tribute.

Josh Groban, the 23-year-old vocal phenomenon, recently sold out his first ever national concert tour within minutes. His self titled debut album sold over five million copies and his hit single "To Where You Are" was a source of comfort for the entire country following Sept. 11. His current CD "Closer" which includes three original songs penned by Groban, has already sold millions and spent weeks at the top of the charts.

Now "You Raise Me Up", the song performed by Josh Groban as a tribute to Columbia, has been nominated for a Grammy in the Best Male Pop Vocal Performance (For a solo vocal performance. Singles or Tracks only). During the 46th Annual Grammy Awards in 2004, another musical tribute to the Columbia, "Way Up There" by Patti LaBelle was also nominated, but did not win.

You can watch the 47th Annual Grammy Awards on CBS on Sunday February 13, 2005 at 8PM ET/PT. Discover whether Josh Groban and "You Raise Me Up" pick up the award.

The Columbia crew was lost, Feb. 1, 2003, when the space shuttle disintegrated while returning to Earth after completing their successful mission.