The Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album has been awarded since 1959. The award has had several minor name changes:
- In 1959 the award was known as Best Performance, Documentary or Spoken Word
- From 1960 to 1961 it was awarded as Best Performance – Documentary or Spoken Word (other than comedy)
- From 1962 to 1963 it was awarded as Best Documentary or Spoken Word Recording (other than comedy)
- From 1964 to 1965 it was awarded as Best Documentary, Spoken Word or Drama Recording (other than comedy)
- In 1966 it was awarded as Best Spoken Word or Drama Recording
- From 1967 to 1968 it was awarded as Best Spoken Word, Documentary or Drama Recording
- From 1969 to 1979 it was awarded as Best Spoken Word Recording
- From 1980 to 1983 it returned to the title of Best Spoken Word, Documentary or Drama Recording
- From 1984 to 1991 it was awarded as Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Recording
- From 1992 to 1997 it was awarded as Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Album
- From 1998 to 2022 it was awarded as Best Spoken Word Album. In 2020, spoken-word children’s albums were moved here from the Best Children’s Album category.[1]
- From 2023 it has been awarded as Best Audio Book, Narration & Storytelling Recording.[2] Poetry reading now has its own Grammy category, Best Spoken Word Poetry Album.
Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were handed out, for a recording released in the previous year.
Recipients
1950s
| Year[I] | Work | Performing Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 1959 [3] |
The Best of the Stan Freberg Shows | Stan Freberg |
| Great American Speeches | Melvyn Douglas, Vincent Price, Carl Sandburg and Ed Begley | |
| “Green Christmas” | Stan Freberg | |
| Improvisations to Music | Elaine May and Mike Nichols |
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s
| Year[I] | Work | Performing Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 [60] |
Becoming | Michelle Obama |
| The Beastie Boys Book | Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz, Scott Sherratt and Dan Zitt (producers) | |
| Catatonia: 20 Years as a Two-Time Cancer Survivor | Eric Alexandrakis | |
| Mr. Know-It-All | John Waters | |
| Sekou Andrews & the String Theory | Sekou Andrews and the String Theory | |
| 2021 [61] |
Blowout | Rachel Maddow |
| Acid for the Children: A Memoir | Flea | |
| Alex Trebek — The Answer Is… | Ken Jennings | |
| Catch and Kill | Ronan Farrow | |
| Charlotte’s Web | Meryl Streep and Full Cast | |
| 2022 [62] |
Carry On: Reflections for a New Generation from John Lewis | Don Cheadle |
| Aftermath | LeVar Burton | |
| Catching Dreams: Live at Fort Knox Chicago | J. Ivy | |
| 8:46 | Dave Chappelle and Amir Sulaiman | |
| A Promised Land | Barack Obama | |
| 2023 [63] |
Finding Me | Viola Davis |
| Act Like You Got Some Sense | Jamie Foxx | |
| All About Me!: My Remarkable Life in Show Business | Mel Brooks | |
| Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World | Lin-Manuel Miranda | |
| Music Is History | Questlove | |
| 2024 [64] |
The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times | Michelle Obama |
| Big Tree | Meryl Streep | |
| Boldly Go: Reflections on a Life of Awe and Wonder | William Shatner | |
| The Creative Act: A Way of Being | Rick Rubin | |
| It’s OK to Be Angry About Capitalism | Bernie Sanders | |
| 2025 [65] |
Last Sunday in Plains: A Centennial Celebration | Jimmy Carter (posthumous) |
| All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words | Guy Oldfield | |
| …And Your Ass Will Follow | George Clinton | |
| Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones | Dolly Parton | |
| My Name Is Barbra | Barbra Streisand | |
| 2026 [66] |
Meditations: The Reflections of His Holiness The Dalai Lama | The Dalai Lama |
| Elvis, Rocky & Me: The Carol Connors Story | Kathy Garver | |
| Into the Uncut Grass | Trevor Noah | |
| Lovely One: A Memoir | Ketanji Brown Jackson | |
| You Know It’s True: The Real Story of Milli Vanilli | Fab Morvan |
Multiple wins & nominations
The following individuals received two or more awards:
| Wins | Person |
|---|---|
| 4 | Jimmy Carter |
| 3 | Maya Angelou |
| 2 | Barack Obama |
| Michelle Obama | |
| Orson Welles |
The following individuals received three or more nominations:
| Nominations | Person |
|---|---|
| 10 | Jimmy Carter |
| 8 | John Gielgud |
| 7 | Orson Welles |
| 5 | Maya Angelou |
| 4 | Walter Cronkite |
| 3 | Carol Burnett |
| Barack Obama | |
| James Earl Jones | |
| James Mason |
See also
References
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