The 31st Grammy Awards were held in 1989. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year.

Award winners:

• Record of the Year
  • Linda Goldstein (producer) & Bobby McFerrin for "Don't Worry, Be Happy"

• Album of the Year
  • George Michael (producer & artist) for Faith

• Song of the Year
  • Bobby McFerrin for "Don't Worry, Be Happy"

• Best New Artist
  • Tracy Chapman

Blues

• Best Traditional Blues Recording
  • Willie Dixon for Hidden Charms
• Best Contemporary Blues Recording
  • The Robert Cray Band for "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark "

Children's

• Best Recording for Children
  • Ry Cooder (producer & composer), Mark Sottnick (producer) & Robin Williams for Pecos Bill

Classical

• Best Orchestral Recording
  • Robert Woods (producer), Louis Lane , Robert Shaw (conductors) & the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for Rorem: String Symphony; Sunday Morning; Eagles
• Best Classical Vocal Soloist Performance
  • Emerson Buckley (conductor), Luciano Pavarotti & the Symphony Orchestra of Amelia Romangna for Luciano Pavarotti in Concert
• Best Opera Recording
  • Christopher Raeburn (producer), Georg Solti (conductor), Plácido Domingo, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Siegmund Nimsgern , Jessye Norman, Eva Randova , Hans Sotin , & the Vienna State Opera Orchestra for Wagner: Lohengrin
• Best Choral Performance (other than opera)
  • Robert Shaw (conductor) & the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus for Verdi: Requiem & Operatic Choruses
• Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist(s) (with orchestra)
  • Carlo Maria Giulini (conductor), Vladimir Horowitz & the La Scala Opera Orchestra for Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23
• Best Classical Performance - Instrumental Soloist (without orchestra)
  • Alicia De Larrocha for Albeniz: Iberia, Navarra, Suite Espagnola
• Best Chamber Music Performance
  • David Corkhill , Evelyn Glennie, Murray Perahia & Georg Solti for Bartók: Sonata for Two Pianos & Percussion
• Best Contemporary Composition
  • John Adams (composer), Edo de Waart (conductor) & the San Francisco Symphony for Adams: Nixon in China
• Best Classical Album
  • Robert Woods (producer), Robert Shaw (conductor) & the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus for Verdi: Requiem & Operatic Choruses

Comedy

• Best Comedy Recording
  • Robin Williams for Good Morning Vietnam

Composing and arranging

• Best Instrumental Composition
  • Mike Post (composer) for "The Theme From LA Law"
• Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or Television
  • Phil Collins and Lamont Dozier (songwriters) for "Two Hearts" performed by Phil Collins
• Best Album or Original Instrumental Background Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television
  • David Byrne, Cong Su , and Ryuichi Sakamoto (composers) for The Last Emperor
• Best Arrangement on an Instrumental
  • Roger Kellaway (arranger) for "Memos From Paradise" performed by Eddie Daniels
• Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)
  • Jonathan Tunick (arranger) for "No One Is Alone" performed by Cleo Laine

Country

• Best Country Vocal Performance, Female
  • K.T. Oslin for "Hold Me"
• Best Country Vocal Performance, Male
  • Randy Travis for Old 8x10
• Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
  • The Judds for "Give a Little Love"
• Best Country Vocal Collaboration
  • k.d. lang & Roy Orbison for "Crying"
• Best Country Instrumental Performance (orchestra, group or soloist)
  • Asleep at the Wheel for "Sugarfoot Rag"
• Best Country Song
  • K.T. Oslin (songwriter) for "Hold Me"
• Best Bluegrass Recording (vocal or instrumental)
  • Bill Monroe for Southern Flavor

Folk

• Best Traditional Folk Recording
  • Don DeVito , Harold Leventhal , Joe McEwen & Ralph Rinzler (producers) for Folkways - A Vision Shared: A Tribute to Woody Guthrie & Leadbelly performed by various artists
• Best Contemporary Folk Recording
  • Tracy Chapman for Tracy Chapman

Gospel

• Best Gospel Performance, Female
  • Amy Grant for Lead Me On
• Best Gospel Performance, Male
  • Larnelle Harris for Christmas
• Best Gospel Performance by a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus
  • The Winans for The Winans Live at Carnegie Hall
• Best Soul Gospel Performance, Female
  • Aretha Franklin for One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism
• Best Soul Gospel Performance, Male
  • BeBe Winans for "Abundant Life"
• Best Soul Gospel Performance by a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus
  • Take 6 for Take 6

Historical

• Best Historical Album
  • Bill Levenson (producer) for Crossroads performed by Eric Clapton

Jazz

• Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female
  • Betty Carter for Look What I Got!
• Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Male
  • Bobby McFerrin for Brothers
• Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group
  • Take 6 for "Spread Love"
• Best Jazz Instrumental Performance Soloist (On a Jazz Recording)
  • Michael Brecker for Don't Try This at Home
• Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group
  • Roy Haynes, Cecil McBee, David Murray, Pharoah Sanders & McCoy Tyner for Blues for Coltrane: A Tribute to John Coltrane
• Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band
  • Gil Evans for Bud & Bird performed by Gil Evans & the Monday Night Orchestra
• Best Jazz Fusion Performance
  • Yellowjackets for Politics

Latin

• Best Latin Pop Performance
  • Roberto Carlos for Roberto Carlos
• Best Tropical Latin Performance
  • Rubén Blades for Antecedente
• Best Mexican-American Performance
  • Linda Ronstadt for Canciones de Mi Padre

Musical Show

• Best Musical Cast Show Album
  • Stephen Sondheim (composer & lyricist), Jay David Saks (producer), & various artists for Into the Woods

Music Video

• Best Concept Music Video
  • Susan Zwerman (video producer), Jay Levey (video director) & Weird Al Yankovic for "I'm Fat"
• Best Performance Music Video
  • Michael Hamlyn , Ben Dossett (video producers), Meiert Avis (video director) & U2 for "Where the Streets Have No Name"

New Age

• Best New Age Performance
  • Shadowfax for Folksongs for a Nuclear Village

Packaging and Notes

• Best Album Package
  • Bill Johnson (art director) for Tired of Runnin' performed by O'Kanes
• Best Album Notes
  • Anthony DeCurtis (notes writer) for Crossroads performed by Eric Clapton

Polka

• Best Polka Recording
  • Jimmy Sturr for Born to Polka

Pop

• Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female
  • Tracy Chapman for "Fast Car"
• Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
  • Bobby McFerrin for "Don't Worry, Be Happy"
• Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
  • The Manhattan Transfer for Brasil
• Best Pop Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group Or Soloist)
  • David Sanborn for Close-up

Production and engineering

• Best Engineered Recording, Non-Classical
  • Tom Lord-Alge (engineer) for Roll With It performed by Steve Winwood
• Best Engineered Recording, Classical
  • Jack Renner (engineer), Robert Shaw (conductor) & the Vienna Philharmonic for Verdi: Requiem & Operatic Choruses
• Producer of the Year, (Non-Classical)
  • Neil Dorfsman
• Classical Producer of the Year
  • Robert Woods

R&B

• Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female
  • Anita Baker for "Giving You the Best That I Got"
• Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
  • Terence Trent D'arby for Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D'arby
• Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
  • Gladys Knight & The Pips for "Love Overboard"
• Best R&B Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist)
  • Chick Corea for "Light Years"
• Best Rhythm & Blues Song
  • Anita Baker, Randy Holland & Skip Scarborough (songwriters) for "Giving You the Best That I Got" performed by Anita Baker

Rap

• Best Rap Performance
  • DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince for "Parent's Just Don't Understand"

Reggae

• Best Reggae Recording
  • Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers for Conscious Party

Rock

• Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female
  • Tina Turner for Tina Live in Europe
• Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male
  • Robert Palmer for "Simply Irresistible"
• Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
  • U2 for "Desire"
• Best Rock Instrumental Performance (Orchestra, Group or Soloist)
  • Carlos Santana for Blues for Salvador
• Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental
  • Jethro Tull for Crest of a Knave

Spoken

• Best Spoken Word or Non-musical Recording
  • Jesse Jackson for Speech by Rev. Jesse Jackson