The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) gathered in Los Angeles in late 2012 to celebrate and announce the nominees for the 55th Annual Grammy Awards. The awards were handed out on Feb. 10, 2013, and the fields related to folk and American roots music held some interesting surprises. Ry Cooder's heavily politically-charged Election Special album was nominated next to a collaborative disc the classical cellist Yo-Yo Ma made with some bluegrass/acoustic innovators.

Oklahoma-based newcomer John Fullbright (born and raised in Woody Guthrie's hometown of Okemah, Oklah.) scored a nomination in the Best Americana Album category next to the legendary Bonnie Raitt and mainstream darlings the Avett Brothers.

Perhaps what's even more interesting was the nomination Colorado-based rootsy trio the Lumineers scored for Best New Artist - an honor they shared with blockbuster buzz band the Alabama Shakes, among others.

Without further ado, I give you a full list of folk, roots, and Americana artists nominated in the roots music categories and elsewhere. Winners are noted in bold. For a full list of all Grammy nominees in every category, you can visit Grammy.com.

Best Folk Album
Carolina Chocolate Drops - Leaving Eden
Ry Cooder - Election Special
Luther Dickinson - Hambone's Meditations
WINNER: Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer, and Chris Thile - The Goat Rodeo Sessions
Various - This One's For Him: A Tribute to Guy Clark

Best Americana Album
The Avett Brothers - The Carpenter
John Fullbright - From the Ground Up
The Lumineers - The Lumineers
Mumford & Sons - Babel
WINNER: Bonnie Raitt - Slipstream

Best Bluegrass Album
Dailey & Vincent - The Gospel Side Of
The Grascals - Life Finds a Way
Noam Pikelny - Beat the Devil & Carry a Rail
Special Consensus - Scratch Gravel Road
WINNER: Steep Canyon Rangers - Nobody Knows You

Folk and Americana artists nominated in other categories

• Mumford & Sons - Album of the Year for Babel (WINNER), Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song for "I Will Wait", Best Long-form Music Video for "Big Easy Express" (with OCMS, Edward Sharpe, etc.), Producer Markus Dravs nominated for Producer of the Year
• Jack White - Album of the Year and Best Rock Album for Blunderbuss, Best Rock Song for "Freedom at 21"
• Alabama Shakes - Best New Artist, Best Rock Performance for "Hold On", Best Recording Package for Boys and Girls
• The Lumineers - Best New Artist
• Bruce Springsteen - Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song for "We Take Care of Our Own", Best Rock Album for Wrecking Ball
• Tom Waits - Best Alternative Music Album for Bad as Me
• The Civil Wars (with Taylor Swift) - Best Country Duo/Group Performance and Best Song Written for Visual Media for "Safe and Sound" (from The Hunger Games soundtrack)
• Elizabeth Mitchell - Best Children's Album for Little Seed: Songs for Children by Woody Guthrie
• Aimee Mann - Best Recording Package for Charmer
• Woody at 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection - Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package (WINNER), Best Historical Album
• Old-Time Smoky Mountain Music: 34 Historic Songs, Ballads, And Instrumentals Recorded In The Great Smoky Mountains By "Song Catcher" Joseph S. Hall - Best Historical Album
• Ryan Adams - Ashes and Fire - Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical