Lesbian celebrity couples were on prominent display at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards on Sunday night, as Melissa Etheridge walked the red carpet with wife Tammy Lynn Michaels (Committed), while Ellen DeGeneres attended the event with new girlfriend Portia de Rossi (Arrested Development).

The awards show, which honors the best in musical performance, was hosted this year by Queen Latifah, with DeGeneres stepping in to introduce Latifah's musical performance during the ceremony. DeGeneres and de Rossi had a front row seat at the awards show, and were a frequent stop on the camera's pan of the audience.

DeGeneres did not win the Best Comedy Album award, for which she was nominated; that honor went to Jon Stewart. The recently deceased Ray Charles won a record eight Grammys, and Britney Spears won her first Grammy--for "Toxic"--in the Best Dance Recording category.

In one of the highlights of an otherwise fairly humdrum awards show, Melissa Etheridge teamed up with rising star Joss Stone to pay tribute to Janis Joplin midway through the show. Sporting a new bald look (the result of chemotherapy treatments for breast cancer), Etheridge rocked the house with her rendition of "Piece of My Heart," following Stone's version of "Cry Baby," and the duo received a standing ovation when they finished.

This is Etheridge's highest-profile appearance since she was diagnosed with breast cancer last year, and she was warmly and enthusiastically received by the audience when she made her onstage debut.

This is only the second public event (following the SAG awards earlier this month) that DeGeneres and de Rossi have officially attended together since they started dating a few months ago.