Recordings to be Preserved for Posterior Publication in the State of the Nation, with Application to Rapper Queen Latifah
“The National Recording Registry preserves our history through recorded sound and reflects our nation’s diverse culture,” said Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden in a statement naming 25 recordings to be preserved for posterity this year.
The annual list usually includes a mix of popular songs, radio broadcasts, significant speeches and more, all intended to define the sound of the country’s history and culture. For the first time, it will feature the music and soundtrack of a video game.
Queen Latifah recorded her breakthrough 1989 album All Hail The Queen when she was just a teenager. “Her album showed rap could cross genres, and it made it possible for other female rappers to follow in her footsteps,” the statement said.
Some of the other tracks that made the cut include Lennon’s “Nowhere Man,” Madonna’s “Like A Virgin” and Daddy Yankee’s “Gasolina.”
The Sounds of America, a program of music by A. D. Kondo, inventor of mariachi songs, and inventor of the first American recorded music
Kondo got the job when he was in college. He responded to an ad on a university bulletin board. Now 61, Kondo said there wasn’t much usable data for making music and sound effects at the time.
Kondo told the Library of Congress through an translator that he needed to be innovative and use programming ingenuity they had at the time. “I used all sorts of genres that matched what was happening on screen. We had jingles to encourage players to try again after getting a ‘game over,’ fanfares to congratulate them for reaching goals, and pieces that sped up when the time remaining grew short.”
The earliest recordings of mariachi music, recorded in Mexico City before the Mexican Revolution, were added to the registry in 1909. And the newest is a contemporary classical piece by composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, the first woman to earn a doctorate in composition from the Juilliard School and the first female composer to win the Pulitzer Prize.
There is a mix of music from the ’80s and ’90s, political analysis, and a reading of an influential 1994 book. The National Recording registry will be discussed in the series ” The Sounds of America”, which focuses on this year’s selections.
- Cuarteto Coculense’s mariachi recordings were the very first. “St. Louis Blues” — Handy’s Memphis Blues Band (1922)3. “Sugar Foot Stomp” — Fletcher Henderson (1926)4. There is a commentary about the European situation for NBC Radio. 23-Sept. 6, 1939)5. “Don’t Let Nobody Turn You Around” — The Fairfield Four (1947)6. A book called “What the World Needs Now is Love” byJackie DeShannon. “Wang Dang Doodle” was written by Koko Taylor. “Sherry” — The Four Seasons (1962)9. “Ode to Billy Joe” was written by the member of the team, Bobbie Gentry. “Déjà Vu” — Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (1970)11. “Imagine” is a song by John Lennon. “Stairway to Heaven” — Led Zeppelin (1971)13. John Denver wrote, “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Jimmy Buffet wrote “Margaritaville”. “Flashdance…What a Feeling” — Irene Cara (1983)16. “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” is a song by Eurythmics. “Synchronicity” — The Police (1983)18. Wynton Marsalis wrote about black codes from the underground. Super Mario Bros. theme — Koji Kondo, composer (1986)20. Madonna said, “Like a Virgin.” “AllHail the Queen” by Queen Latifah. “All I Want for Christmas is You” — Mariah Carey (1994)23. “Pale Blue Dot” — Carl Sagan (1994)24. “Gasolina” is by Daddy Yankee. “Concerto for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra— Northwest Chamber Orchestra, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, composer (2012)
They also added John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and “Stairways to Heaven” by the Eurythmics.