Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden has named records by Madonna (Like a Virgin), Mariah Carey “All I Want For Christmas Is You”), Queen Latifah (All Hail the Queen), and Daddy Yankee (“Gasolina”) among 25 recordings to be preserved in the National Recording Registry. The registry contains “audio treasures worthy of preservation for all time based on their cultural, historical or aesthetic importance.” The Library of Congress National Audio-Visual Conservation Center is charged with ensuring the recordings are preserved and available for future generations. Check out the full list below.
Daddy Yankee’s explosive reggaetón “Gasolina” was the flashpoint for the genre’s mainstream moment, a sign that Puerto Rico could no longer contain the infectious—if unfairly maligned—dance music. Carey’s Christmas anthem was a modest hit upon release, but has become a season institution, hitting No. 1 on pop charts the last four Christmases. Queen Latifah is the first female rapper to join the registry with her debut album, released when she was just 19 years old. And Madonna’s 1983 classic sophomore LP—crafted with the help of Nile Rodgers—is responsible for much of her most enduring iconography, and nearly half of its 9 tracks cracked the top 10 on the singles chart.
The newly inducted songs also include “The First Ever Mariachi Recordings,” John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s plea for peace “Imagine,” Eurythmics goth pop anthem “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” and the first video game sounds to join the registry, Koji Kondo’s Super Mario Bros. theme. With the current additions, the registry currently contains 625 recordings.
National Recording Registry, 2023 Selections:
“The Very First Mariachi Recordings” — Cuarteto Coculense (1908-1909)
“St. Louis Blues” — Handy’s Memphis Blues Band (1922)
“Sugar Foot Stomp” — Fletcher Henderson (1926)
Dorothy Thompson: Commentary and Analysis of the European Situation for NBC Radio (Aug. 23-Sept. 6, 1939)
“Don’t Let Nobody Turn You Around” — The Fairfield Four (1947)
“Sherry” — The Four Seasons (1962)
“What the World Needs Now is Love” — Jackie DeShannon (1965)
“Wang Dang Doodle” — Koko Taylor (1966)
“Ode to Billie Joe” — Bobbie Gentry (1967)
“Déjà Vu” — Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young (1970)
“Imagine” — John Lennon (1971)
“Stairway to Heaven” — Led Zeppelin (1971)
“Take Me Home, Country Roads” — John Denver (1971)
“Margaritaville” — Jimmy Buffett (1977)
“Flashdance…What a Feeling” — Irene Cara (1983)
“Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” — Eurythmics (1983)
“Synchronicity” — The Police (1983)
“Like a Virgin” — Madonna (1984)
“Black Codes (From the Underground)” — Wynton Marsalis (1985)
Super Mario Bros. theme — Koji Kondo, composer (1985)
“All Hail the Queen” — Queen Latifah (1989)
“All I Want for Christmas is You” — Mariah Carey (1994)
“Pale Blue Dot” — Carl Sagan (1994)
“Gasolina” — Daddy Yankee (2004)
“Concerto for Clarinet and Chamber Orchestra” — Northwest Chamber Orchestra, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, composer (2012)