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by Julian Spivey On April 9, the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress announced its 2025 class of inductees, which included 25 new recordings recognized for being culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant to the medium of recorded sound. Here’s the complete list of the 2025 inductees. This year’s inductees span more than 100 years from 1913’s “Aloha ‘Oe” by the Hawaiian Quintet to the Original Broadway Cast Album of “Hamilton” in 2015. Here are my five favorite selections on the list (in order of when they were released).  Photos: Elektra Records, DJM Records, ABC-Dot Records & Atlantic Records “Kiss An Angel Good Mornin’” by Charley Pride (Single) - 1971 Charley Pride is one of the more important figures throughout country music history, not only as one of its legendary hitmakers with 30 No. 1 country hits, but historically as its first African American superstar. Among Pride’s 30 No. 1 hits was 1971’s “Kiss An Angel Good Mornin’,” written by Ben Peters, showcasing his smooth-as-honey vocals on this love song where he advises about having a happy marriage. “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” by Elton John (Album) - 1973 Goodbye Yellow Brick Road is likely Elton John’s most famous album, and possibly the greatest of his Rock Hall of Fame career. The double-album from 1973 features several of Elton John’s “greatest hits” like “Candle in the Wind,” “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” “Bennie and the Jets,” which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the title track. It also features the epic 11-minute “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding,” which begins the album and is a favorite of loyal Elton John fans. In 2020, Rolling Stone magazine named Goodbye Yellow Brick Road the 112th greatest album ever. “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” by Freddy Fender (Single) - 1975 Much like the aforementioned Charley Pride, another historically significant figure in the primarily white genre of country music was American Tejano singer Freddy Fender, who had four No. 1 country hits in the 1970s, and was a crossover pop hit – especially with “Before the Next Teardop Falls,” which was No.1 on the country and pop charts in 1975. Written by Vivian Keith and Ben Peters (who wrote Pride’s “Kiss An Angel Good Mornin’”), the song finds Fender crooning bilingually to a woman about how he’ll comfort her when another breaks her heart. “Tracy Chapman” by Tracy Chapman (Album) - 1988
Tracy Chapman’s eponymous debut album, released in 1988, immediately put her on the spot as one of the great singer-songwriters of the era. It’s hit single “Fast Car,” a top-10 hit in America, received Grammy Award nominations for Song of the Year and Record of the Year (it ridiculously lost both to Bobby McFerrin’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”), and the album was nominated for Album of the Year. Chapman would win three Grammys for her debut: Best New Artist, Best Contemporary Folk Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for “Fast Car.” In 2020, Rolling Stone magazine named Tracy Chapman the 256th greatest album ever. “Fast Car” was ranked the 71st greatest song ever by Rolling Stone in 2021. “Hamilton” Original Broadway Cast (Album) - 2015 Few Broadway musicals have the cultural impact that Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Hamilton” did for about a half-decade period from its Broadway debut in 2015 through its recorded theatrical release on streaming in 2020. Miranda told the story of Alexander Hamilton, one of America’s greatest founding fathers, through rap music and diversity, featuring a cast of non-white actors in roles of Hamilton, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and more. “Hamilton” was all the rage, winning 11 Tony Awards and a Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Its cast recording is the best-selling cast album of all time. Some might believe it’s too early for this selection, but when was the last time a Broadway musical captured the masses like “Hamilton”?
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