2019 NATIONAL RECORDING REGISTRY

What in the world would Neil Diamond and Jay-Z have in common? They have both had their music inducted into the National Recording Registry for 2019 with Diamond's first major hit single, "Sweet Caroline" and the hip-hop artist's landmark album, "The Blueprint" receiving this prestigious honor. There were a total of twenty-five recordings selected that have been added to the Library of Congress for their cultural and aesthetic significance. These works range from early phonographs of Yiddish songs from the beginning of the 20th Century to the classic Cab Calloway call and response jazz song, "Minnie The Moocher" to Nina Simone's angry protest to the senseless murders during the Civil Rights era with "Mississippi Goddam"; the original soundtracks to the Broadway musical, "Hair" and the blaxploitation crime drama, "Superfly" and to the glittering disco of "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" by Sylvester.

To be selected, the recordings must be at least ten years old and deemed "culturally, historically and aesthetically significant". The number selected for preservation has now reached 525 since 2002.

Here is the complete list of the twenty-five recordings being inducted in the 2019 National Recording Registry:

Yiddish Cylinders from the Standard Phonograph Company of New York and the Thomas Lambert Company (c. 1901-1905)
"Memphis Blues" (single) - Victor Military Band (1914)
Melville Jacobs Collection of Native Americans of the American Northwest (1929-1939)
"Minnie the Moocher" (single) - Cab Calloway (1931)



"Bach Six Cello Suites" (album) - Pablo Casals (c. 1939)
"They Look Like Men of War" (single) - Deep River Boys (1941)
"Gunsmoke" — Episode: "The Cabin" (Dec. 27, 1952)
"Ruth Draper: Complete recorded monologues" - Ruth Draper (1954-1956)
"La Bamba" (single) - Ritchie Valens (1958)



"Long Black Veil" (single) - Lefty Frizzell (1959)



"Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America, Vol. 1: The Early Years" (album) - Stan Freberg (1961)
"GO" (album) - Dexter Gordon (1962)
"War Requiem" (album) - Benjamin Britten (1963)
"Mississippi Goddam" (single) - Nina Simone (1964)



"Soul Man" (single) - Sam & Dave (1967)
"Hair" (original Broadway cast recording) (1968)



Speech on the Death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. by Robert F. Kennedy (April 4, 1968)
"Sweet Caroline" (single) - Neil Diamond (1969)



"Superfly" (album) - Curtis Mayfield (1972)



"Ola Belle Reed" (album) - Ola Belle Reed (1973)
"September" (single) - Earth, Wind & Fire (1978)
"You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" (single) - Sylvester (1978)



"She’s So Unusual" (album) - Cyndi Lauper (1983)
"Schoolhouse Rock!: The Box Set" (1996)
"The Blueprint" (album) - Jay-Z (2001)

BLACK MUSIC MONTH

Let's continue on with the celebration of Black Music Month with another collection of songs from a diverse group of artists:

"Gimme Little Sign" - Brenton Wood (1967) mp3

"It's a Shame" - The Spinners (1970) mp3

"You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" - Sylvester (1978) mp3

"You Can't Change That" - Raydio featuring Ray Parker, Jr. (1980) mp3

"I Remember" - Keyshia Cole (2008) mp3

DISCO INFERNO

I've been having disco fever ever since I had done a post about Chic, one of the super groups of that time. I was just a mere teenager at the height of the disco era, around 1978 and 1979, so I wasn't able to go out and get my groove on out on the dance floor. I had to sadly settle for just listening to the music at home.

I loved disco and never understood the hostility to the music during the whole "Disco Sucks" phase but the music seemed to disappear from radio overnight. The reality is that disco didn't go anywhere. The sound just evolved and it is now known as "dance" which is even more popular today. The sound incorporates house, electronic and hip-hop.

So here are a few classic disco tunes to enjoy and brighten up your day:

"Super Nature" - Cerrone (1977)

"Shake Your Groove Thing" - Peaches & Herb (1978)

"Dance (Disco Heat)" - Sylvester (1978)

"I Love The Nightlife (Disco 'Round)" - Alicia Bridges (1978)

"Dance With Me" - Peter Brown (1978)

"Get Off" - Foxy (1978)

"Knock On Wood" - Amii Stewart (1979)

"Lost In Music" - Sister Sledge (1979)

"Good Times" - Chic (1979)

Here is a new music video from The Young Professionals (TYP) for their song " D.I.S.C.O." that perfectly captures the crazy fun and carefree spirit of the glory days of disco: