Doors, Radiohead preserved by Library of Congress
WASHINGTON: Albums by The Doors, Radiohead and Lauryn Hill will be preserved by the Library of Congress in recognition of their historical contributions.
The giant federal library in Washington on Wednesday named 25 new entries to its National Recording Registry, which will preserve the best available copies to safeguard for posterity.
The new inductees include the 1967 self-titled debut by The Doors, which featured the hit “Light My Fire” but also the experimental 12-minute song “The End” that was structured like an Indian raga.
The Library of Congress in a statement credited the psychedelic rockers led by Jim Morrison with pushing “artistic, sexual and psychological boundaries.”
The Library also honoured the 1960 self-titled debut by Joan Baez, calling the work seminal for women in folk music and carrying an “authenticity over sentimentality” that hinted at her later activism.
Among more recent works, the Library of Congress chose “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill,” the Fugees singer’s introspective 1998 solo album written while she was pregnant.
“Hill’s vocal range, smooth clear highs and vibrato are stunning. The rapping is rhythmically compelling while always retaining, and frequently exploiting, the natural cadences of conversational speech,” the Library of Congress said.
While primarily focused on US artistes, the Library of Congress selected British experimental rock band Radiohead’s 1997 album “OK Computer,” saying that the dystopian work “has endured as a statement and a cautionary tale for the digital age.”
The Library of Congress also honoured the 1969 album “Stand!” by funk giants Sly and the Family Stone, calling it “one of the most heavily sampled records of all time,” as well as the single of the Righteous Brothers’ 1964 “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” and soul singer Ben E. King’s 1960 Gospeltouched song “Stand by Me.”
Among other works, the Library of Congress selected a 1964 recording of classic New Orleans jazz by pianist Sweet Emma Barrett and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band and the 1949 album for Cole Porter’s Broadway musical “Kiss Me, Kate.”
Non-musical recordings added to the Registry included radio coverage of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s funeral in 1945. — AFP