Jimmy Buffett, whose iconic "Margaritaville" was inducted into the National Recording Registry this year, died yesterday at age 76. We interviewed him in March for the NRR. Here, we remember that conversation, his story of writing the song, his performance at the Library in 2008 and how his songs inspired the author long ago, even before Buffett was a star.
It is midafternoon on a recent weekday and jazz legend Wynton Marsalis is driving across the Southwest, taking the call on speakerphone that his 1985 album, “Black Codes (From the Underground),” has been inducted into the 2023 class of the National Recording Registry. With endless desert spreading about behind and before him, he took a few minutes to talk about the album and its pointed political statement.
The 2023 class of the National Recording Registry adds music from Mariah Carey, Queen Latifah, Daddy Yankee, the Eurythmics, Jimmy Buffett, Wynton Marsalis, Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich and several others. The 25 additions range from 1908 to 2012 and includes early blues and Mariachi music, along with radio broadcasts from the 1930s. A highlights video, with interviews with several of the artists, is included.
Lamont Dozier, one third of Motown’s key hit-writing team, Holland-Dozier-Holland, has died at 81. It’s difficult to imagine the soundtrack of the 1960s without him. I chatted with him earlier this year, when the trio’s “Reach Out I’ll Be There,” was inducted into the 2022 class of the National Recording Registry. Here’s the story …
Songwriting brothers Robert and Richard Sherman penned dozens of Disney hits, including the songs and lyrics for "Mary Poppins," "The Jungle Book" and "Winnie the Pooh," but their simple song for a theme park ride, "It's a Small World," became the most played song of all time.
Lamont Dozier, part of Motown's fabled Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting team, talks about writing "Reach Out I'll Be There," a hit for the Four Tops and part of the 2022 class of the National Recording Registry class.
We caught up with Alicia Keys recently, talking about her electrifying 2001 debut album, “Songs in A Minor,” and its induction into the 2022 class of the National Recording Registry.
Journey's "Don'r Stop Believin' " became a pop-culture staple and a stadium anthem for several sports teams. This year it was inducted into the National Recording Registry. We caught up with lead singer Steve Perry about the record.
The 2022 Class of the National Recording Registry includes albums such as Alicia Keys' "Songs in A Minor" and singles such as Journey's "Don't Stop Believin' " and Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca," along with with important inductions of hip-hop and Latin music, including recordings by Linda Ronstadt, A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan and the Buena Vista Social Club.
