Nat'l Recording Registry Adds Joplin, Simon & Garfunkel

Simon & Garfunkel

Musical performances by Janis Joplin, Chubby Checker, Simon & Garfunkel, Van Cliburn and The Ramones, as well as news reports recorded at the scene of the D-Day invasion and the first broadcast by a president from outer space, are among the recordings marked for preservation by the Library of Congress.

According to cbsnews.com, the Library Thursday named 25 audio recordings to be added to its National Recording Registry, a collection of sound recordings representative of America's cultural, artistic and historic treasures.

The registry contains commercial recordings of every music genre, as well as radio broadcasts, documentary and news recordings.

Among the latest additions to the Registry are: Chubby Checker's "The Twist"; Simon & Garfunkel's album "Sounds of Silence," recorded after a producer re-mixed a failed acoustic version of "The Sound of Silence" with electric guitar and drums to create a hit; "Cheap Thrills," Janis Joplin's second album with Big Brother and the Holding Company; and Pink Floyd's landmark 1973 album "The Dark Side of the Moon."

Under the terms of the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, the Librarian of Congress -- with advice from the National Recording Preservation Board -- selects 25 recordings annually that are "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" and are at least 10 years old.

This year marks the 11th anniversary of the registry, which now contains 375 recordings, including the earliest recorded sounds dating back to 1853.

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