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Every year, the Library of Congress in the U.S. adds a host of famous music and sounds to its National Recording Registry, enshrined as culturally significant for the ages. This year's honourees are as eclectic as they come: everyone from Elton John's classic "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" LP and Amy Winehouse's "Back To Black" to Roy Rogers' signature theme "Happy Trails To You" - and that's a small list.
But it's not just music that makes the cut. One of the latest additions is a radio broadcast of Game 7 of the World Series from Oct. 13, 1960. Here's the description of why it made the list:
"The 1960 World Series between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the New York Yankees all came down to the final inning of the seventh game, tied 9-9. With the Yankees' Ralph Terry on the mound, Pirate Bill Mazeroski strode to the plate, and announcer Chuck Thompson called one of the most dramatic moments in baseball history.
So startled was Thompson that he blew it, announcing over the roar of the crowd that the final score was 10-0 instead of 10-9, but he turned down a chance to re-record his call for posterity, stating, "I figured it had gone on the air that way, so it would not be honest to change it."
Also honoured: Steve Miller's "Fly Like An Eagle," Helen Reddy's "I Am Woman," "The Chicago Transit Authority" by the band that became better known as just Chicago, a classic Miles Davis LP, the original Broadway cast recording of "Hamilton" and my personal favourite, "Hello Dummy," a comedy album by the late Don Rickles that I bought as a kid and still have somewhere upstairs. But perhaps the oddest and shortest of all, is the Windows 95 music sign-on that was composed by Brian Eno.
You can see (and hear) all of the honourees here.
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I did not know Eno composed the Windows 95 sign-on music, great trivia, thanks RA!