A husband-and-wife singing cowboy duo, and groundbreaking Black and Tejano artists are the voices behind country’s contributions to the National Recording Registry in 2025.
Roy Rogers and Dale Evans‘ iconic “Happy Trails” from 1952; Charley Pride‘s signature song from 1971, “Kiss an Angel Good Morning”; and Freddy Fender‘s “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” from 1975 are just three of the 25 works chosen this year.
It’s also worth noting that Tracy Chapman‘s self-titled debut album from 1988 was chosen. Of course, Luke Combs had a massive hit with his 2023 cover of “Fast Car” from that record.
The Library of Congress chose the “audio treasures worthy of preservation for all time” out of more than 2,600 nominations made by the public.
Elton John‘s “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” and Celine Dion‘s “My Heart Will Go On” become part of the registry, as well, along with a couple of quirkier entries: the soundtrack to the Minecraft video game and the Microsoft Windows Reboot Chime.
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