Also added to the U.S. archive of culturally significant recordings is R.E.M.'s song 'Radio Free Europe' along with Willie Nelson's 1975 album 'Red Headed Stranger'
- June 24, 2010
AceShowbiz - Tupac Shakur's song "Dear Mama" and R.E.M.'s track "Radio Free Europe" have been declared American national treasures - the records will be added to a U.S. archive of culturally significant recordings. The songs are among 25 new additions to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry, a government archive which preserves audio documents considered important for future generations.
There are only 300 recordings currently in the collection. Shakur's song was lauded as a "moving and eloquent homage to both his own mother and all mothers struggling to maintain a family in the face of addiction, poverty and societal indifference" by members of the National Recording Preservation Board.
Other entries this year include Willie Nelson's 1975 album "Red Headed Stranger", comedian Bill Cosby's 1964 comedy compilation "I Started Out as a Child", and Patti Smith's debut 1975 album "Horses".
