Songs of the Century
The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America’s musical and cultural heritage" in American schools. Hundreds of voters, who included elected officials, people from the music industry and the media, teachers, and students, were asked in 2001 to choose the top 365 songs (not necessarily by Americans) of the 20th century with historical significance in mind. The voters were selected by RIAA, although only about 15% (200) of the 1,300 selected voters responded.[1][2][3]
Criticism [edit]
These lists have their critics. B. George, director of the ARChive of Contemporary Music, said pop-music genres such as electronic dance music, punk rock, and rap were given short shrift. An informal survey of CBS News producers indicated surprise at some of the choices on the list.[1] NPR's Talk of the Nation highlighted songs that were excluded from the RIAA list but were on a similar list produced by NPR the year. One song that was highlighted was Rhapsody in Blue.[4]
The list [edit]
The list of the top 25 songs, in the order of votes received. Each song is followed by the name of the artist who made the most notable recording of the song.[5]
References [edit]
- ^ a b "Best Songs Of The Century?". cbsnews.com. CBS News. 11 February 2009. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
- ^ "New song list puts 'Rainbow' way up high". cnn.com. CNN. 7 March 2001. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
- ^ "RIAA, NEA Announce Songs of the Century" (Press release). Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). March 2001. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
- ^ ."20th Century's Best Songs". Talk of the Nation. 14 March 2001. Retrieved 9 March 2013. Unknown parameter
|credits=ignored (help) - ^ "Songs of the Century". cnn.com. CNN. 7 March 2001. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
