Selections from the National Recording Registry

PHOTO: BETTMANN/CORBIS

EDISON TALKING-DOLL CYLINDER, 1888 First known commercial recording.

*Included in the compilation above

PHOTO: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

VOICES FROM THE DAYS OF SLAVERY, 1932–41 — WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION  Interviews capture the first-hand experiences of former slaves.

*Included in the compilation above.

PHOTO: BETTMANN/CORBIS

“I CAN HEAR IT NOW: 1933–1945,” EDWARD R. MURROW AND FRED W. FRIENDLY, 1948  CBS newsmen package speech excerpts and news snippets in top-selling records.

*Included in the compilation above.

PHOTO: WALTER ENGELS/NY DAILY NEWS ARCHIVE VIA GETTY IMAGES

NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC DEBUT OF LEONARD BERNSTEIN, 1943 The 25-year-old ­substitutes for an ill conductor and wins front-page notice in The New York Times.

PHOTO: METRONOME/GETTY IMAGES

“ARTISTRY IN RHYTHM,” STAN KENTON, 1943 Jazz leaves the ­ballroom to become complex concert music.

*Included in the compilation above.

PHOTO: COURTESY INSTITUTE OF JAZZ STUDIES, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY

INTERNATIONAL SWEETHEARTS OF RHYTHM, 1944–1946 An interracial, all-women jazz band tours Europe and the United States.

*Included in the compilation above.

PHOTO: MAX REDFERN/GETTY IMAGES

“MOTHERSHIP CONNECTION,” PARLIAMENT, 1975 Jazz, rock, and dance music won’t be the same after funk gets serious in this sharply political but totally danceable work by George Clinton and a top-flight band.

PHOTO: AP IMAGES

“PURPLE RAIN,” PRINCE, 1984 A new blend of analog and ­electronic sound; catchy tunes; and a fusion of funk, pop, soul, and rock make this one of the era’s most influential albums.