‘The Rainbow Connection’ added to the National Recording Registry
Kermit the Frog’s “The Rainbow Connection” joins 24 other groundbreaking sounds of history and culture among the latest titles inducted into the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress.
Written by Paul Williams and Kenneth Ascher, “Rainbow Connection” opened the Muppet’s first foray into film in “The Muppet Movie.” The song is performed by Kermit the Frog (voiced by Jim Henson), and was produced by Williams and Jim Henson. Williams and Ascher received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song at the 52nd Academy Awards for its composition.
Since then, the song has been covered dozens of times, from Judy Collins in 1980 to Kacey Musgraves in 2019, but the Kermit/Henson recording remains the iconic version of the work. It has been used as a theme song by many charitable organizations, and its plaintive message about dreams and their fulfillment remains enduring.
The song is about “the immense power of faith,” Williams said.
“We don’t know how it works, but we believe that it does,” Williams said. “Sometimes the questions are more beautiful than the answers.”
Kermit was deeply touched to have his banjo-strumming song from 1979’s “The Muppet Movie” preserved, he recently told Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden.
“Well, gee, it’s an amazing feeling to officially become part of our nation’s history,” Kermit said. “It’s a great honor. And I am thrilled — I am thrilled! — to be the first frog on the list!”
The National Recording Registry “will preserve our history through these vibrant recordings of music and voices that have reflected our humanity and shaped our culture from the past 143 years,” Hayden said. “We received about 900 public nominations this year for recordings to add to the registry, and we welcome the public’s input as the Library of Congress and its partners preserve the diverse sounds of history and culture.”
The recordings most recently selected for the National Recording Registry bring the number of titles on the registry to 575, representing a small portion of the national library’s vast recorded sound collection of nearly 3 million items.
National Recording Registry Selections for 2020
- Edison’s “St. Louis tinfoil” recording (1878)
- “Nikolina” — Hjalmar Peterson (1917) (single)
- “Smyrneikos Balos” — Marika Papagika (1928) (single)
- “When the Saints Go Marching In” — Louis Armstrong & his Orchestra (1938) (single)
- Christmas Eve Broadcast–Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill (December 24, 1941)
- “The Guiding Light” — Nov. 22, 1945
- “Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues” — Odetta (1957) (album)
- “Lord, Keep Me Day by Day” — Albertina Walker and the Caravans (1959) (single)
- Roger Maris hits his 61st homerun (October 1, 1961)
- “Aida” — Leontyne Price, et.al. (1962) (album)
- “Once a Day” — Connie Smith (1964) (single)
- “Born Under a Bad Sign” — Albert King (1967) (album)
- “Free to Be…You & Me” — Marlo Thomas and Friends (1972) (album)
- “The Harder They Come” — Jimmy Cliff (1972) (album)
- “Lady Marmalade” — Labelle (1974) (single)
- “Late for the Sky” — Jackson Browne (1974) (album)
- “Bright Size Life” — Pat Metheny (1976) (album)
- “The Rainbow Connection” — Kermit the Frog (1979) (single)
- “Celebration” — Kool & the Gang (1980) (single)
- “Richard Strauss: Four Last Songs” — Jessye Norman (1983) (album)
- “Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814” — Janet Jackson (1989) (album)
- “Partners” — Flaco Jiménez (1992) (album)
- “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”/”What A Wonderful World” — Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (1993) (single)
- “Illmatic” — Nas (1994) (album)
- “This American Life: The Giant Pool of Money” (May 9, 2008)
