The Library of Congress > National Jukebox > Playlists of Recordings

Playlists of Recordings

Featured Playlists

The National Jukebox features playlists compiled by Library of Congress curators, project partners, and guest experts. All playlists consist of audio selections available on the website. See below for information on how to send us your own National Jukebox playlists. We will be reviewing and selecting the best public submissions for presentation on the Jukebox.

  • 14 tracks

    National Jukebox Sampler (40:11), 14 recordings
    Fourteen selections that comprise a National Jukebox Sampler
  • 7 tracks

    Early Tin Pan Alley (18:12), 7 recordings
    Between the late 1890s and 1970s New York City’s music publishing district was known as “Tin Pan Alley”—a reference to the continuous sound of pianos emanating from nearly every open window nearby, allegedly causing a remark that it sounded like the banging of tin pans.
  • 12 tracks

    Black Broadway and Tin Pan Alley (33:10), 12 recordings
    African American songwriters and performers made up a small, yet important part of the early recording industry. These are recordings of compositions by top African American composers and lyricists of the early 1900s, including Will Marion Cook, Paul Laurence Dunbar, James Rosamond Johnson, James Reese Europe, Noble Sissle, and Eubie Blake. The performances are by both black and white performers.
  • 10 tracks

    The Fox Trot (29:19), 10 recordings
    This playlist presents a musical evolution of this most popular of twentieth century ballroom dances as it grew from its schottische-like beginnings to its later streamlined sound.
  • 12 tracks

    Songs by George M. Cohan (32:11), 12 recordings
    George M. Cohan wrote, composed, directed and acted in his own plays and was famous for his star-spangled patriotic tunes. But he also wrote in other styles—always simple, elegant and undeniably American.
  • 18 tracks

    Sousa's Band in Concert (44:54), 18 recordings
    Here is a selection of likely pieces to have been included at a concert given during the early 1900s by the band of John Philip Sousa, easily the most famous musical group of its day.
  • 12 tracks

    Songs by Irving Berlin (33:22), 12 recordings
    Irving Berlin wrote songs from his own personal perspective, that of an Americanized European Jew. Slang, catch phrases and suggestiveness that borders on innocence pervades much of his work.
  • 9 tracks

    Ragtime (23:57), 9 recordings
    During the early 1900s America’s musical pulse was syncopated and ragtime, with its then novel, engaging beat, was seemingly everywhere. Here is a playlist highlighting a diverse group of performers—from a cimbalom soloist to a military band—demonstrating their take on this popular style.
  • 9 tracks

    Temperance & Prohibition (26:02), 9 recordings
    With the ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment and impending national prohibition of alcohol, Tin Pan Alley writers produced a plethora of songs about life devoid of intoxicating beverages. Here is a selection of humorous songs and an appropriately titled instrumental selection. Also featured are two temperance songs robustly sung by baritone evangelist Homer Rodeheaver.
  • 12 tracks

    Gems from the Jukebox (34:12), 12 recordings
    Here is an eclectic mix of a dozen selections from the National Jukebox’s vast array of Victor records. It features ragtime, opera, Hawaiian music, a New York-dialect specialty, and two African American recording pioneers, the Dinwiddie Colored Quartet and comedian Bert Williams.
  • 12 tracks

    Civil War Music (34:10), 12 recordings
    This collection of twelve performances evokes the years 1861 through 1865 through themes heard during the War Between the States.
  • 8 tracks

    Comic Affairs of the Heart (23:57), 8 recordings
    This playlist offers a lighthearted and somewhat irreverent mix of songs about love, matrimony, and entanglement.
  • 11 tracks

    Eclectic Acoustic (30:33), 11 recordings
    The National Jukebox proudly presents a veritable Victor mash-up of melodies. Hear stirring bands and rousing choruses, delightful vaudeville-style comedy, opera, ragtime, and New Orleans jazz.

Send us your playlists

The National Jukebox includes playlists contributed by the public. Compile a group of recordings that you think will be of interest to others, describe it, and send it to us. We will post on the website the playlists submitted that we believe other users will enjoy most. We can't post every playlist submitted. We will be looking for ones that include a combination of recordings arranged around a interesting or provocative theme and are accompanied by a well-written, interesting explanation.

How to submit a playlist:

  1. Create your playlist by locating the recordings of interest to you. For each recording to be added to your playlist, select the blue "Playlist" button under the record label image on the left-hand part of your screen. Do not include more than fifteen recordings in your submitted playlist.
  2. Select View Playlist (located above the "About the National Jukebox" on the right) to see your complete playlist. In the My Playlist window, you may delete a recording or re order the selections in your playlist. Select "Submit" on the upper right-hand section of the My Playlist window.
  3. Name your playlist and compose a brief description of your playlist. The Library of Congress reserves the right to edit your description. To assist jukebox curators in selecting playlists to post online, select tags that apply to your playlist in the list below your description.
  4. One you've completed your play list and its description, and named it, select "Send" on the bottom right of the Submit Your Playlist screen.