March 7: The Top Ten Songs

Of the Top Ten Song Recordings of the 20^th Century selected by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Recording Industry Association of America on this date in 2001, five songs had Jewish authorship: “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” as sung by Judy Garland (#1), by Yip Harburg and Harold Arlen; “White Christmas,” as sung by Bing Crosby (#2), by Irving Berlin; “West Side Story” (the entire cast album, #7), by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim; “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” as sung by Billy Murray (#8), music by Albert Von Tilzer; and “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feeling,” as sung by the Righteous Brothers (#10), by Barry Mann, Cynthia Weil, and Phil Spector. To see all 365 recordings selected by the NEA and RIAA, click here. “Prior to 1989, singles were awarded with a Gold certification for sales of 1,000,000 units and a Platinum certificate for sales of 2,000,000 units. For certifications dates after January 1, 1989, a Gold award represents sales of 500,000 units and a Platinum award represents sales of 1,000,000 units.” —The Recording Industry Association of America