Super Mario Bros. Ground Theme Becomes First Video Game Song Added To National Recording Registry

The Library of Congress inducted its 2023 National Recording Registry Class. This includes the first video game song. That big honor goes to the classic Super Mario Bros. theme.

Officially titled “Ground Theme,” it was composed by Nintendo’s Koji Kondo and first appeared in 1985’s Super Mario Bros in World 1-1. This song is now the Mario franchise’s most famous melody, and one of the most recognized music tracks in games. This song will remain in perpetuity alongside other influential pop songs. 

“Having this music preserved alongside so many other classic songs is such a great honor,” said Kondo in a statement. “It’s actually a little bit difficult to believe.”

Mario’s classic tune will be inducted alongside heavy hitters such as Madonna’s “Like a Virgin,” Jimmy Buffet’s “Margaritaville,” Queen Latifah’s “All Hail the Queen,” and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You.” You can read the full list of inductees at the Libary of Congress’ website. 

It is a remarkable achievement for Nintendo, and Kondo in particular. He has contributed his talent to many other Nintendo soundtracks as well as composed the music for this very successful album. Super Mario Bros. Movie. Our interview with Mario creator Shigeru Mishamoto, about making the movie can be found here.