The American Song Book

(Piano/Vocal/Guitar Songbook). Crooners, wailers, shouters, balladeers some of our greatest pop vocalists have poured their hearts and souls into the musical gems of the Great American Songbook. They sang in nightclubs and concert halls, on television and in films, and left us a legacy of recordings still in play today. Their interpretations entertained us, moved us to tears, and wove lyrics and music into the fabric of our lives, making us see ourselves in these quintessentially American songs. This folio features 100 of these classics by Louis Armstrong (Hello Dolly * What a Wonderful World), Tony Bennett (I Left My Heart in San Francisco), Rosemary Clooney (Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep), Nat "King" Cole (Route 66), Bing Crosby (True Love), Doris Day (Bewitched), Ella Fitzgerald (How High the Moon), Judy Garland (Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody), Dean Martin (Everybody Loves Somebody), Frank Sinatra (Young at Heart), Barbra Streisand (People), Mel Torme (Heart and Soul), and many, many more.

The American Song Book, Volume I: The Tin Pan Alley Era is the first in a projected five-volume series of books that will reprint original sheet music, including covers, of songs that constitute the enduring standards of Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, the Gershwins, and other lyricists and composers of what has been called the "Golden Age" of American popular music. These songs have done what popular songs are not supposed to do--stayed popular ... As such, these songs constitute the closest thing America has to a repertory of enduring classical music. In addition to reprinting the sheet music for these classic songs, authors Philip Furia and Laurie Patterson place these songs in historical context with essays about the sheet-music publishing industry known as Tin Pan Alley, the emergence of American musical comedy on Broadway, and the 'talkie' revolution that made possible the Hollywood musical. The authors also provide biographical sketches of songwriters, performers, and impresarios such as Florenz Ziegfeld. In addition, they analyze the lyrical and musical artistry of each song and relate anecdotes, sometimes amusing, sometimes poignant, about how the songs were created. The American Songbook is a book that can be read for enjoyment on its own or be propped on the piano to be played and sung"--Back cover.

“Not since the late Leonard Bernstein has classical music had a combination salesman-teacher as irresistible as Kapilow.” —Kansas City Star Few people in recent memory have dedicated themselves as devotedly to the story of twentieth- century American music as Rob Kapilow, the composer, conductor, and host of the hit NPR music radio program, What Makes It Great? Now, in Listening for America, he turns his keen ear to the Great American Songbook, bringing many of our favorite classics to life through the songs and stories of eight of the twentieth century’s most treasured American composers—Kern, Porter, Gershwin, Arlen, Berlin, Rodgers, Bernstein, and Sondheim. Hardly confi ning himself to celebrating what makes these catchy melodies so unforgettable, Kapilow delves deeply into how issues of race, immigration, sexuality, and appropriation intertwine in masterpieces like Show Boat and West Side Story. A book not just about musical theater but about America itself, Listening for America is equally for the devotee, the singer, the music student, or for anyone intrigued by how popular music has shaped the larger culture, and promises to be the ideal gift book for years to come.

Chronicles the creation of Meredith Willson’s The Music Man—reprinted now as the Broadway Edition Composer Meredith Willson described The Music Man as “an Iowan’s attempt to pay tribute to his home state.” Now featuring a new foreword by noted singer and educator Michael Feinstein, this book presents Willson’s reflections on the ups and downs, surprises and disappointments, and finally successes of making one of America’s most popular musicals. Willson’s whimsical, personable writing style brings readers back in time with him to the 1950s to experience firsthand the exciting trials and tribulations of creating a Broadway masterpiece. Fresh admiration of the musical—and the man behind the music—is sure to result.

With their unforgettable melodies, timeless messages, and stylistic indebtedness to both jazz and Broadway, American popular standards have proven to be among the most widely performed and enjoyed songs of the past century. Shaped in many ways by the technological and cultural developments of the early twentieth century, they have also managed to transcend these origins and become an enduring part of the American musical landscape. Ann van der Merwe explores how and why American songbook standards developed in the early twentieth century and how these standards have shaped American—and even global—musical culture ever since. The American Songbook explores key aspects of individual songs, including the musical and lyrical reasons for their broad appeal and applicability over the years. The American songbook continues to permeate the fabric of our daily lives. It is a repertoire that spans generations, from Fred Astaire to Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga. As a result, music lovers both young and old will enjoy discovering how these beloved songs emerged and why they remain relevant a century later.

From an acclaimed cultural critic, a narrative and social history of the Great American Songwriting era. Everybody knows and loves the American Songbook. But it’s a bit less widely understood that in about 1950, this stream of great songs more or less dried up. All of a sudden, what came over the radio wasn’t Gershwin, Porter, and Berlin, but “Come on-a My House” and “How Much Is That Doggie in the Window?” Elvis and rock and roll arrived a few years later, and at that point the game was truly up. What happened, and why? In The B Side, acclaimed cultural historian Ben Yagoda answers those questions in a fascinating piece of detective work. Drawing on previously untapped archival sources and on scores of interviews—the voices include Randy Newman, Jimmy Webb, Linda Ronstadt, and Herb Alpert—the book illuminates broad musical trends through a series of intertwined stories. Among them are the battle between ASCAP and Broadcast Music, Inc.; the revolution in jazz after World War II; the impact of radio and then television; and the bitter, decades-long feud between Mitch Miller and Frank Sinatra. The B Side is about taste, and the particular economics and culture of songwriting, and the potential of popular art for greatness and beauty. It’s destined to become a classic of American musical history.

Wonderful sing-along favorites with easy-to-play piano arrangements, guitar chords, and complete lyrics: Greensleeves, Auld Lang Syne, Down in the Valley, My Wild Irish Rose, Yellow Rose of Texas, and many more.