Story Behind the Song: 150 Songs that Chronicle the 20th Century

by Richard D. Barnet

Overview

A discussion of 15 influential songs from each decade provides the songs' histories, what inspired the writers to create them, and why they have resonated over time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313061851
Publisher:	ABC-CLIO, Incorporated
Publication date:	01/30/2004
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	322 KB

About the Author

RICHARD D. BARNET is a Professor in the Department of the Recording Industry at Middle Tennessee State University. He has worked in various positions in the music industry including artist management, booking, concert promotion, television, and live show music production, performance, and conducting. He is a former officer of the Music and Entertainment Industry Educator's Association and a gubernatorial appointee to the Tennessee Film, Entertainment, and Music Advisory Council, as well as a member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Professor Barnet is co-author of Controversies of the Music Industry (Greenwood, 2001).

BRUCE NEMEROV is an audio specialist at the Center for Popular Music at Middle Tennessee State University. He joined the Center in 1990 after 20 years as a professional musician, producer, and audio engineer.

MAYO R. TAYLOR is a librarian at the Walker Library at Middle Tennessee State University. Prior to her current appointment, she was coordinator for Research Collections at the Center for Popular Music.

Table of Contents

Introduction
1900–1909: The Decade of Opportunity
1910–1919: America Joins the Global Community
1920–1929: Gin, Jazz, and Women's Rights
1930–1939: A New Way of Dealing with the Depression
1940–1949: Swinging into a Second World War
1950–1959: Teens Rock the Boat
1960–1969: War in the Streets and Overseas
1970–1979: War, Watergate, and Disco
1980–1989: MTV and Reaganomics
1990–2000: The End of the Second Millennium
Bibliography
Song Title Index
Songwriter Index
Subject Index

Editorial Reviews

Gr 9 Up-Ten chapters, one devoted to each decade, contain brief overviews of major social, political, and musical events, followed by entries, from 1 to 4 pages long, on 15 representative songs. The lyrics are not included. Although each entry ends with information on where printed and recorded versions of the song can be found, students will have difficulty locating some of them. An extensive bibliography is included, but specific sources of particular facts are not noted. Some of the writing is confusing or unclear, as in this sentence: "More than 1 million people attended the celebration of the one-hundredth anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth in New York City at which Booker T. Washington was the keynote speaker-." Some entries have very little to say about the song under consideration. "Heartbreak Hotel" gives a synopsis of Elvis Presley's life and career, but says almost nothing about the lyrics or the composers. The list of research centers is heavily slanted toward one region of the U.S., listing two centers in Tennessee, one in Alabama, two in New Orleans, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. The idea of following the history of the 20th century through its most significant music is a fascinating one; unfortunately, this book does not live up to the promise of the concept.-Ginny Gustin, Sonoma County Library System, Santa Rosa, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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