Listening to Classic American Popular Songs [Hardcover]

Mr. Allen Forte (Author), Richard Lalli (Author), Gary Chapman (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0300083386 | ISBN-13: 978-0300083385 | Publication Date: April 1, 2001

In the twenties, thirties, and forties, now-legendary American songwriters and lyricists created a repertoire of popular songs, songs that have captured the hearts of generations of music lovers. George Gershwin, Richard Rodgers, Cole Porter, Jerome Kern, Harold Arlen, Hoagy Carmichael and many others, along with such lyricists as Ira Gershwin, Lorenz Hart, and Dorothy Fields, produced extraordinary songs of signal importance to the American musical heritage. In this book Allen Forte shares his love of American popular song. He discusses in detail twenty-three songs, ranging from Gershwin's "Fascinating Rhythm" (1924) to Irving Berlin's "Steppin' Out with My Baby" (1947), guiding readers and listeners toward a deeper appreciation of this vital and engaging music.

Forte writes for the general reader, assuming no background other than a familiarity with basic music notation. Each song is discussed individually and includes complete lyrics and simple leadsheet notation. Forte discusses the songs' distinctive musical features and their sophisticated, often touching and witty lyrics. Readers can follow the music while they listen to the accompanying compact disc, which was specially recorded for this volume by baritone Richard Lalli and pianist-arranger Gary Chapman, with Allen Forte, pianist-arranger for "Embraceable You" and "Come Rain or Come Shine".

Learn about these favorite songs and more:

"How Long Has This Been Going On?" "What Is This Thing Called Love?" "Embraceable You" "Autumn in New York" "I've Got You Under My Skin" "The Nearness of You" "That Old Black Magic" "Come Rain or Come Shine

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Allen Forte, Battell Professor of the Theory of Music at Yale University, has written extensively about twentieth-century classical and popular music. Richard Lalli and Gary Chapman have performed recitals of classic American popular songs at such venues as Lincoln Center in New York, the National Gallery of Art in Washington, and Wigmore Hall in London.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (April 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300083386
• ISBN-13: 978-0300083385
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,147,354 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An outstanding book and an exquisite recording, April 26, 2001

By 

oohh1 (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Listening to Classic American Popular Songs (Hardcover)

This truly remarkable book is unique in several important ways. In the first instance it deals with the music and lyrics of these extraordinary songs in ways that reflect the author's extensive experience as a musician and as a writer on musical subjects, drawing upon his eclectic background to present fresh ideas that illuminate and inform. In the words of Henry Martin, jazz authority and expert on popular music of the golden era: "In this highly accessible book, Allen Forte delights us with unique, thought-provoking insights into some of the great songs from the '20s, '30s, and '40s."

The book comes fully equipped to provide the reader with everything needed to acquire a very close familiarity with the major attributes of this beautiful repertoire of popular song, including simple musical notation or "lead sheets" of all the songs (a basic knowledge of music notation is needed, and Chapter 1 fills that gap, if required), perceptive discussions of lyrics as they relate to the melodies, harmonies, and rhythms of the songs, and, as a special and unique innovation, a compact disc that provides the reader with easy access to the music. Moreover, background material places each song in its historical-social context. Implicitly, for each song, the author answers the question: "Why has this song withstood the test of time to become a classic?"

The writing style is informal, bright, and often humorous, without in any way "writing down" to the audience. It is a pleasure to read. The text and the accompanying compact disc, which includes recordings especially made for this volume, are beautifully matched. And the performances by baritone Richard Lalli and pianist Gary Chapman are superb. On two of the tracks we also hear the author as arranger and pianist, testifying to his close connection to this music as a performer.

Accessible, intelligent, and highly enjoyable, this book and recording will make delightful additions to the libraries of a broad range of readers/listeners -- from those who are already familiar with this repertoire and who seek an enriched understanding of the songs and their contexts, to those who may be hearing and learning of these alluring works for the very first time.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Readable and Rigorous, July 22, 2009

By 

A. ameli "A common reader" (Rome, Italy) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Listening to Classic American Popular Songs (Hardcover)

Mr. Forte succeeds in the difficult task of marrying in this book the two adjectives of the title of this review. You feel the love for the subject and the thought given to it. Maybe one can disagree on the choice of the songs analyzed but, of course, that can only be a matter of taste, though I have the impression the choice was dictated sometime by the innovations brought from the song to the idiom rather than by its intrinsic aestetic value (I'm referring to songs like How Little We Know or Something to Live For: very interesting ones, but hardly classic like other ones which didn't make it in the book). But this is a minor and subjective complaint to a great work which must be read both from music lovers and would-be songwriters.