City Songs and American Life, 1900-1950

Michael Lasser

Nothing defines the songs of the Great American Songbook more richly and persuasively than their urban sensibility. During the first half of the twentieth century, songwriters flourished in New York City, the home of Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, and Harlem. A lot of them were native New Yorkers, or else they got to Gotham as fast as they could. It was as if they were standing on the East Bank of the Hudson, facing west and describing America to the Americans:not its geography or politics but its heart. Michael Lasser's introduction to City Songs and American Life, 1900-1950 describes his coming of age in Broadway theaters and jazz clubs around Manhattan in the 1950s. The following chapters look closely at songs, but the book never ceases to give one man's take on the music he has lived with for more than half a century. First, an exploration of the ways in which songs portrayed Broadway and Harlem. Then a chronological look at how the urban sensibility evolved in the early decades of the century, followed by the Twenties, the Great Depression, and World War II. Michael Lasser, a former teacher and theater critic, is host of the syndicated public-radio show Fascinatin' Rhythm (winner of the Peabody Award) and the author of two previous books.

Introduction: Encountering the CityThe City's ClamorBroadway's MelodyHarlem's RenaissanceRecordings, Radio, and TalkiesStarting the CenturyThe Flapper and the Jazz AgeThe Great DepressionWorld War IIAfterwordNotesBibliography