Musically‐informed writing on the American songbook: four essential books

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce librarians who are not necessarily music specialists to four books on a subset of American popular song literature (“the American songbook” or “standards”), all of which assume some degree of musical literacy on the reader's part. This assumption sets these books apart from most writing on the subject, and the paper suggest reasons why this is the case.

Design/methodology/approach

The books are grouped into pairs. The first two books are by a single author whose previous scholarship may make his interest in the American songbook seem surprising. In the other pair the second book is both a continuation of the first and a response to it. In both pairs the earlier book breaks new ground.

Findings

All four books should be regarded as essential parts of a library's music literature collection. The first book discussed is more technical than the others, but its pioneering status makes it a landmark.

Originality/value

The author's research indicates that the oldest of the books considered was not discussed in scholarly journals until many years after its publication, while the most recent appears to have received only glancing consideration in peer‐reviewed literature.

Citation

Koblick, R. (2010), "Musically‐informed writing on the American songbook: four essential books", Collection Building, Vol. 29 No. 3, pp. 106-109. https://doi.org/10.1108/01604951011060394