Reading Lyrics: More Than 1,000 of the Twentieth Century's

Reading Lyrics: More Than 1,000 of the Twentieth Century's Finest Song Lyrics

A comprehensive anthology bringing together more than one thousand of the best American and English song lyrics of the twentieth century; an extraordinary celebration of a unique art form and an indispensable reference work and history that celebratesÂ one of the twentieth centuryâ‚¬s most enduring and cherished legacies.
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Reading Lyrics begins with the first masters of the colloquial phrase, including George M. Cohan (â‚¬Å“Give My Regards to Broadwayâ‚¬Â), P. G. Wodehouse (â‚¬Å“Till the Clouds Roll Byâ‚¬Â), and Irving Berlin, whose versatility and career span the period from â‚¬Å“Alexanderâ‚¬s Ragtime Bandâ‚¬Â to â‚¬Å“Annie Get Your Gunâ‚¬Â and beyond. The Broadway musical emerges as a distinct dramatic form in the 1920s and 1930s, its evolution propelled by a trio of lyricistsâ‚¬"Cole Porter, Ira Gershwin, and Lorenz Hartâ‚¬"whose explorations of the psychological and emotional nuances of falling in and out of love have lost none of their wit and sophistication. Their songs, including â‚¬Å“Night and Day,â‚¬Â â‚¬Å“The Man I Love,â‚¬Â and â‚¬Å“Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,â‚¬Â have become standards performed and recorded by generation after generation of singers. The lure of Broadway and Hollywood and the performing genius of such artists as Al Jolson, Fred Astaire, Ethel Waters, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra, and Ethel Merman inspired a remarkable array of talented writers, including Dorothy Fields (â‚¬Å“A Fine Romance,â‚¬Â â‚¬Å“I Canâ‚¬t Give You Anything but Loveâ‚¬Â), Frank Loesser (â‚¬Å“Guys and Dollsâ‚¬Â), Oscar Hammerstein II (from the groundbreaking â‚¬Å“Show Boatâ‚¬Â of 1927 through his extraordinary collaboration with Richard Rodgers), Johnny Mercer, Yip Harburg, Andy Razaf, NoÂ«l Coward, and Stephen Sondheim.
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Reading Lyrics also celebrates the work of dozens of superb craftsmen whose songs remain known, but who today are themselves less knownâ‚¬"writers like Haven Gillespie (whose â‚¬Å“Santa Claus Is Coming to Townâ‚¬Â may be the most widely recorded song of its era); Herman Hupfeld (not only the composer/lyricist of â‚¬Å“As Time Goes Byâ‚¬Â but also of â‚¬Å“Are You Makinâ‚¬ Any Money?â‚¬Â and â‚¬Å“When Yuba Plays the Rumba on the Tubaâ‚¬Â); the great light versifier Ogden Nash (â‚¬Å“Speak Low,â‚¬Â â‚¬Å“Iâ‚¬m a Stranger Here Myself,â‚¬Â and, yes, â‚¬Å“The Sea-Gull and the Ea-Gullâ‚¬Â); Don Raye (â‚¬Å“Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,â‚¬Â â‚¬Å“Mister Five by Five,â‚¬Â and, of course, â‚¬Å“Milkman, Keep Those Bottles Quietâ‚¬Â); Bobby Troup (â‚¬Å“Route 66â‚¬Â); Billy Strayhorn (not only for the omnipresent â‚¬Å“Lush Lifeâ‚¬Â but for â‚¬Å“Something to Live Forâ‚¬Â and â‚¬Å“A Lonely Coedâ‚¬Â); Peggy Lee (not only a superb singer but also an original and appealing lyricist); and the unique Dave Frishberg (â‚¬Å“Iâ‚¬m Hip,â‚¬Â â‚¬Å“Peel Me a Grape,â‚¬Â â‚¬Å“Van Lingo Mungoâ‚¬Â).
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The lyricists are presented chronologically, each introduced by a succinct biography and the incisive commentary of Robert Gottlieb and Robert Kimball.
Country USA
Brand Pantheon
Manufacturer Pantheon
Binding Hardcover
Color White
ReleaseDate 2000-11-21
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780375400810

Country	USA
Brand	Pantheon
Manufacturer	Pantheon
Binding	Hardcover
Color	White
ReleaseDate	2000-11-21
UnitCount	1
EANs	9780375400810

Reading Lyrics: More Than 1,000 of the Twentieth Century's Finest Song Lyrics

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