Alec Wilder in Spite of Himself: A Life of the Composer
Alec Wilder may be a neglected oddball today, but his impact on the study of American popular music has been profound. His principal accomplishment wasAmerican Popular Song(1972), a crucial text in the study of the great American tunesmiths. Wilder was also an innovative composer, and as Stone describes them, his life story and achievements both fascinate. For instance, Wilder's octet compositions, Stone says, contain a "curious mix of jazz rhythms and Bachlike melodies" that left the music world "both beguiled and puzzled." They would have been forgotten entirely had it not been for such Wilder champions as Frank Sinatra. Besides describing how Wilder's connection with Ol' Blue Eyes transpired, Stone paints an engrossing portrait of an often lonely man who could be almost unbelievably generous, was sometimes unbearable when intoxicated, and whose only regular address was New York's Algonquin Hotel. Moreover, Stone's depiction of how much effort went into researching, compiling, and writingAmerican Popular Songmakes Wilder's compendium seem even more impressive.Aaron Cohen