Stephen Foster & Co.: Lyrics of the First Great AmericanSongwriters (American Poets Project)
Half a century ago, Rocky and Bullwinkle depended on their kids-to-codgers TV audience knowing enough nineteenth-century poems to include a poetry-reading spot. That probably wouldn’t fly nowadays. Use, however, another species of nineteenth-century verse—namely, the lyrics of the period’s pop-song hits, the likes of “Dixie,” “Clementine,” and “The Yellow Rose of Texas”—and a similar feature might. Pop-song scholar Emerson presents 81 such songs in their earliest incarnations in this neat collection, sorting them in categories that, used in their heyday, still make sense: “Plantation Melodies,” “Parlor Songs,” “Drinking and Temperance Songs,” “Songs of Protest and Poverty,” “War Songs,” and “Comic Songs.” The volume’s star is Stephen Foster, 32 of whose song lyrics appear; he wrote most of them, though not those of the late comic numbers included. Briefly prefacing each category, Emerson acknowledges racism and ethnic stereotyping in many songs and also points out when a piece’s import is antislavery or in-group comedy rather than derogatory. More explanatory notes might be nice, but this is essential Americana, anyway. --Ray Olson