Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings: Volumes 3 and 4

Volumes 3 and 4 of the The Encyclopedia of More Great Popular Song Recordings provides the stories behind approximately 1,700 more of the greatest song recordings in the history of the music industry, from 1890 to today. In this masterful survey, all genres of popular music are covered, from pop, rock, soul, and country to jazz, blues, classic vocals, hip-hop, folk, gospel, and ethnic/world music. Collectors will find detailed discographical data—recording dates, record numbers, Billboard chart data, and personnel—while music lovers will appreciate the detailed commentaries and deep research on the songs, their recording, and the artists. Readers who revel in pop cultural history will savor each chapter as it plunges deeply into key events—in music, society, and the world—from each era of the past 125 years. Following in the wake of the first two volumes of his original Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, this follow-up work covers not only more beloved classic performances in pop music history, but many lesser -known but exceptional recordings that—in the modern digital world of “long tail” listening, re-mastered recordings, and “lost but found” possibilities—Sullivan mines from modern recording history. The Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, Volumes 3 and 4 lets the readers discover, and, through their playlist services, from such as iTunes toand Spotify, build a truly deepcomprehensive catalog of classic performances that deserve to be a part of every passionate music lover’s life. Sullivan organizes songs in chronological order, starting in 1890 and continuing all the way throughto the present to include modern gems from June 2016. In each chapter, Sullivanhe immerses readers, era by era, in the popular music recordings of the time, noting key events that occurred at the time to painting a comprehensive picture in music history of each periodfor each song. Moreover, Sullivan includes for context bulleted lists noting key events that occurred during the song’s recording

Table of Contents:
Introduction Forward Playlist 1: 1890-1919 Playlist 2: 1920-1929 Playlist 3: 1930-1939 Playlist 4: 1940-1949 Playlist 5; 1950-1959 Playlist 6: 1960-1964 Playlist 7: 1965-1969 Playlist 8: 1970-1979 Playlist 9: 1980-1989 Playlist 10: 1990-1999 Playlist 11: 2000-2009 Playlist 12: 2010-2016 Bibliography Alphabetical Song Index

About the Author :
Steve Sullivan is an author and contributor to such works as Pop Memories: The History of Popular Music, 1890-–1954; Va Va Voom: Bombshells, Pin-Ups, Sexpots and Glamour Girls; Bombshells: Glamour Girls of a Lifetime; and Glamour Girls: The Illustrated Encyclopedia. He is also the author Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings, Volumes 1 and 2 (Scarecrow Press, 2013), winner of Library Journal Best Reference Award for 2013 and a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2014.

Review :
Sullivan is back with two more volumes of great popular song recordings. Volumes 1 and 2 (2013) featured entries for more than 1,000 titles. Volumes 3 and 4 add 1700 more noteworthy recordings. The format of this set is quite different from the earlier one’s. Volumes 1 and 2 are arranged by topic (e.g., ‘Crazy Blues,’ ‘Memories of You’) and then chronologically within each ‘playlist.’ That arrangement tells a story about how artists handled similar styles and emotions through the decades. The new set is 100- percent chronological. Each chapter/playlist features a different decade, beginning in 1890 and ending in 2016. This format tells the story of the evolution of popular music recordings as a whole. It also gives Sullivan the freedom to choose recordings regardless of topic or genre. Some of the selected songs received much less popular acclaim in their era than their ‘big hit’ counterparts but were chosen because they have been ‘undeservedly neglected.’ Once again, Sullivan’s depth of knowledge and extensive research shows. He consulted the same musical halls of fame, books, magazines, awards lists, and other sources as for the first volumes, in addition spending many hours listening to a satellite radio station as it presented a five-week marathon of ‘50 years of Top 40 hits.’ Each entry is written with authority and passion, includes references to each song’s rankings in various genre and award lists (e.g., Billboard, Grammy, Your Hit Parade), and concludes with an extensive bibliography and title and name-and-subject indexes. Highly recommended to academic and public libraries. Sullivan, author of other works on popular culture, including volumes 1 and 2 of this encyclopedia, covers over 1,700 recordings arranged by recording date/chart debut; the arrangement contrasts to the thematic groupings he used in the previous volumes. This new organization, supplemented by chronologically interspersed musical and historical events, allows readers to see parallels among songs expressing the zeitgeist of each period. These additional ‘hits and familiar classics’ of marches, gospel, world, pop, rock, soul, country, jazz, blues, folk, and even Christmas songs by major and lesser-known artists are Sullivan's personal choices, but less a ‘best of’ than a celebration of unique recordings with distinctive appeal covering 12 periods from 1890 to 2016. The 1970s receive the most coverage with 230 recordings, then the 1950s with 220. Entries include title, performer(s), song writer(s), label/catalog number, and charting information. The heavily documented, 100- to 750-word commentaries discuss the performers/performances, including instrumentation, lyrics, and cultural context, with commentary from critics and other musical figures. Dave Marsh, prominent critic and author of The Heart of Rock and Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made (1999), is heavily represented, but Sullivan is keen to emphasize the music over philosophical discussion. While there are superb indexes to titles, names, and subjects, cross-references would help where recordings of the same song are separated chronologically. The electronic version is available from EBSCOhost ProQuest and from other vendors. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through researchers/faculty; general readers. Continuing where his inaugural two volumes left off, Steve Sullivan explores additional selections of great but underappreciated song recordings in volumes three and four. Added are some 1,700 records and artists omitted from the earlier volumes for lack of space to complete Sullivan’s review of over a century and a quarter of Anglo-North American pop music. But as music writer Dave Marsh explains in his foreword, what sets Sullivan apart as a music critic is not his vast knowledge of what was recorded, but his passion for seeing how the songs connect across time. Calling it the ‘Smithsonian of Soul,’ Marsh praises Sullivan’s work for its ability to bring long-forgotten, soul-stirring songs back to life. While it is impossible to read an entry for a familiar song and not ‘hear’ it playing, it is equally possible to read an entry for an unfamiliar song and begin to ‘hear’ it playing—thanks to Sullivan’s exquisite descriptions.... This heavily footnoted music guide includes an extensive, themed bibliography and separate title and subject/name indexes.... Authoritative and a joy to browse, this goldmine will be an indispensable resource in pop culture collections and college libraries supporting music departments.