Listening for America: Inside the Great American Songbook from Gershwin to Sondheim

by Rob Kapilow

Finalist • The Marfield Prize [National Award for Arts Writing] “Not since the late Leonard Bernstein has classical music had a combination salesman-teacher as irresistible as Kapilow.” ― Kansas City Star “If you want to understand American history, listen to its popular music,” writes renowned NPR host Rob Kapilow. “If you want to understand America’s popular music, listen to its history.” Through the songs of eight legendary American composers―Kern, Porter, Gershwin, Arlen, Berlin, Rodgers, Bernstein, and Sondheim―Kapilow listens for the history not just of musical theater, but of America itself. Combining close readings of Broadway hits like “Summertime” and “Stormy Weather” with a wide-angled historical point of view, Listening for America shows us how we too can listen along as America discovered its identity through the epochal transformations of the twentieth century. 100 music examples

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, History, Theatre, Musicals, American History, Unfinished

480 pages, Paperback

First published November 5, 2019

About the author

Rob Kapilow has been helping audiences hear more in great music for two decades with his What Makes It Great? series on NPR's Performance Today, at Lincoln Center, and in concert halls throughout the US and Canada.

In his newest book, WHAT MAKES IT GREAT?: Short Masterpieces, Great Composers, he focuses on short masterpieces by major composers to help you understand the essence of each composer's genius and how each piece — which can be heard on the book's web site (or for eBook readers, directly within the text) — transformed the musical language of its time. Kapilow's down-to-earth approach makes classical music easy to grasp, regardless of your musical background.

Reviews

[Andrew Weaver · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, a recommendation to anyone reading: I found it most useful to listen to the focal song for a chapter at least twice before reading. The first time just to hear it; the second time to actually focus in on what the music was doing in each section. Even as someone with no formal knowledge, having my own little schema of the song made following Kapilow's formal discussion of the music a lot easier.

As someone who likes to read about music but with no formal knowledge of music theory, I found this to be more or less the best writing about music I've yet come across. Each chapter focuses on a focal song, but also features biographical details on the composer and the story of Broadway in the period of the song's writing. While some of the terms in the discussion of the music did go over my head, Kapilow's writing (and the indispensable audio samples he created, which are freely available on the website for the book) makes even the most technical discussion digestible to the lay reader. I do think show tunes are probably slightly easier to write about in the sense that the music and lyrics are created to tell a story, so claims like "the 12-bar blues riff is meant to signify X" land and don't feel quite as subjective as those types of claims about music usually do. But Kapilows' audio examples really provide a clear contrast that make his claims about the functions of certain musical ideas a lot easier to follow. Many of them take the form of alternative ways the song could've been written and allow Kapilow to show the brilliance of how the song actually sounds.

As for the historical context (which is typically about half of the chapter if not a little more), I couldn't get enough. This whole body of music is unfamiliar to me, so I deeply appreciated Kapilow using the exposition to more or less tell the story of Broadway during the Great American Songbook era via biography of the focal song's composer. He doesn't shy away from discussing the aspects of cultural appropriation and racism that contributed to this music, while also acknowledging the ways in which this era saw the first pushes for racial integration in Broadway. Most importantly, he makes clear how integral the Black American musical traditions (e.g., jazz, blues) are to this body of music. He ultimately acknowledges that issues around appropriation are thorny, and doesn't try to take up the impossible task of resolving them, but recognizes the complications and contradictions they make for the music. It really strikes the right balance of the scholar who knows the context deeply and cherishes the music dearly.

I'll just add that as someone who does not typically listen to much Broadway music, and at times is off-put by the signing style, I really loved the music. Certain songs stood out to me more than others, but there were no chapters/songs I found extraneous. The ones that landed really landed. I've probably listened to "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" and "Finishing the Hat" (ironically the first and last songs discussed, but I swear I read the other chapters) 50 times each since reading those chapters. I wish I could find a book of this quality for every other musical genre, but I'm glad at least one exists.

[Kelly Sedinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not what I was hoping it was, to be honest. I wanted a survey of the Great American Songbook, not unlike the one that NPR published in "guidebook" form some years ago. Instead this book is a deep dive into the musical mechanics of about a dozen specific songs, with a lot of technical musical analysis. There IS commentary on the lives of the composers and the lyricists, but the book's single-song focus results in a bit of a disjointed read, and I confess that my own musical training is far enough in the past that the technical discussions really didn't appeal to me.

I suspect this book is perfect for someone, but that someone wasn't me. (And that's OK!)

[Clara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fascinating look into American history through the golden age (and then some) of the Broadway musical. Kapilow takes fourteen songs, two each from seven prominent composers, and devotes a chapter to each. Every chapter starts with some historical context, including in varying amounts: biographical details of the composer, context about the show the song appears in, music and Broadway trends of the time, general American history, and other relevant background (e.g. a section on Annie Oakley's life for the chapter on a song from Annie Get Your Gun). From there, Kapilow dissects the song in question (or a substantial part of it) from a musical perspective, seeing What Makes It Great. The analysis is explained at a level accessible to non-musicians¹ while being complex enough to interest those with a more extensive musical background. Furthermore, these sections contain possibly the best feature of this book: the many musical examples come with accompanying recordings on YouTube that you can follow along with as you read.

As in any book made of largely independent components, some are necessarily stronger than others. I think one of the strongest chapters is the first, which focuses on "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man" from Jerome Kern and Roger Hammerstein II's Show Boat, because the song's contents let Kapilow thoroughly integrate the historical and musical analysis. However, all have interesting points and there are only a couple that I was really hoping for more out of, so that's certainly not a reason to not pick this up.

¹I'm admittedly not the person to attest to this. However, I read this book with my dad, who loves music (especially jazz) and is familiar with many of these songs but has no musical training. He's told me that he thinks I'm getting more of the musical analysis sections than he is, but that they're still interesting and he can get the big picture.

CW: antisemitism, homophobia, racism, alcoholism, mentions of the Holocaust and war

[Duane Montague · Rating 5 out of 5]

A phenomenal work, looking at the history of the United States in the 20th century through the Great American Songbook. Sixteen of the most-loved and well-known showtunes by George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, Leonard Bernstein, Jerome Kern, Harold Arlen , and Stephen Sondheim are examined not only for their place in theater history, but American history.

Even better, Kapilow not only examines the writing of the song, he beautifully and carefully breaks down the melodic and lyric structure of the songs, showing just why these songs are some of the greatest ever written.

I found myself grabbing my phone so I could listen to the songs as I read, comparing the compositions to the notes in the book, and often overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of the craft in songs I’ve heard thousands of times.

By the end, when we read all about “Finishing the Hat,” by my favorite Broadway composer, Stephen Sondheim, I was smiling, thankful for this incredible musical journey I had been on. A truly remarkable book for anyone who loves music, American history, musical theatre, or the “art of making art.”

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have received this book through Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.
Listening for America Rob Kapilow brings many favorite classics to life through the songs and stories of eight of the twentieth century’s most treasured American composers—Kern, Porter, Gershwin, Arlen, Berlin, Rodgers, Bernstein, and Sondheim. While I am not a singer or musician I still enjoyed the history of the musicals, the composers, and the history of America during the times these musicals were created and how all those things combined to influence these songs. My daughter is a singer and was able to enjoy this book on another level with the breakdown of the music itself. I believe that anyone who loves music and/or history can find much to enjoy about this book.

[Sasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

First I would like to state that I have received this book through goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review. I would like to thank the author for giving me this opportunity and honor in being able to read this book. When I received this book I began reading it at once. This book was a very interesting read. I would recommend this book to others. It is a very good read

[Mme Forte · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you're a Broadway fan, you will enjoy this book.

This isn't a comprehensive guide to the American Songbook. It's an intensely detailed delving into sixteen different songs from Broadway shows, chronologically arranged from Kern to Sondheim. Each song exemplifies the era when it appeared, and the author spends the first section of each song's chapter situating it in its contexts: historical, cultural, point in the creator's career, its relation to the creator's background and life story. This is fascinating.

The second section of the chapter is dedicated to demonstrating just why the song is as great as it is. The author analyzes the music, giving bits of the sheet music and showing how a run-of-the-mill composer would write those parts. Not to worry if you're not a musician or don't read music. There's a whole YouTube setup where you can listen to each sample as you read through the book, so if you don't know what a diminished 7th is (and I DO read and play and sing music; I just don't know theory), you can still hear the difference between the mundane and the truly extraordinary.

So much fun, such a fount of information. I learned a lot about where some of my favorite shows came from and how and why they look and sound the way they do.

That said...

The book could and should have been better edited. It is chock-full of sentence fragments, and I'm not so pedantic that I can't handle sentence fragments; I AM opposed to their being so ubiquitous that they interrupt the flow of reading and/or force you to reread them because you're looking for a subject/verb that isn't there. There are also instances of incorrect grammar that really should have been fixed. I KNOW, I KNOW, these are quibbles, but a book this well researched and instructive deserves better from the outfit that produced it.

I'm now going to mine the end notes for further reading.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an absolutely wonderful and astonishing book. In one hand it is just a great look at the history and culture of musical theatre and the great American songbook; while at the same time it is an in depth revelation of how that music is built note by note, reflecting both the time period it was written in and the internal/external lives of the composers/lyricists involved. Quite a revelation, and for anyone interested in music in general or Broadway musicals in particular, this was just an awesome read. I read this as an ebook and that was particularly invaluable due to the author’s inclusion of links to YouTube of the exact notes and music he was writing about (so he could play a typical musical passage and then replay it as changed/improved by composers such as Irving Berlin and on to Stephen Sondheim).

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always wished I could play piano, sing, maybe dance. This book made me want to do all that. Besides being fun to read, it takes a technically serious and historical approach to defining the best of several 20th century American composers and lyricists known for their Broadway classics. Only disappointment being that the listen-along link meant to accompany the reader, providing for the ear what the eye could not, was not operational, a major let down.

[Linda Keesing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kapilow presents a well-researched "class" on the composers and lyricists, primarily during the 20th century who created show music - mostly, Broadway show music. What made this book so fascinating to me is that he analyzed the music - its structure, rhythms, and more - and also related it to whatever was going on in the US at the time. The music reflected the culture. It was interesting to learn about some of what motivated Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, George Gershwin, Cole Porter, Richard Rodgers, Harold Arlen, and Stephen Sondheim to create the songs that do indeed comprise the "Great American Songbook". I enjoyed seeing the note and rhythm choices of each featured songwriter compared with a more plain vanilla set of choices produced by Kapilow. The author highlighted how the songwriters' choices created a more emotional impact. Additionally, Kapilow discussed the role developing technology played in influencing how Americans experienced music. Surprisingly, most people - even those without significant financial means - owned pianos and bought lots of sheet music from the late 19th century into the start of the 20th century, as a way of enjoying music. The invention and production of the phonograph was a huge game changer, as Americans could buy records and hear well-known singers any time they wanted from the comfort of their homes. By the 1960s, rock and roll increasingly became the sound of American (and British) music. This new trend had an impact on Broadway musicals, as they tried to stay relevant and important to a new generation of Americans. Tying together American culture and the music it generated set this book apart, and I would recommend it.

[Michael Berens · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are better pop cultural histories of the 20th century, but Mr. Kapilow's exceptional analyses of the 24 songs covered in this book make the material in between worth reading through. Each chapter more or less stands alone as a separate essay providing the historical, cultural and musical context for each song. One consequence is that the author tends repeat information already covered in one or more previous chapters. A small fault, really, given his insight into what makes these songs great. Although I have been a long-time NPR listener, I had never heard of Mr. Kapilow or his "What Makes It Great" segments before reading about him in an early review of this book. I'm so glad I read that review. Even for someone like me with very little musical training, his explanations and illustrations are clear and easy to follow. The pleasure of hearing these well-known songs again as though for the first time is totally worth the price of admission.

[Joshua Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very engaging, though idiosyncratic view of the great American songbook covering history, popular culture and musicology. The book is structured in a very formulaic way, with each chapter covering, in chronology, a single song of the great canon, ending with Sondheim's Send in the Clowns.

Kapilow did one thing that takes up a lot of pages where he rewrites a 'lame' predictable version of each song with full music notation, and then compares it to the actual genius song as written. If you're not a musicologist and if you can't read music, these bits will mean nothing to you. You can skip them. Further, the songs are mostly the very obvious, famous 'greatest hits' of the songbook, with the exception of Bernstein's "I Can Cook Too" from On the Town. Strange choice, though it's a good tune. If you get this book, you'll want to listen to each song before reading about it, it will enhance the experience.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Listening for America analyzes two songs each of eight of the greatest composers of Broadway musicals, from Jerome Kern to Stephen Sondheim, and does so while discussing the historical context, and in the process providing an excellent history of the genre.

This book includes many musical examples, which readers who do not read music might find intimidating or totally off-putting. It does help to have at least a foundation in music theory, but it's not absolutely essential to get benefit from Kapilow's examples. A commendable feature of his book is the provision of short videos of every musical example in the book, including in scrolling text. (They're available for free in a single playlist on YouTube.) Even readers who are fluent music readers and who do a reasonable job of hearing the music in their heads by just looking at a score (which I can do myself) will find it is nonetheless more pleasurable and less work to hear them played by experts.

[andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

After a prologue in which Kapilow briefly reviews the forms of theatrical entertainment that were popular in the U.S. up until the 1920's (minstrel shows, revues, vaudeville and others), he delves into an interesting and enjoyable discussion of classic songs from musical theater from the 192o's forward. He does this by picking eight illustrious composers (Kern, Porter, Gershwin, Arlen, Berlin, Rodgers, Bernstein, and Sondheim) and focuses on two songs written by each. Every piece gets its own chapter and after a biographical sketch of the composer, Kapilow puts the show as well as the specific song into perspective by relating them to what was going on in the country at that time. Lyricists are not excluded but the emphasis is clearly on the musical score and what made each song distinctive. There is considerable technical analysis of the music, only some of which I could fully appreciate. A fifth star would be in order if I could better follow the author's detailed evaluation.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Found this history of Broadway musicals (and underlying thesis of this medium as uniquely American in form) very interesting. Well-researched, both in terms of musical criticism (easy to follow with the book's Youtube playlist) and historical/cultural context, and strongest when Kapilow explores the relationship between the two - changes in musical form and style as reflecting historical events happening in America.

However, Kapilow refuses to adequately address questions of appropriation from African-American musical culture, even though it is raised several times, which is disappointing.

[Patrick Macke · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have no aptitude for or interest in music in the technical sense, so the "quarter notes" and the "F sharps" and "32 bars" portion of this book is lost on me; I don't appreciate music theory and wasn't really expecting it (bummer) ... But what I can dig is the Great American Songbook and the stories and history and beautiful music that goes along with it and, thankfully, this book delivers that in spades ... The author is a fine writer and a subject matter savant and this journey through these timeless tunes, stopping to tell us more about the talented writers and composers along the way (not to mention a brief history of the Broadway musical) is a journey worth taking

[Jaloganjr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very disappointed. The author states in the preface that “absolutely no knowledge of music is necessary to read it”
that is certainly not the case. Almost half of each chapter deals with musical notation and technical details.
As a reader who couldn’t tell a B flat from a G sharp, I was very disappointed. The non technical portions were exactly what I was expecting. But that’s only half the story

[Ivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is great on composition and the mechanics of songwriting, impressive in its use of excerpts and tie-in music recordings, pretty good on history, and a little disappointing in presentation. (Flagrant editing and music engraving errors persisted from beginning to end.) Still, you should probably read it!

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I expected this book to be more of a page-turner but it read much like a music history textbook. I did enjoy learning the background history, culture, and musical details discussed in the book. I checked out his “What Makes It Great” NPR series and it conveys the ideas in a much more concise (10 minutes) and easy to consume form.

[Joe Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really do want to give this book a five, but the technical breakdowns were not for me. The historical aspects were well written and very engaging, but the song analysis frankly went over my head at times. Still a wonderful book. 4.5

[Pam Lindholm-levy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you grew up listening to all the Great American Songbook music like I did, and you can read music, this is a wonderful book. If you can't read music, read this book anyway, because there is so much history and biography in it.

[A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review of about a dozen Broadway classics. A quick bio of the composer and a setting of the time / place of the work. Then a thorough exposition of the song's origins, meaning and music. Pretty great. Only read about 4 of the song accounts.

[Kenny Freundlich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun insights both on the lyrics and the music. One strange choice, though: Why write about “I can cook too” instead of something from Candide or Wonderful Town?

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

My rudimentary ability to read music and understand subtle variations in accompanying chords was inadequate for the task of fully appreciating this book.

[MARCIE · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the book.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exceptional musical and historical insight. Following along with the examples is a bit of a pain but worth it.

[Aimee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was great. Loved the inside scoop on so many of my beloved American Standards, and that I could listen to the various cuts via their website! Smart!

[Kevin Rush · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative. An impressive introductory history to the American musical.

[Isildur]

Enjoyed

[Ricki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting look at 16 iconic American Musical songs and the reason they "work".