Songs That Almost Killed the American Songbook
How “The Doggie in the Window” and other confections nearly erased one of the greatest eras in music.
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Photo illustration by Slate. Photo from The B-Side: The Death of Tin Pan Alley and the Rebirth of the Great American Song.
Listen to Episode 210 of Slate’s The Gist:
Obama promised hope and change, but what about managing expectations for hope and change? Today on The Gist, former Obama strategist David Axelrod shares insights from his new book Believer: My Forty Years in Politics. Plus, we examine a strange transitional moment for popular music and the American Songbook with Ben Yagoda. He’s the author of The B Side: The Death of Tin Pan Alley and the Rebirth of the Great American Song. For the Spiel, a man who never emails, and the Yemenis who got caught in the crosshairs.
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