Solon Robinson's 'Hot corn: Life Scenes in New York Illustrated' provides readers with a vivid portrayal of New York City life through the lens of the hot corn trade in the mid-19th century. Robinson's prose is both descriptive and engaging, painting a detailed picture of the bustling streets and diverse characters involved in this unique aspect of urban culture. The book's combination of social commentary and literary flair places it within the tradition of American urban realism, offering readers a window into the everyday experiences of working-class individuals in a rapidly changing city. Robinson's use of dialect and dialogue adds authenticity to the narrative, creating a nuanced and insightful view of New York society during this period. Solon Robinson's background as a journalist and traveler undoubtedly informed his perspective on the city's dynamics, making 'Hot corn' a valuable addition to the study of urban literature and American history. Scholars of 19th-century literature and social history will find this book to be a compelling exploration of city life, while general readers interested in the human experience will appreciate its engaging storytelling and unique insights into the past.

Reproduction of the original: Hot corn: Life Scenes in New York by Solon Robinson

"Racy scholarship does the Grizzly Bear here with theoretical rigor." —William Lhamon, author of Raising Cain Everybody’s Doin’ It is the eye-opening story of popular music’s seventy-year rise in the brothels, dance halls, and dives of New York City. It traces the birth of popular music, including ragtime and jazz, to convivial meeting places for sex, drink, music, and dance. Whether coming from a single piano player or a small band, live music was a nightly feature in New York’s spirited dives, where men and women, often black and white, mingled freely—to the horror of the elite. This rollicking demimonde drove the development of an energetic dance music that would soon span the world. The Virginia Minstrels, Juba, Stephen Foster, Irving Berlin and his hit “Alexander’s Ragtime Band,” and the Original Dixieland Jass Band all played a part in popularizing startling new sounds. Musicologist Dale Cockrell recreates this ephemeral underground world by mining tabloids, newspapers, court records of police busts, lurid exposés, journals, and the reports of undercover detectives working for social-reform organizations, who were sent in to gather evidence against such low-life places. Everybody’s Doin’ It illuminates the how, why, and where of America’s popular music and its buoyant journey from the dangerous Five Points of downtown to the interracial black and tans of Harlem.