Circus Songs: An Annotated Anthology provides musicians and librarians with the scores of 100 circus songs along with brief historical annotations. You will also discover the history of American circus music as well as some background on circus musicians that will delight and enchant even the most avid music buff. Circus Songs provides you with an appreciation of the role of circus music in American culture and preserves these songs for future generations to enjoy.

The 1940s saw a brief audacious experiment in mass entertainment: a jukebox with a screen. Patrons could insert a dime, then listen to and watch such popular entertainers as Nat "King" Cole, Gene Krupa, Cab Calloway or Les Paul. A number of companies offered these tuneful delights, but the most successful was the Mills Novelty Company and its three-minute musical shorts called Soundies. This book is a complete filmography of 1,880 Soundies: the musicians heard and seen on screen, recording and filming dates, arrangers, soloists, dancers, entertainment trade reviews and more. Additional filmographies cover more than 80 subjects produced by other companies. There are 125 photos taken on film sets, along with advertising images and production documents. More than 75 interviews narrate the firsthand experiences and recollections of Soundies directors and participants. Forty years before MTV, the Soundies were there for those who loved the popular music of the 1940s. This was truly "music for the eyes."

A man with a recent degree in Agriculture from the University of Berlin, Hermann came to Canada in 1930 to escape inflation and lack of jobs in Germany. A chance encounter led him to the North and a job prospecting for gold. He fell in love with the North like so many others had done before him. In 1939 the declaration of war against Germany stopped all searches for gold in the North. Suddenly other minerals were more important. This brought all the gold prospectors to Edmonton from the North and there were many more men than jobs. Hermann, his wife, and little daughter moved ‘back’ to Montreal where he was hoping to find a job. Fortunately, through a friend of a friend, he did land a job at an alloy-producing plant in Beauharnois, Quebec near Montreal. The first job was as a ‘stoker’ on a platform above the huge vats of molten metal, stirring the mass which would be used to make armoured steel for vehicles and tanks, for the Canadian Armed Forces. He worked at St. Lawrence Alloys as a Stores Keeper and then as the Purchasing Agent, until he retired in 1968. He died in 1970, never having returned to the North which he loved so well. This is his story in his own words.

The main section of the Handbook consists of 324 articles providing basic information on American popular songs, including: origin (classical, film musical), foreign influence (Cuba, Czechoslovakia), domestic influence (bluegrass, Motown), dissemination (cabaret, Your Hit Parade), genre (doo-wop, protest song), subject (humor, money), and style (harmony, scat). Also covered are such historical periods as the Depression and the Roaring Twenties and their popular musical expression. The second section lists all songs mentioned in the volume, with annotations as to year of publication, lyricist, composer, type of song, source, salient features, and the articles in which the song is discussed. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

From the concert stage to the dressing room, from the recording studio to the digital realm, SPIN surveys the modern musical landscape and the culture around it with authoritative reporting, provocative interviews, and a discerning critical ear. With dynamic photography, bold graphic design, and informed irreverence, the pages of SPIN pulsate with the energy of today's most innovative sounds. Whether covering what's new or what's next, SPIN is your monthly VIP pass to all that rocks.