Publications

In Tin Pan Alley, David Jasen, a Professor of Communications at C.W. Post College (Long Island University) and an authority on ragtime, tells the story of American popular song, as it was composed, published, and marketed from its heyday in the 1880s to Tin Pan Alley’s demise in the 1950s. It does this through over 400 individual entries, each featuring a composer, lyricist, performer, publisher, style, or song title. One entry of particular interest is headed Hit Songs. Twenty pages cover the years from the 1890s to 1955; for each year, four or five successes are described with recording details and annotated entries for the era's blockbusters. Since Tin Pan Alley was essentially a publishing movement, Jasen includes publisher entries, often with dates and addresses. Tin Pan Alley is a unique compendium on American popular song and the business of selling music.