Encyclopedia of Great Popular Song Recordings

September 15, 2017

Sullivan (Bombshells: Glamour Girls of a Lifetime) adds volumes three and four to this set of "popular song recordings." The first two volumes covered songs up to 2012, presenting the "megaclassics" first, followed by iconic tunes that "held a somewhat less legendary status." The newer titles arrange songs chronologically (from 1890 to 2016). As with the earlier installments, Sullivan features plenty of big hits, but he emphasizes that his "greatest passion is reserved for showcasing great songs...that have been undeservedly neglected." Tackling genres such as country, rock, and jazz, the volumes are divided into playlists (mostly by decade, though there are two playlists for the Sixties) and supported by title and subject/name indexes, along with a helpful bibliography. Each entry contains a short description, background information, dates of recording, and germane quotes. Historical facts are interspersed throughout. Highlights include Billie Holiday's "The Man I Love," Hank Williams's "I Saw the Light," Beck's "Loser," the White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army," and Mark Ronson's "Uptown Funk." Jam-packed with intriguing material, this accessible, well-written set would be most valuable shelved near the music collection. VERDICT Recommended for academic and large public libraries, especially those that own the first two volumes. A must-read for music fans.--Barbara Kundanis, Longmont P.L., CO

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2017
Sullivan is back with two more volumes of great popular song recordings. Volumes 1 and 2 (2013) featured entries for more than 1,000 titles. Volumes 3 and 4 add 1700 more noteworthy recordings. The format of this set is quite different from the earlier one's. Volumes 1 and 2 are arranged by topic (e.g., Crazy Blues, Memories of You ) and then chronologically within each playlist. That arrangement tells a story about how artists handled similar styles and emotions through the decades. The new set is 100-percent chronological. Each chapter/playlist features a different decade, beginning in 1890 and ending in 2016. This format tells the story of the evolution of popular music recordings as a whole. It also gives Sullivan the freedom to choose recordings regardless of topic or genre. Some of the selected songs received much less popular acclaim in their era than their big hit counterparts but were chosen because they have been undeservedly neglected. Once again, Sullivan's depth of knowledge and extensive research shows. He consulted the same musical halls of fame, books, magazines, awards lists, and other sources as for the first volumes, in addition spending many hours listening to a satellite radio station as it presented a five-week marathon of 50 years of Top 40 hits. Each entry is written with authority and passion, includes references to each song's rankings in various genre and award lists (e.g., Billboard, Grammy, Your Hit Parade), and concludes with an extensive bibliography and title and name-and-subject indexes. Highly recommended to academic and public libraries.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)