From Saginaw Valley to Tin Pan Alley: Saginaw's Contribution to American Popular Music, 1890-1955

by R. Grant Smith

Most people wouldn't know to make a connection between Saginaw,--Michigan and Tin Pan Alley, a name synonymous with the popular music industry and where New York music publishing houses were clustered together. Located on the Saginaw River and at the base of Michigan's thumb, this former world lumber capital turned out a surprisingly large number of popular songwriters between 1890 and 1955, helping the American popular music publishing industry gain its reputation as a provider of music for all Americans to enjoy. From Saginaw Valley to Tin Pan Alley documents the work of more than sixty popular songwriters who hailed from Saginaw, and provides background information and anecdotes about the most famous songwriters and their most famous songs. Among the greatest of the Saginaw songwriters were Isham Jones ("It Had to Be You"), and Ben Weisman ("Paper Roses"). More than seventy sheet music covers dating from between 1890 and 1955 are interposed with the narrative, adding to the book's charm and historic value. R. Grant Smith researched this music era thoroughly. He consulted many scholarly and popular publications, sorted through thousands of pieces of sheet music at antique shops and antique shows, and interviewed songwriters from Saginaw, as well as other individuals familiar with Saginaw's extraordinary contributions to the musical heritage of America.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0814326587
• ISBN13: 9780814326589
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Wayne State University Press
• Length: 191 Pages
• Weight: 0.93 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 7.1" x 10.0"