The Great American Songbook
by Andrew J. Kuehn
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Herbert Stothart, Judy Garland, Ris? Stevens, Six Hits and a Miss, Tony MartinDirector: Andrew J. Kuehn
Brand: Warner Brothers
Producer: Andrew J. Kuehn
Writer: Frederick L. Greene
Writer: Joe Gilford
Writer: John Ardoin
Writer: Mary Cleere Haran
Writer: Scott McIsaac
Writer: Tracy Young
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, Full Screen, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 175 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-04-22
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Warner Home Video
Movie Reviews of The Great American Songbook
Movie Review: Excellent Survey Of American Popular Music
Summary: 5 Stars
I came of age in the rock music scene and also have had a long time interest in folk, blues and country. In contrast, the classic songs of stage and film have never been of much interest to me. But this excellent documentary really brought that music to life and allowed me to learn about an entirely different aspect of American culture.
Pianist Michael Feinstein serves as the narraror and provides fascinating commentary on great lyricists and composers such as Ira and George Gershwin, Lorez Hart and Oscar Hammerstein. The doc begins with America's first popular song, "Yankee Doodle Dandy", and continues through the 19th century, the Jazz Age, big band era and up until the emergence of rock and roll in the 1950's. Much of the music is drawn from Broadway and Hollywood musicals, with some great film clips and other footage from the historical archives. Other featured performers include Al Jolson, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rodgers, Judy Garland and Frank Sinatra. For me this was a tremendously educational and entertaining journey into a musical world that I knew little about. Highly recommended!
Summary of The Great American Songbook
Archival footage of judy garland. Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 04/22/2003 Starring: Michael Feinstein Run time: 90 minutes Rating: Nr Director: Andrew J KuehnThe Great American Songbook is an ambitious documentary that chronicles 100 years of American popular song through film clips and photographs. It stretches from minstrel shows to Elvis, but features most prominently the "Golden Age" songwriters of the 1930s through the 1950s--Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin, the Gershwins, Richard Rodgers with both Lorenz Hart and Oscar Hammerstein, and others. That means you can enjoy some of the most exquisite music of the 20th century including Paul Robeson singing "Old Man River," Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dancing "Cheek to Cheek," and Judy Garland's "The Man That Got Away," plus performances of historical importance such as Al Jolson's "Swanee."
Over the course of its three hours (it was cut for PBS broadcast), the program has some drawbacks--performers are identified but films aren't, the performances tend to be almost complete rather than complete, and scenes from fictional films illustrate the earliest historical moments, which doesn't feel true--but they're minor, and Michael Feinstein proves a perfect host, narrating and occasionally singing at the piano. Fans of Feinstein's cabaret shows will also enjoy his commentary track, which provides a lot of interesting and funny background on the songs and songwriters. His commentary isn't constant, but a useful icon allows the viewer to find the next section of commentary with the click of a button. Another slight inconvenience is that chapters are named by subject matter rather than by song title so if you're skimming for highlights you have to know what you're looking for. --David Horiuchi
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