Description
Book SynopsisAllison McCracken charts the rise and fall of crooners between 1925 and 1934, showing how the backlash against crooners' perceived sexual and gender deviance created stylistically masculine norms for white male pop singers that continue to exist today.
Trade Review"[A] rich, intriguing account of how microphone-assisted heartthrobs won over American ears in the early 20th century." -- Ann Powers * NPR Book Concierge *
"A painstakingly researched book, sure in its thesis and apt in its presentation, this versatile study is of immediate appeal to those interested in music but will also be a valuable resource for those in gender studies, African American studies, American studies, and all concentrations of history. Highly recommended. All readers." -- J. Neal * Choice *
"... marvelous... The author’s evidently deep research increases the pleasure of reading the book—and creates a nagging desire to stop reading it to seek out clips from the movies and songs she discusses." -- Art Blake * Journal of Popular Music Studies *
“As befits an academic author, McCracken is primarily concerned with the social aspects of the phenomenon, especially the sexual implications as the style developed in the late 1920s. … Recommended for readers interested in American social history, popular culture, popular music, and gender studies.” -- Bruce R. Schueneman * Library Journal *
"
Real Men Don’t Sing: Crooning in American Culture is an excellent book. Those looking for ways to blend modern theory, historical context, and popular culture (in this case music and film) would do well to use McCracken’s work as a model. She tackles many complex issues, from queer theory to technology and its impact, in a way that’s readable and succinct." -- Kenneth J. Bindas * American Historical Review *
"[A] stunning account of crooning and the development of American pop." -- Charles L. Hughes * American Quarterly *
"Real Men Don’t Sing is a forcefully argued and thoroughly engaging book that would be an ideal text in courses on popular culture or gender and the body." -- Maxine Leeds Craig * Men and Masculinities *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
1. Putting Over a Song: Crooning, Performance, and Audience in the Acoustic Era, 1880–1920 37
2. Crooning Goes Electric: Microphone Crooning and the Invention of the Intimate Singing Aesthetic, 1921–1928 74
3. Falling in Love with a Voice: Rudy Vallée and His First Radio Fans, 1928 126
4. "The Mouth of the Machine": The Creation of the Crooning Idol, 1929 160
5. "A Supine Sinking into the Primeval Ooze": Crooning and Its Discontents, 1929–1933 208
6. "The Kind of Natural That Worked": The Crooner Redefined, 1932–1934 (and Beyond) 264
Conclusion 311
Notes 333
Bibliography 375
Index 411
