Irving Berlin
New York Genius
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
From the prizewinning Jewish Lives series, a fast†‘moving, musically astute portrait of arguably the greatest composer of American popular music
Irving Berlin (1888–1989) has been called—by George Gershwin, among others—the greatest songwriter of the golden age of the American popular song. “Berlin has no place in American music,” legendary composer Jerome Kern wrote; “he is American music.” In a career that spanned an astonishing nine decades, Berlin wrote some fifteen hundred tunes, including “Alexander’s Ragtime Band,” “God Bless America,” and “White Christmas.” From ragtime to the rock era, Berlin’s work has endured in the very fiber of American national identity.
Exploring the interplay of Berlin’s life with the life of New York City, noted biographer James Kaplan offers a visceral narrative of Berlin as self†‘made man and witty, wily, tough Jewish immigrant. This fast†‘paced, musically opinionated biography uncovers Berlin’s unique brilliance as a composer of music and lyrics. Masterfully written and psychologically penetrating, Kaplan’s book underscores Berlin’s continued relevance in American popular culture.
About Jewish Lives:
Jewish Lives is a prizewinning series of interpretative biography designed to explore the many facets of Jewish identity. Individual volumes illuminate the imprint of Jewish figures upon literature, religion, philosophy, politics, cultural and economic life, and the arts and sciences. Subjects are paired with authors to elicit lively, deeply informed books that explore the range and depth of the Jewish experience from antiquity to the present.
In 2014, the Jewish Book Council named Jewish Lives the winner of its Jewish Book of the Year Award, the first series ever to receive this award.
More praise for Jewish Lives:
“Excellent.” – New York times
“Exemplary.” – Wall St. Journal
“Distinguished.” – New Yorker
“Superb.” – The Guardian
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The mainstay of the 20th-century American Songbook unified a nation's diverse voices, according to this sprightly biography. Biographer Kaplan (Frank: The Voice) follows Irving Berlin's rise from being a Russian-Jewish immigrant singing for pennies in New York saloons to becoming king of musical Broadway and Hollywood, composing megahits such as the jazz fanfare "Alexander's Ragtime Band," the patriotic anthem "God Bless America," the secular hymn "White Christmas," and the suave love-croon "Cheek to Cheek." There were no florid dysfunctions in Berlin's life he enjoyed success and acclaim from youth onward but Kaplan excavates psychological depth beneath the blithe melodies. Berlin suffered from bouts of depression and wracking insecurity about his work (he almost discarded "There's No Business Like Show Business" as a stinker) but persevered with a maniacal work ethic (he would tinker with some tunes for years) lit by sudden bolts of genius (he wrote "Anything You Can Do I Can Do Better" in a taxi). Kaplan tells the story briskly and with aplomb, adding plenty of showbiz antics, atmospheric evocations of Berlin's New York, and shrewd critical passages that separate the musical schmaltz from the art (and find the art in the schmaltz). The result is a smart, entertaining biography of a great songwriter that will have readers humming along. Photos
