The Wonderful Era Of The Great Dance Bands (Da Capo Paperback)

By Leo Walker

Book Overview

Organized, lucid and definitive, 'The Wonderful Era of the Great Dance Bands' presents a complete coverage of the spectacular reign of the dance bands during Prohibition, wartime, and the postwar boom.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0306803798
• ISBN13: 9780306803796
• Release Date: March 1990
• Publisher: Da Capo Press
• Length: 316 Pages
• Weight: 2.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 11.0" x 1.0" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

The Dance Band Era

Rather than merely compiling an encyclopedic listing of various dance bands, Leo Walker has wisely chosen to write a history of the dance band era. From its formative years in the early 1920's, to the full blossoming of its style in the 1930's, to its reigning years around WW II, to its ultimate decline in the 1950's (a victim of many forces, including television and the rise of rock 'n' roll), Walker relates the impact of this popular phenomenon on the music world and the culture in general. He also devotes chapters to the recording industry, gigs, movies and other segments of the business. Again the emphasis is on general trends rather than on the specific doings of particular bands. The book opens with the question, "Whatever happened to the big dance band business?" When you get to the end of the book, you should have a very adequate answer.