Music In American History
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1898-1930
The turn of the century brought a lot of change to America; The rise of imperialism, new foreign relations, and the start of World War I. With this change came new music. Music hall, a popular form of entertainment in Great Britain, became increasingly popular in the United States. Songs performed in music halls were often comedic and lighthearted, and served as cheap entertainment for the working class who could not afford gramophones. The start of World War I brought a wave of patriotic music that tried to persuade young men to enlist and romanticized the war.
Music was used as a form of propaganda during the American involvement in World War I. Ads for "Patriotic song books" (top left) could be found in many magazines and catalogs, while newspapers printed War-time songs (bottom left) to boost public moral and encourage young men to enlist before they were drafted. Many of these songs romanticized the war, with verses talking about the noble and bravery soldiers leaving their fragile, loyal women. These songs even compared the current times to medieval romances and fairy tales (top right). One example of a popular, romantic war-time song is "If I'm Not At The Role Call" (original print, bottom right) which was sung at many War rally's and support groups during this time and remained popular even after the wars end.