National History Education Clearinghouse

Using Primary Sources

Making Sense of American Popular Song

Producer: History Matters

Website: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/mse/songs/

Tunes, lyrics, recordings, sheet music—all are components of popular songs, and all can serve as evidence of peoples, places, and attitudes of the past. Written by Ronald J. Walters and John Spitzer, Making Sense of American Popular Song provides a place for students and teachers to begin working with songs as a way of understanding the past.