Pop standards
From Freepedia
The term pop standards refers to an American songwriting, arranging, and singing style that is widely considered as the high point of Western vocal popular music. The terms standards or American standards are also sometimes used.
This style was at its heyday from the 1930s, throughout World War II, and into the post-war era. It dominated popular music until the birth of rock n' roll in the mid-1950s. Singers packed houses across the country, and the advent and subsequent widespread popularity of radio and movies enabled their music, personalities and distinctive vocal styles to catapult them to superstar status.
As a genre it was embodied by a remarkable and diverse group of singers, writers and stylemakers. Jazz pioneers Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Paul Whiteman first popularized jazz music among a diverse audience. Meanwhile Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and other Tin Pan Alley and Broadway songwriters popularized the "Great American Songbook". Soon afterward, radio introduced millions of Americans to the same songs, often written by artists like Hoagy Carmichael, or sung in a more soothing, personal style by crooners like Rudy Vallee or Bing Crosby.
The big band era further developed the genre of "pop standards". Bandleaders like Tommy Dorsey, Cab Calloway, Benny Goodman, and Count Basie continued to innovate. Big band singers, who had previously been considered instrumentalists and were rarely singled out, now became huge stars, like Frank Sinatra, Doris Day, Ella Fitzgerald, and Dinah Shore.
In later decades, the standard-bearers were bands and orchestras led by such luminaries as Guy Lombardo, Nelson Riddle, and TV-friendly singers like Rosemary Clooney, Dean Martin, and the cast of Your Hit Parade. Many artists who had made their mark in other genres (such as country's Patsy Cline or classical artists like Victor Borge), made their biggest impact in creating crossover pop, or by performing on pop music shows like Toast of the Town.
At the beginning of this period, popular music was generally defined as music with both melody and lyrics that were easy to remember. Within this, there was a gradation:
- "Pops" were songs that became popular quickly but faded out rapidly
- "Hits" were songs with great popularity
- "Standards" were a few special songs that retained their popularity year after year.
Over time, these distinctions have become less clear, but the term "traditional pop music" is used to include all three of the above classes, whereas "pop standards" is only the last.
Today, many popular artists, such as Harry Connick Jr., Diana Krall, Michael Buble, Carly Simon, and Natalie Cole, have covered the work of classic pop songwriters. Standards also persist in nightclub and lounge acts around the world.
See also
References
- World Book Encyclopedia, 1967, "Popular music".
