Published by the Chattanooga Medicine Company
Chattanooga, ca. 1890-1900
Book cover
"Songsters"--small,
cheaply printed, inexpensive songbooks that usually contained only lyrics for
songs--were published throughout much of the 19th century. Songsters were one of the
primary means by which popular songs were disseminated, especially to people who
had little money to spend on music. Songsters were often issued in conjunction
with political campaigns and social movements, and they were frequently put
out by popular minstrel troupes and solo entertainers. They also figured as a
form of advertising, with numerous companies printing up songsters to promote
various products. There is an especially strong tradition of patent medicine
companies publishing songsters to market elixirs and other concoctions, as the
Chattanooga Medicine Company did with this Lookout Mountain Songster.
This item is from the Center for Popular Music's Kenneth S. Goldstein Collection
of American Songsters and Song Broadsides.