Music of World War I

The seats at the music hall could be very cheap and attracted a largely working class audience, for whom a gramophone would generally be too expensive.

Humorous stereotypes of domineering wives or mothers-in-law, the bourgeoisie, foreigners, Blacks and Jews were often subjects of songs.

Sentimental love songs and dreams of an ideal land (Ireland or Dixie in particular) made up another major category.

Popular, patriotic songs that were composed during the war also served to raise the morale of soldiers and civilians alike.

[1] Because there were no radios or televisions that reported the conditions of the battlefields, Americans had a romantic view of war.