Parlour music

Fantastical or exuberant themes were also common, as was commentary on incidents and events of the day, such as "Bryan Free Silver March", "Homeless Tonight" or "Shootin' Craps".

The high point of the parlour song came in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, during the Victorian era in North America and the British Isles.

Songs of this genre became more complex and sophisticated in their melodic and harmonic vocabulary, and in addition to their continuing use in the parlour, they were also often sung in public recitals by professional singers.

Characteristic and popular parlour songs include "Home, Sweet Home," composed by Henry R. Bishop with lyrics by John Howard Payne, "The Old Arm Chair" by Henry Russell, "When the Swallows Homeward Fly" by Franz Abt, "Kathleen Mavourneen" composed by Frederick Nicholls Crouch with lyrics by Marion Crawford, "The Lost Chord" composed by Arthur Sullivan with lyrics by Adelaide A. Proctor, "Take Back the Heart" by Claribel (Mrs. Charlotte Barnard), "Oh Promise Me" by Reginald de Koven, "I Love You Truly" and "A Perfect Day" by Carrie Jacobs-Bond, and "The Rosary" by Ethelbert Nevin.

Note the sentimental lyrics by Frank Lebby Stanton, the plaintive but well matched tune by Carrie Jacobs-Bond, and the conscious artistry (including the operatic trilled "r"s) by singer Elizabeth Spencer.

Front cover of " Just Awearyin' for You " (1901), a widely selling parlor song. The lyrics were by Frank Lebby Stanton . Composer Carrie Jacobs-Bond thought they were anonymous but later provided royalties to Stanton. [ 1 ] The song typifies the sentimentality of the Victorian and post-Victorian era.
The Great Wahoo Polka, by J.N. Pattison (1864), a dance inspired by the patent remedy "Wahoo Bitters". [ 3 ]