Singing Ol’ Man River

Todd Decker’s Who Should Sing “Ol’ Man River“ isn’t the story of the song’s origins so much as its afterlife. It’s a performance history, but one designed to see how the performances shaped the song and reflect the changing landscape of race in American culture.

Decker writes, “‘Ol’ Man River’ has been sung on the radio (again and again), on television . . . , on vaudeville (by black and white, male and female), and even in church. (Black newspapers of the 1930s and 1940s regularly reported on special musical events in major black churches where ‘Ol’ Man River’ was a welcome selection; such notices in the black press appear as late as 1966.)”

It’s been sung by “black and white, male and female, singers and musicians,” and in various genres, “from pop to jazz to rock to soul to doo-wop to opera— did with and to this famous song.” It’s a flexible way to examine American race because “popular songs like ‘Ol’ Man River’ are the property of anyone who chooses to sing them, remaining a part of popular culture for as long as singers and musicians still perform them and audiences still listen.”