"Queen of my Heart", the hit song ofDorothy, was very popular as a parlour ballad.The Black Crook (1866), considered by some historians to be the first musical[1]
Ashow tune is asong originally written as part of the score of a work ofmusical theatre ormusical film, especially if the piece in question has become astandard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context.[2]
Though show tunes vary in style, they do tend to share common characteristics—they usually fit the context of a story being told in the original musical, they are useful in enhancing and heightening choice moments. A particularly common form of show tune is the"I Want" song, which composer Stephen Schwartz noted as being particularly likely to have a lifespan outside the show that spawned it.[3]
Show tunes were a major venue for popular music before therock and roll andtelevision era; most of the hits of such songwriters asJerome Kern,Cole Porter, andGeorge Gershwin came from their shows. (Even into the television and rock era, a few stage musicals managed to turn their show tunes into major pop music hits, sometimes aided by film adaptations and exposure throughvariety shows.) Although show tunes no longer have such a major role in popular music as they did in their heyday, they remain somewhat popular, especially among niche audiences. Show tunes make up a disproportionate part of the songs in most variations of theGreat American Songbook.
The reverse phenomenon, when already popular songs are used to form the basis of a stage production, is known as ajukebox musical.[4]
