Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The popularity of cartoon music, from Carl Stalling's work for Warner Bros. to Disney sound tracks and The Simpsons ' song parodies, has never been greater. This lively and fascinating look at cartoon music's past and present collects contributions from well-known music critics and cartoonists, and interviews with the principal cartoon composers. Here Mark Mothersbaugh talks about his music for Rugrats , Alf Clausen about composing for The Simpsons , Carl Stalling about his work for Walt Disney and Warner Bros., Irwin Chusid about Raymond Scott's work, Will Friedwald about Casper the Friendly Ghost , Richard Stone about his music for Animaniacs , Joseph Lanza about Ren and Stimpy , and much, much more.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• Foreword (p. ix)
• Acknowledgments (p. xi)
• Introduction (p. xiii)
• Main Title
• Untitled (p. 3)
• Tunes for Toons: A Cartoon Music Primer (p. 5)
• Part I An Episodic History of Cartoon Music
• Animated Cartoons and Slap-Stick Comedy (p. 17)
• Make Walt's Music: Music for Disney Animation, 1928-1967 (p. 21)
• An Interview with Carl Stalling (p. 37)
• Hidey Hidey Hidey Ho ... Boop-Boop-A Doop! The Fleischer Studio and Jazz Cartoons (p. 61)
• I Love to Hear a Minstrel Band: Walt Disney's The Band Concert (p. 67)
• Disney, Stokowski, and the Genius of Fantasia (p. 73)
• Music and the Animated Cartoon (p. 93)
• Classical Music and Hollywood Cartoons: A Primer on the Cartoon Canon (p. 103)
• Music in Cartoons (p. 115)
• Personality on the Sound Track: A Glimpse Behind the Scenes and Sequences in Filmland (p. 121)
• Make Mine Music and the End of the Swing Era (p. 125)
• Sublime Perversity: The Music of Carl Stalling (p. 137)
• Carl Stalling, Improviser & Bill Lava, Acme Minimalist (p. 141)
• Raymond Scott: Accidental Music for Animated Mayhem (p. 151)
• Winston Sharples and the "Inner Casper" (or Huey Has Two Mommies) (p. 161)
• An Interview with Hoyt Curtin (p. 169)
• Rock 'n' Roll Cartoons (p. 173)
• "Put One Note in Front of the Other": The Music of Maury Laws (p. 193)
• Part II Cartoon Music Today
• Merrie Melodies: Cartoon Music's Contemporary Resurgence (p. 203)
• An Interview with Mark Mothersbaugh (p. 207)
• Robots, Romance, and Ronin: Music in Japanese Anime (p. 219)
• An Interview with Richard Stone, Steve Bernstein, and Julie Bernstein (p. 225)
• An Interview with Alf Clausen (p. 239)
• I Kid Because I Love: The Music of The Simpsons (p. 253)
• An Interview with John Zorn (p. 263)
• Rhapsody in Spew: Romantic Underscores in The Ren & Stimpy Show (p. 269)
• Untitled (p. 275)
• End Title
• A Very Visual Kind of Music: The Cartoon Soundtrack Beyond the Screen (p. 279)
• Cartoon Music: A Select Discography (p. 289)
• Bibliography (p. 299)
• About the Contributors (p. 307)
• Index (p. 311)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

"Just try watching a classic Tom and Jerry or Bugs Bunny cartoon with the sound off, and see how flat the jokes fall," offers pop music critic Neil Strauss in this compilation of essays, interviews, and opinions. That thesis epitomizes the book's overriding purpose. Instead of addressing cartoons' obvious high art-low art baggage, the contributors (who also include critic Leonard Maltin) examine their existential problem: can the obnoxious soundtrack exist as art on its own? Goldmark, a professor and Rhino Records producer/editor, and Taylor, a Chicago-based author and journalist, offer a resounding yes. They explore the tune-toon symbiosis of Disney and Warner Brothers golden age composers (Leopold Stokowski, Carl Stalling), as well as of contemporary toonsmiths (e.g., Mark Mothersbaugh of Rugrats and Alf Clausen of The Simpsons). Insightful and surprisingly engaging, this book at the very least gives readers an excuse to watch the Yosemite Sam reruns Saturday morning. Recommended for all libraries.-Eric Hahn, Fargo, ND (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

Ever since Walt Disney synchronized Mickey Mouse to "Turkey in the Straw" in 1928, music has been as integral to animated cartoons as talking animals and falling anvils. The vital contributions of cartoon composers over the years have remained largely unsung, but this compilation of some 30 essays and interviews goes a long way toward rectifying that slight. Historically, the collection begins in the golden age of the Hollywood cartoon, with a rare interview with Warner Brothers composer Carl Stalling and two essays by his MGM counterpart, Scott Bradley. The often cheesy but fondly remembered music for '60s and '70s TV toons is well considered in such pieces as a look at such two-dimensional rock bands as Alvin and the Chipmunks and the Archies. The contemporary cartoon resurgence is represented by interviews with former Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh, now reaching a younger audience with Rugrats, and Alf Clausen, who parodies genres from rock to show tunes on The Simpsons. An invaluable resource that provides fascinating insights into a heretofore-neglected aspect of cinema history. Gordon Flagg