The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 105, July 2001 - April, 2002 Page: 700

Southwestern Historical Quarterly

Stampses' perceptions nothwithstanding, for how the myths of Reconstruction be-
gan and how faulty memories led to the cult of the lost cause. By blaming all the
difficulties on the postwar Republicans and the policies of the national govern-
ment, the mistakes made by ordinary citizens and murderers such as Hardin are
acceptable because they were perpetrated in support of Southern principles.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Gallaudet University Barry A. Crouch
Texas Tales in Words and Music. By Larry D. Hodge and Michael Stevens. (Plano:
Republic of Texas Press, 2oo001. Pp. x+1 8o. Introduction, bibliography, index.
ISBN 1-55622-794-9. $24.95, paper.)
When the history of the American West is recounted, the important role music
played in the daily lives of the people who lived there is too often minimized or
entirely overlooked. As schoolchildren, we learned "Oh, Susanna" and other
songs associated with the nineteenth-century westward migration of pioneer fam-
ilies. However, most of us never fully understood how music permeated nearly ev-
ery aspect of frontier life and became a crucial component in religious and
secular ceremonies and occasions of almost every type.
In Texas Tales in Words and Music, Larry D. Hodge and Michael Stevens help fur-
ther our understanding of the important relationship between music and history
by very effectively weaving together the songs and stories of early Texas. Combin-
ing narrative text and music, Texas Tales focuses on the legendary, and not so
legendary, people, places, and events from the state's past, providing vivid, enter-
taining accounts of frontier Texas.
Hodge presents lively, thoughtful, and amusing stories of gunfighters, Ameri-
can Indians, cattle drives, and even two longhorn cattle who regularly dined on
tamales and table scraps provided by their human companions. Stevens arranged,
composed, and performed (along with first-rate Texas musicians Paul Glasse,
Tom Middleton, Richard Bowden, David Polacheck, Spencer Starnes, and Larry
Seyer) nine songs as part of a companion CD accompanying the book. Together,
the narrative and recorded music offer a more multi-dimensional and interactive
educational experience than do most publications dealing with Texas history and
folklore.
Texas Tales is not a scholarly study, although it is well researched and, for the
most part, historically accurate and objective. It is clearly intended for a nonaca-
demic audience. As such, it should be a very enjoyable read for anyone interested
in the history and music of the American Southwest. It seems particularly well suit-
ed for use in the classroom. As a veteran writer of public school textbooks and
travel and tourism books, Hodge has a keen sense of how to make history accessi-
ble and entertaining to a broad audience. With Texas Tales, Hodge and Stevens
have assembled a very impressive package of music, text, and illustrations that is
informative and uniquely appealing.

Southwest Texas State University

April

700

Gary Hartman