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A song plugger or song demonstrator was a vocalist or piano player employed in the early 20th century by department stores, music stores and song publishers to promote and help sell new sheet music, which was how hits were advertised before good-quality recordings were widely available. Music publisher Frank Harding has been credited with innovating the sales method.[1] Typically, the pianist sat on the mezzanine level of a store and played whatever music was sent up to him by the clerk of the store selling the sheet music. Patrons could select any title, have it delivered to the song plugger, and get a preview of the tune before buying it.
Although the terms are often used interchangeably, those who worked in department and music stores were most often known as "song demonstrators", while those who worked directly for music publishers were called "song pluggers."
Musicians and composers who had worked as song pluggers included George Gershwin,[2][better source needed] Ron Roker, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin and Lil Hardin Armstrong. Movie executive Harry Cohn had been a song plugger.[3]
- ^ "Popular Music". Museum of Making Music. Archived from the original on 2014-07-30. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
- ^ "George Gershwin Biography". ComposerFan (Blog). Archived from the original on 2012-05-01. Retrieved 2024-11-21.
- ^ Thomas, Bob (1967). King Cohn - The Life and Times of Harry Cohn. G. P. Putnam's Sons. p. 96. ISBN 978-1893224070.