The editors invoke an unimpeachable criterion: "
Singableness was our final test for every song considered for inclusion." On page after page, they introduce individuals whose names we never knew or have long since forgotten, but whose legacy we take for granted: Herman Hupfeld ("As Time Goes By"), Roy Turk ("Mean to Me"), Mort Dixon ("Bye Bye Blackbird"), William Engvick ("While We're Young"), Edward Heyman ("Blame It on My Youth"), Edgar Leslie ("For Me and My Gal"), Noble Sissle ("I'm Just Wild about Harry"), Haven Gillespie ("Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town").