Hyland’s colorfully written book is the story of the Golden Age of American Popular Music told through the life stories of Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, George Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Richard Rodgers. The book is divided into three major sections: “The Tin Pan Alley,” “The Jazz Age,” and “Hollywood and Beyond.” The focus is on trends in popular songwriting during the first half of the century as opposed to a compositional or lyrical analysis.

For readers and researchers, The Song Is Ended is enjoyable to read and provides historical context for many of the songs that have become jazz standards. It includes an index of songs and compositions as well as an index of names.

William G. Hyland was Editor of Foreign Affairs for many years and also a Research Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. Hyland’s books include Richard Rodgers, George Gershwin: A New Biography and a number of books on foreign affairs.