Sheet music:Sixteen Tons

Since the middle of the 19th century, Americans purchased pianos in increasing numbers. Families and friends gathered around the piano for evenings of musical fun. Piano players needed sheet music to learn the latest songs and publishers quickly printed everyone's favorite pieces, first in black and white and later with detailed chromolithographed color covers. The advent of radio and even television simply increased public awareness of hit songs, and the production of sheet music still grew. Eventually, use of sheet music lessened along with the popularity of home pianos in the middle and later 20th century. Radio, phonographs, and personal listening devices began to replace the piano in the parlor. The song "Sixteen Tons" tells the story of a coal miner. The most famous version was recorded by Tennessee Ernie Ford in 1955, and reached number one on the Billboard charts. It has been covered by musicians such as Elvis Presley, Bo Diddley and Stevie Wonder, and appeared in movies and television, including episodes of The Simpsons, South Park and Mad Men.