 His most famous song is "My Days Have been so Wondrous Free", and his "Seven Songs for the Harpsichord" were composed in 1788 and dedicated to George Washington.Other 18th-century American song composers

In the 19th century, many Americans composed songs for amateur musicians to sing at home (usually called parlor songs).In the middle of the century Stephen Foster (1826–1864) emerged as one of the best known American composers of songs.