If the literary value of songwriting is primarily in the lyrics, the best book I know about that is Stephen Sondheim's Finishing the Hat, the first volume of his collected lyrics, which I cherish not so much for the lyrics--most of which are in my head--but for his evaluation of previous generations of show-tune writers. He also includes, in both volumes, notes to many of his songs, giving enlightening accounts of how and why he wrote them as he did.
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