Anne Arenstein provides a look at Foster's music in her, Cinncinati, City Beat article, "Stephen Foster Reconsidered"

“Today, Foster is acknowledged as ‘The Father of American Music,’ the country’s first popular songwriter whose body of more than 200 songs continues to be an influence crossing genres. ‘My Old Kentucky Home,’ ‘Old Folks at Home’ (better known as ‘Swanee River’), ‘Hard Times Come Again No More’ and ‘Beautiful Dreamer’ have all passed into the realm of American classics.

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Despite those lovely ballads, many of Foster’s songs echo the unapologetic racism that depicted enslaved blacks as banjo pickers or figures of devoted servitude, proclaiming their sentiments in language that played to white audiences’ stereotypes of blacks. ‘Gwine to Run All Night,’ better known as ‘Camptown Races,’ ‘Oh! Susanna’ and even ‘My Old Kentucky Home’ are among the major offenders.

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And yet, Foster has transcended even offensive language and is now acknowledged as an American master. He was not the first to write for American audiences, but his music and lyrics captured the popular imagination as no other artist had. He inspired musicians from Scott Joplin to Gershwin and Bob Dylan. It’s safe to say that Foster wrote the first chapter of The Great American Songbook" (Arenstein, 2018).