After the North defeats the South, Union Maj. Jeff Clanton heads to Missouri to provide the Confederacy's Quantrill's Raiders a chance to claim allegiance to the Union, thereby clearing their wanted status. But standing in Clanton's way are the corrupt lawmen Joad and Fowler, who would rather keep the men outlaws to collect the reward on their heads. After Joad and Fowler frame Clanton for murder, he manages to escape, becoming an outlaw himself.

A year after his fiancée's death, a playwright schedules a rehearsal for his new play, which proves to be a trap for her killer.

A schoolteacher in her early 40s, involved in a dead-end love affair with a married mortician, drifts into a relationship with an aging newspaperman.

It's Tulsa, Oklahoma at the start of the oil boom and Cherokee Lansing's rancher father is killed in a fight with the Tanner Oil Company. Cherokee plans revenge by bringing in her own wells with the help of oil expert Brad Brady and childhood friend Jim Redbird. When the oil and the money start gushing in, both Brad and Jim want to protect the land but Cherokee has different ideas. What started out as revenge for her father's death has turned into an obsession for wealth and power.

A struggling female soprano finds work playing a male female impersonator, but it complicates her personal life.

当时风靡百老汇的音乐剧《乐器推销员》，不仅在托尼奖上击败《西区故事》，独得最佳音乐剧、最佳男主角、最佳女配角等5项大奖，它也是格莱美史上第一部获最佳原声专辑奖的音乐剧。该剧描写了在上世纪初一位名叫Harold Hill的乐器推销员来到小河城，在推销乐器的过程中认识了当地的图书管理员、钢琴教师玛丽安Marian Paroo。小河镇原先风气十分保守，但是经过了两人的努力，终于突破了偏见，组织起了一支儿童管乐队，而Hill和Marian也由此相爱了。该剧先后在1962年和2003年改编为电影。1987年，中央歌剧院制作了该剧的中文版在京首演，成为了中国最早引进制作中文版的西方音乐剧之一。
第一幕
在火車上，一群推銷員正在討論現在市道。閒談間說到了一個叫希爾的騙子，他專說提供樂器及輔導，卻在別人給了錢要樂器後便走人。有人說笑地認為他在民風頑固多疑的愛荷華州一定不能成功，躲在一旁的希爾卻突然出現，並躍躍欲試。("Overture/ Rock Island")希爾到達愛荷華便受到了歡迎，("Iowa Stubborn")並發現朋友馬些勒斯也在。深知希爾底細的馬些勒斯勸希爾不要行騙，因為精明美麗的圓書員瑪莉安一定會發現。希爾不以為忤，並以出色口才把整個鎮嚇得瞠口結舌("Ya Got Trouble")。他初遇瑪莉安，已見其利害。瑪莉安回家教琴，("Piano Lesson")，卻常常想像自己的未來。("Goodnight My Someone")鎮長夫人和其他人正爭論七月四人國慶要如何慶祝，希爾把握機會提出成立小孩樂團並得到認同。("Seventy-Six Trombones")他成功地避過教授証的檢查，("Sincere")並和鎮長達成共識。
馬些勒斯和希爾閒談，馬些勒斯認為瑪莉安不會像看上去那麼嚴謹，希爾鬆一口氣，並說了自己對完美女人的要求。("The Sadder-But-Wiser Girl For Me")謠言此時卻鬧了起來，說瑪莉安和一位富翁有染。("Pick-A-Little, Talk-A-Little")這時學校正教著和聲，("Goodnight Ladies")而另一邊廂，希爾卻愛上了瑪莉安，並展開了追求("Marian the Librarian")。瑪莉安卻反對，其母問其故，瑪莉安便推說她正在等她的白色騎士，言則她始終不相希爾是一個正當的人。("My White Knight")終於她也找到了希爾詐騙的証據，此時樂器已經開始運入鎮裡。("The Wells Fargo Wagon")當她看到一向內向的小弟弟為此而非常興奮時，她毅然把那份証據撕爛。
第二幕
三天後，學校依然在排練("It's You")，卻被年青人中斷，他們想學希爾教的舞步。馬些勒斯帶頭，希爾和瑪莉安跳起舞來。女士們驚訝原來瑪莉安懂得跳舞，都開始對她改觀。("Shippopi")希爾再次通過証件測試("Lida Rose")，另一邊瑪莉安也漸漸對希爾產生愛慕之情，卻把情感一直收藏。("Will I Ever Tell You")希爾和瑪莉安之弟玩得很開心，他教了一首歌，二人回家時一起唱著。("Gary, Indiana")可是，一名知道希爾底細的推銷員來了，他被瑪莉安拖延。瑪莉安告訴希爾她一早便知道他是騙子的事實，希爾深受感動。("Till There Was You")終於捉人的人來了，放過多次機會依然不肯走的希爾被審判。可他得到很多支持，結果法官判其無罪。瑪莉安和希爾自然是有情人終成眷屬，而小鎮的樂團雖然錯漏百出，卻仍使所有人為之一樂。("Finale")

When Joan Boothe accompanies husband-reporter David to Las Vegas, she begins gambling to pass the time while he is doing a story. Encouraged by the casino manager, she gets hooked on gambling, to the point where she "borrows" David's expense money to pursue her addiction. This finally breaks up their marriage, but David continues trying to help her.