My family and I are spending a week volunteering in New Orleans, helping to restore the Lower Ninth Ward after Hurricane Katrina. Yesterday, we traveled here. My husband, an orchestral violinist, noted that our airline layovers read like a checklist of the best symphony orchestras in the country: Boston, Cleveland, Atlanta, Chicago.
When we stopped at the Cleveland Airport yesterday, we were reminded that the city is where Rock & Roll got started. We even bought cute little guitar pick necklaces to support Cleveland Relay for Life.
But New Orleans is the birthplace of Jazz.
This spirited music grew out of the black cultures of this city, and is the named after the Creole word for African dance. It combines forms from blues, rock and other types of music. It started in the 1920s and united young people of different races and cultures in an artistic community.
One of the many musicians to hail from New Orleans is Fats Domino. He stayed home during Hurricane Katrina and lost many possessions. His famous white piano was destroyed and its remains are now displayed in the Louisiana State Museum.
Here's Mr. Domino singing "Blueberry Hill" by Larry Stock and Al Lewis with music by Vincent Rose. It's today's Song for Sunday.
What songs do you associate with places you've traveled?
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