Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music National Standards: Content Standard 6.0: Students will listen to, analyze, and describe music. Content Standard 9.0: Students will understand music in relation to history and culture. Objectives: Students will be able to: • Identify and describe soul music, its style, instrumentation, historical context, vocabulary and recording technologies. Materials: • “Jeopardy quiz” pre and post assessment • Script with coinciding CD sound clips o Booker T. & the MGs: Green Onions (Track 1) o Sam & Dave: Soul Man (Track 2) o The Staple Singers: I’ll Take You There (track 3) o Isaac Hayes: Theme from Shaft (Track 4) Teaching Procedure 1. To introduce this style of music, students will take the “jeopardy” quiz as an indicator of how much they already know about Soul Music. (See Attached) 2. After taking the jeopardy quiz, teacher leads the discussion into the Script Reading. 3. Students/Teacher read script inserting appropriate recorded sound clips. 4. At the conclusion of the script reading/CD recorded samples, students re-take the “jeopardy” quiz. 5. Teacher informs students of correct responses for jeopardy. Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music 1 Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music Activity I: Jeopardy Quiz Answer 1: Fuses the vocal styles of gospel, the compositional and instrumental styles of rhythm and blues, and was influenced by the civil rights movement. Question: What is Soul Music? What is Gospel? What is Hip Hop? Answer 2: Rhythmically united, hard hitting horns (trumpets and saxophones) that accompanied Stax recordings. Question: What is the Memphis Sound? What is the Motown Sound? What is the Hollywood Sound? Answer 3: Use of a microphone, magnetic tape and mixing board to record. Question: What equipment was used to make recordings at Stax studio in the 1960’s? What equipment does it take to create a CD? What equipment is used to create a music video? Answer 4: Name of the integrated Stax house band that recorded Green Onions. Question: Who are Booker T and the MG’s? Who are the Markeys? Who are the BarKays? Answer 5: Heavy rhythm accent on beats two and four. Question: What is the backbeat? What is syncopation? What is improvisation? Answer 6: He recorded the theme from Shaft. Question: Who is Isaac Hayes? Who is Otis Redding? Who is Sam and Dave? Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music 2 Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music Script: Soul of the Century Records Cast: Narrator Mr. McLemore (or “Mr. Mac” as the kids call him. He owns the record store) Sam (Mr. Mac’s old friend who hangs out and naps at the store) Al (Mr. Mac’s nephew) Carla (friend) Clifton (friend) Sheila (friend) Technical support: Musical director: To work the CD player Sound effects specialist: Take a few minutes – and with the class’s help - find objects in the room that you could use to create the following sounds: (it doesn’t have to be perfect recreation – just a representation) • The bell of the record store door as people enter or leave followed by a door closing • Footsteps • Searching through a rack of CDs • Fire trucks on the way to a fire Narrator: Al, Carla, Sheila and Clifton stop by Soul of the Century Records on the way home from school. Sound effects: The bell of the record store followed by a door closing. Musical Director: (any popular song of your choosing playing softly in the background ) Al: Hey there, Uncle Mac! Mr. Mac: Hi Al! What’s up, smart young people? How was school? Carla: It was good! I got an “A” on my History Day project on the Civil Rights Movement. Al did a nice job on his too. Mr. Mac: Aw, that’s great Carla! Good topic too. And I’m NOT surprised about Al doin’ so good. He gets them smarts from his uncle. What did you do your project on Al? Al: I did mine on the history of the musical recording technology. You know, making records and stuff. Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music: Script 1 Mr. Mac: That’s my boy. I coulda helped you with that you know. Al: I had it covered. But thanks anyway Uncle Mac. Mr. Mac: How ‘bout you Clifton? You look like “Mr. Pitiful”. What’s wrong? (the other kids snicker and laugh quietly) Clifton: Well…I did my History Day project on the Chicago Fire, and I wanted to make it realistic right? So I built this miniature model of the city out of toothpicks and paper and other stuff like that. So when I was my turn to present my project I lit the model on fire – even started it at the right place in the city. But the kids screamed and the teacher ran for the fire extinguisher and sprayed me AND my project down with it before I even had a chance to demonstrate the miniature fire trucks I’d made! I got a D+ on my project and detention for “unauthorized use of pyrotechnics”. And after THAT, I accidentally sat on my lunch. Mr. Mac: Ooooo. Bummer. That IS a bad day. How about you young lady? How was your day? Sheila: Fine. We’ve been growing plants in Science class. Mr. Mac: Really? What kind of plants? Sheila: Green onions. Mr. Mac: Green Onions! Well, that’s the SONG right there! Al: What are you talking about Uncle Mac? Carla: What song? Mr. Mac: You mean to tell me you all kids have never heard Booker T and the MGs’ “Green Onions”? Al: No, I don’t think so? Mr. Mac: Well, I’ma have to have a talk with that Mamma of yours. My sister ought to be teaching her kids RIGHT about soul music. Clifton: Soul music? Mr. Mac: Mercy Me! I’m gonna have to do some educatin’ around here. Come on ya’ll. Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music: Script 2 (footsteps) (the sound of CD cases being flipped through) Mr. Mac: Hey Sam, wake up over there! (Sam’s been dozing in his chair) Sam: (snoring, then a “snort”) Wha’, huh?? Mr. Mac: Can you believe that these children don’t know about SOUL music? Sam: (yawns) Well, then we’ve got some educatin’ to do! And children, you got to know you are talking face to face with two of the most learned men on earth when it comes to soul, rhythm and blues, funk, jazz and the like. Clifton: No way! Mr. Mac: You don’t think? Take a little listen to Green Onions here by Booker T and the MG’s and then we’re gonna talk! Sam: OOOOOhhh, that backbeat, it’s all about the backbeat. Beats two and four, the backbeat baby. (Sam starts to do a little dance in his chair) Mr. Mac: You get too excited, you’re gonna hurt your own BACK-beat you ol’ man. Musical Director: (put on track one and turn up to a comfortable listening level. Play for about 30 seconds then turn down slowly as the conversation continues) Al: Hey, that’s a pretty tight song! Sheila: So that’ soul music, huh? I’m pretty sure I’ve heard that one before. Sam: That’s soul allright! Right out of Stax Records down in Memphis, Tennesee. Started out back in 1960. Mr. Mac: Oh, that’s that Memphis sound! The keys, the guitars, that soulful sing. Oh, and them horns. Always, those horns were hittin’ it hard. Sam: The Sixties -when Motown was sweet and Memphis was gritty. Carla: The Sixties. That was during the Civil Rights Movement. Sam: That’s right. And Stax was integrated! Clifton: Integrated? Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music: Script 3 Mr. Mac: That means that they had white and black people writing, performing and running the business TOGETHER. That was almost unheard of in the South back then. Yep, Stax was ahead of their time. Al: Stax? What was Stax? Mr. Mac: Mercy me Al! Haven’t you dug through your mom’s old record collection? She got a “stack” of Stax down there. Stax was the record company primarily responsible for the Memphis sound. Sam: They put out blues and gospel, R&B, funk, even country records. Mr. Mac: But it was SOUL music that was the heart of Stax records. Soul music is like church music – without the church lyrics. It just makes ya’ wanna’ move your feet and shake your seat! Sheila: Who played that “Green Onions” song? Sam: That was Booker T. and the MG’s – they were the Stax “house band”. They played on loads of Stax recordings. Al: I remember. Mom has a Staple Singers record. They were on Stax, right? Sam: Sure were. Al: So who else sang soul music? Sam: There was Johnnie Taylor, Eddie Floyd, Little Milton, The Mar-Keys… Mr. Mac: How about Carla and Rufus? Jean Knight? Sam: And Otis Redding! Mr. Mac: Oh yeah, and Sam & Dave! They were quite a team. I gonna cue up a little “Soul Man” for these youngsters, Musical Director: (put on track two and turn up to a comfortable listening level. Play for about 30 seconds then turn down slowly as the conversation continues) Clifton: Well, it sure isn’t rap, but I like it! It is kinda OLD people music though. Don’t you have the new Geto Boys or Mary J. Blige? Mr. Mac: OLD PERSON MUSIC?! Yeah, it’s OLD person music AND young person music too! In fact, the Geto Boys and Mary J. Blige BOTH sample Stax songs on their records. Lesson 1: Introduction to Soul Music: Script 4 Al: Sample – that’s when someone takes part of an old song and mixes it in with their NEW song.