The Blues: Music of Survival
ArtsCoursesLevelsListen!Music Step 2APublicStep 2Stories August 16, 2018
Four men were walking across a field. They were carrying a body wrapped up in white cloth. Their strong, black hands and arms supported the body as they walked on. Other men, women, and children walked behind. And the tall green trees listened. They listened to the cries of... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 Memphis Slim at the Piano Long black fingers were dancing. They were dancing on the white and black keys of the piano. From the comfort of their homes, people watched on their televisions. And they listened to the blue sounds of the piano. The piano player... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 You don't know soul music if you don't know the Motown sound. Motown is a record company from Detroit Michigan. And one of the greatest Motown artists of all time is Stevie Wonder. Wonder has sold over 100,000,000 records and won 25 Grammy Awards. But he... Read more
Knocking on Heaven’s Door
ArtsCoursesLevelsMovies Step 2AMusic Step 2AProtectedStep 2StoriesStory July 2, 2018 0
ReadOasis Step 2 He came out of nowhere. In 1961, he just appeared in New York City, wanting to do music. And in one short year, he held a record contract in his hand. By the middle of the 1960s, he had reached the top of the pop music... Read more
The Biggest Band (Step 2)
ArtsCoursesLevelsListen!Music Step 2AProtectedStep 2Stories June 1, 2018 1
By Maria Sonora ReadOasis Step 2 Imagine By Diego Torres Silvestre (Creative Commons) It was a hot August night in New York City, 1965. Two thousand policemen were in charge of security. They watched carefully as 55,000 fans filled Shea Stadium. But this was not for a baseball... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 (Part 1) It was January 1961. In the cold north of Minnesota, a young man of 19 years packed his bags. He was going to New York City. By car, the trip would take over 18 hours. And he was travelling by his thumb. In other... Read more
Lady Sings the Blues
ArtsCoursesLevelsMovies Step 2BMusic Step 2AProtectedStep 2StoriesTop Picks May 17, 2018 1
ReadOasis Step 2 (Part 1) Southern trees bear strange fruit Blood on the leaves and blood at the root Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees These sad words open the song “Strange Fruit.” The song was written by Abel Meeropol, and... Read more
ReadOasis Step 2 Willie Nelson's Guitar "Trigger" Little Willie was born into hard times. On October 29, 1929, the American economy crashed. It was called Black Tuesday. Many people lost all their money. By Willie’s day of birth in 1933, around 25% of Americans had lost their jobs. People... Read more
Woodstock: A Symbol of the 1960s (Step 2)
ArtsCoursesLevelsListen!Music Step 2AProtectedStep 2Stories July 14, 2015 0
ReadOasis Step 2 The middle of August marks an important moment in popular music history. In 1969, about 2,500 people lived in Bethel, New York. But that summer, there were big ideas for that small town. Concert promoters planned to hold a music festival on a local farm. They... Read more
Drifting Cowboy: Hank Williams (Step 2)
ArtsCoursesLevelsListen!Music Step 2AProtectedStep 2Stories October 14, 2012 0
By Maria Sonora ReadOasis Step 2 (Part 2) Hank was coughing painfully as they took to the road. . . Time on the road like this was often hard, but for Hank Williams life was often hard. He was born into hard times. When he was just six, in... Read more