Spirit of New Orleans Music

To commemorate the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrica , NPR has posted this web page feature ten local musicians or groups, and ten songs that convey the "spirit, their spunk and their commitment to Crescent City."

Melissa Block talked with local musicologist Nick Spitzer a week after Hurricane Katrina (9/9/205 - 7:32) in a report that features 5 songs that remind Spitzer of his home: 'Do You Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans?' - Louis Armstrong; 'Louisiana 1927' - Aaron Neville; 'When the Levee Breaks' - Memphis Minnie; 'Walking to New Orleans' - Fats Domino; and 'Right Place Wrong Time' - Dr. John.

Here Randy Newman (4:06) talk about the song that has become the anthem of Katrina, "Louisiana 1927" - lyrics here.

Classroom thoughts

• What songs do you associate with your home?
• Songs can capture different emotions. What different feelings about New Orleans arfe captured in these songs?