Cultural Artifact Analysis School of Nursing and Health Sciences, Capella University HUM-FPX1150: Cultural Understanding in a Global World
Introduction A cultural artifact can be described and expressed through multiple facets. Cultural artifacts can include, but are not to be limited to, sculptures, musical selections, art work, paintings, murals, and poems. The artifact chosen for this assessment is a song named Green Onions. Just by the name itself, it was obvious that there had to be more meaning behind it, as it is not considered the most profound or thought-provoking titles. This paper will describe, discover, interpret and connect with the aspects of this musical working, dive deeper into the historical stamp it left within the community and genre it was written in, as well as highlight the before and after comparison in understanding from the writer's point of view. Reaction At first, listening to this musical selection was, in laymen's terms, "cool". As soon as the song started, a foot started to tap to the rhythm of organ and the simple drum beat and the thought was, "what kind of organ was this man playing?" It also sparked intrigue because my spouse plays the organ and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Musical Arts and I wondered if he ever had to study on this group or song before. When the guitar came in, I became a bit confused about which genre or genres this song identified with; surely it had to be a mix because the organ gave blues and bass gave soul and blues, while the guitar alluded to rock. I never heard all those genres mixed on an instrumental before. After another listen, I recognized that I had heard this song and its rifts in movies, and in passing but never knew it was so renowned. I got excited to investigate why it was called Green Onions (if there was any reason at all), what genre it fell under, what was going on in history around the time it was written; as well as discovering the musicians who came together to create the song.
Describe and Discover "Green Onions" is a legendary hit lasting 2 minutes and 55 seconds and was released in 1962 by Stax Records. It was recorded, by accident, by three African American men and one Caucasian who formed a collective called Booker T. and the MGs. The lead and Hammond M3 organist is Booker Taliaferro Jones Jr., or Booker T. Jones, the bass player is Lewie Steinberg and was later replaced by Donald "Duck" Dunn, the drummer is Al Jackson, and on guitar is Steve Cropper. "MGs" stood for Memphis Group, although later interviews with Steve Cropper reveal the MG inspiration was due to a MG motor car but to avoid legal issues, they denounced the MG car reference (Simpson, 2019). After Steinberg was replaced by Dunn, the group had two black and two white musicians - in the 60s. This racial mixture represented the hope of unity and integration in a highly segregated era of history (Britannica, 2020). Booker T. Jones, in a The Guardianinterview, stated that this collective group defied odds by integrating races before a civil rights movement and made it through tough reminders of the state of society, like separate eating (Simpson, 2019). These were all young musicians in their 20s, except for Booker T. who was only 17 years old when the record was released. Green Onions got its name after slightly adjusting the first thought, which was Funky Onions; according to Stax Records executive Jim Stewart's sister, Funky may have been mistaken and offensive, so Funky was replaced with Green (Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum, 2014; Simpson, 2019). Interpret As one listens to Green Onions, there are short and long articulations noted even before the melody makes its debut. The organ and bass lay a smooth and rhythmic foundation, and when the guitar enters it accents and provides an edge that creates an undeniable contrast. The drum was a clean and precise metronome that commanded the tap of a foot and a bopping of the
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