MUSIC102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 28: Haile Selassie, Psalm 137, Afrocentrism
27 Jun 2018
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Nov. 6/17
JAMAICA: A CULTURAL HISTORY OF REGGAE
- See map on slide
- Ex-British colony (1655-1962), large percentage of enslaved Africans
- Reggae, ska, dub is music of the underclass
- Trench Town, Kingston, Jamaica
- Slum in Kingston, see pic on slide
- One of the places of origin of reggae
- Ska, reggae, dub are all connected to technology (recording industry)
Ska
- 1950s-60s
- Ex: “Guns of Navarone” by The Skatalites (1965)
- Navarone - Greece
- The Skatalites heard group of burly men singing, Greek accompaniment from the
movie “Guns of Navarone”
- What do you hear: mouth percussion, percussion, brass instruments, groovy
bass line
- What to hear: brass instruments (not perfect), mouth percussion, off-beats, bass
on the beat. Extended riff on popular culture, homegrown. Punch, up-tempo,
energetic.
- Not about social commentary/story (no lyrics), about the sounds (riffs)
- Using melody learned on the record, the urbaness of it, roughness is charm of
the music
- Evident that there wasn’t a lot of resources behind it
- Shows people in this area were listening to global pop culture just like
everyone else
- Ska and Roots Reggae both have elements of African-based musical practices
- Rhythmic complexity, call and response
- In dialogue with technology and media, and elements of Anglo-American musical
practices
- Harmony, instrumentation
- Riff on technology that still maintains elements of Afro-Jamaican music
Marcus Garvey (1887-1940)
- Active in early 20th century
- Educated, writer, political organizer, military commander
- “Back to Africa”
- Recognition of where people came from (almost romanticizing), being inspired by
your roots
- If we can get back there, we can create a community again
- Based in racist roots, Thomas Jefferson also believed in it
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Ex-british colony (1655-1962), large percentage of enslaved africans. Reggae, ska, dub is music of the underclass. Slum in kingston, see pic on slide. One of the places of origin of reggae. Ska, reggae, dub are all connected to technology (recording industry) Ex: guns of navarone by the skatalites (1965) The skatalites heard group of burly men singing, greek accompaniment from the movie guns of navarone . What do you hear: mouth percussion, percussion, brass instruments, groovy bass line. What to hear: brass instruments (not perfect), mouth percussion, off-beats, bass on the beat. Not about social commentary/story (no lyrics), about the sounds (riffs) Using melody learned on the record, the urbaness of it, roughness is charm of the music. Evident that there wasn"t a lot of resources behind it. Shows people in this area were listening to global pop culture just like everyone else. Ska and roots reggae both have elements of african-based musical practices.
