The history of Jamaican music: Collecting, Selecting, and Mixing Reggae records, Dubs, Drums and Drumming, Peace, Love & Understanding, Keeping my puppy Striker Lee from destroying my records, diverse people, Vegetarian cooking and eating the same, Biking, Camping, harvesting genuine leadership for the United States, and Making Cleveland a better place to live.
Upfull people. Conscious people. Thoughtful people, and Beautiful people. Mostly those who love Reggae music, but also those who are somehow working to make the world a better place."Row harder my partner. We got to reach dry land." -Istan Black
All types of Jamaican music: Reggae, Dancehall, Rock-Steady, Roots, Bashment, Ska, Mento, Dub...
Shottas, Harder They Come, Rockers...
Don't own one.
"THE ROUGH GUIDE TO REGGAE" (Steve Barrow & Peter Dalton)- The best introduction (and essential record-buying guide) on the history and development of Jamaican music. From deep-rooted religious and secular traditions to Jamaican Jazz and Mento, then into Ska, Rock Steady, Reggae, Roots, Dub, Dancehall, Ragga and Bashment, then back again to the New Roots. Essential for the newcomer as well as those of us who have been around a while. "REGGAE ROUTES- THE STORY OF JAMAICAN MUSIC" (Keven O'Brien Chang & Wayne Chen)- Sort of an abridged version of Rough Guide, but unlike it, has the advantage of being written from a native Jamaican rather than British perspective. "REGGAE AND CARIBBEAN MUSIC" (Dave Thompson)- If this book had been done right, it could have been the essential read. Unfortunately, it seems as if the author lost steam somewhere between an overly ambitious concept, conducting the research and the writing. The book is divided into four sections. The first recalls the history of many of the Caribbean Islands' different Carnival traditions, and suffers only from brevity. The major problems arise in Section 2, which offers misinformed biographies on many leading Caribbean singers, including Reggae, Soca and Calypso artists. Even though this section constitutes the bulk of the book, the scope (all Caribbean music) is far too vast for one volume, and too many influential artists are simply overlooked (we read about Eek-A-Mouse, Susan Cadogan and Eddy Grant, but no Alton Ellis??). Furthermore, even the reviews are curious; How could The Heptones' seminal "On Top" from 1968, arguably one of Studio One's best LPs, receive the same rating as the inferior "Better Days" from 10 years later? Section 3 gives brief bios of many Jamaican and Caribbean producers, while Section 4 is a directory of Caribbean 7" singles released in the UK from 1957-1972, and is not nearly as "definitive" as the author would have you believe. "THIS IS REGGAE MUSIC- THE STORY OF JAMAICA'S MUSIC" (Lloyd Bradley)- Another Brit takes a stab at writing the history of Jamaican Music. A decent enough read, but Bradley has zero appreciation or understanding of Dancehall. The book closes Reggae's story with Sleng Teng and the digital revolution of 1985. Yet by the time this book was published in 2000, the Roots resurgance had strongly taken hold. This was a facinating and profound turn of events. Today, Reggae is as vibrant as it's been since the mid 70's. If you're not aware of that, you're simply not paying attention. "SOLID FOUNDATION, AN ORAL HISTORY OF REGGAE" (David Katz)-This is a painstakenly researched book packed with interviews from many of the genre's all-important figures. Its strength is that it allows so many foundation Jamaican artists to recite their own version of the story in their own words. It's weakness is that, like "This is Reggae Music," "Solid Foundation" ends with the digital revolution of '85. Katz informed me that "it has always been my intention to follow up Solid with a book that looks properly at what followed." Indeed, a second volume looking primarily at Dancehall would provide the essential piece of Reggae's history that "Solid Foundation" currently lacks. "WAKE THE TOWN AND TELL THE PEOPLE- DANCEHALL CULTURE IN JAMAICA" (Norman Stolzoff)- Well researched and well written. The best introduction to Jamaican music for those who are particularly interested in Dancehall and/or Jamaica's Sound Systems. Tracks the history of the Jamaican music and recording industry- from the very early Sound Systems to the explosion of DJs in the early 70's, and connects this all to today's Dubplates and boisterous Sound Clashes. This book is especially recommended for those who possess the impudence to say they love Reggae but not Dancehall. It's not that they don't like Dancehall, it's just that they don't understand it. "BORN FI DEAD" (Laurie Gunst)- Not a book about Reggae music, but a fascinating (yet troublesome) look at the formation and spread of the Jamaican drug trade. As Gunst explains, in Kingston in the early 1960's, differences among labor unions fell largely along territorial boundaries, and gangs formed from disputes arising among them. During the 60's and 70's, the leaders of the island's two political parties, Edward Seaga of the Jamaican Labor Party (JLP) and Michael Manley of the People's National Party (PNP), orchestrated tribal warfare amongst the leaders of these ghetto gangs, furnishing them with assault weapons intended to instill fear in their rivals. These politicians simultaneously provided their gunmen with autonomy from legal repercussion of their lawlessness and treacherous killing. Being the case, many supplemented their income by pedaling ganja. The political violence culminated with the election of 1980, when Seaga became prime minister and Manley subsequently retired from politics. These gunmen hence lost their usefulness to the politicians and soon found themselves unemployed, with a resume that could only boast numerous cold-blooded killings. The most notorious gang leaders therefore headed to the streets of Miami and New York, where they could earn steep returns from inexpensive ganja smuggled from back home. Yet it didn't take long to realize that cocaine and crack were an even more lucrative business; on a good day posses might earn up to $50,000 from the sale of crack on a single U.S. street corner. As expected, violence arising from competition both from among and within these posses was fierce. Thousands have been brutally murdered. And if the crack epidemic has been devastating to U.S. inner cities, it's even more so to the ghetto dwellers of downtown Kingston. A must read for anyone interested in Jamaica's volatile political climate.
--FOUNDATION FIGURES----Coxsone Dodd, Duke Reid, Harry Moodie, Prince Buster, Striker Lee, Freddie McKay, John Holt, Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson, Scratch, U Roy, Keith Hudson, Jackie Mittoo, Leroy Sibbles, Don Drummond, Roland Alphonso, Tommy McCook, Lloyd Brevett, Lloyd Knibbs, Slim Smith, Joe Higgs, Big Youth, I Roy, Ken Boothe, Toots, D. Brown, Marcia Griffiths, Bob Andy, Leonard Dillon/ Ethiopians, Gladdy, Joeseph Hill/ Culture, Wailers, Count Ossie, Phyllis Dillon, Pat Kelly, Barry Brown, Lloyd Parks, Big Youth, Ernest Ranglin, Chinna, Leslie Kong, Joe Gibbs & Errol Thompson, Winston Riley, Derrick Harriot, Willi Willaims, Mikey Dread, Niney, Tubby...CURRENT FIGURES- Lutan Fyah, Fanton Mojah, Jah Mason, DYCR, Warrior King, Perfect, Bascom X, Alborosie, Chuck Fenda, Tanya Stephens, Jr. Kelly, Spectacular, Gyptain, Gentleman, Gargamel, Bounty, Anthony B, Tony Rebel, Sizzla, Nanko, Richie Spice, Fatis/ Xterminator, Jammy$, Donovan Germain/ Penthouse, Ricky Trooper, David Rodigan