Reggae


Origins

  • Reggae's origins include:
    • Traditional African and Caribbean music.
    • American rhythm and blues.
    • Jamaican ska and rocksteady.
  • 1960s radio stations from the mainland were playing R&B
  • Recoding studios & record labels first sprung up
  • PA systems used in the local dances

Politics and Religion

  • Political turmoil in Jamaica.
  • Extreme poverty – Kingston.
  • Rastafarianism and Haille Sallasie.

Early Reggae

Early forms of reggae were:

  • Ska: up tempo, use of horns for the melodic lines.
  • Rocksteady: slower tempo, bass, guitars, organ.
  • The word reggae may have been first used by the vocal group the Maytals, in the title of their 1968 rocksteady hit 'Do the Reggay'.

Key Groups

  • Trojan & Island labels (The Ethiopians)
  • Maytals


Musical Features

  • A standard drum kit is generally used but the snare drum is often tuned very high to give it a timbale-type sound.
  • An emphasis on beat three is in all reggae drumbeats.
  • Always played in 4/4 time or swing time.
  • Simple harmony, sometimes a whole song will have no more than one or two chords.
  • Bass sound heavy, equalized so the upper frequencies are removed and the lower frequencies emphasised.
  • Guitar plays the chords on beats two and four: skank.
  • Hammond organ-style sound is used to play chords with a choppy feel.

International Reggae

  • International sound more palatable.
  • Better production.
  • Addition of strings.
  • Less political.

Key Groups

  • Bob Marley and the Wailers.

 

Other styles - 1970-80s

  • Lovers Rock – influenced by soulful lyrics and harmonies (Marie Pierre).
  • Dub – B side instrumentals with bass heavy mix and use of reverb and delay (Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry).
  • Dancehall – toasting and it’s influence on rap, ragga (Ragga Twins1990s).
  • Roots Reggae – spiritual (Peter Tosh).
  • British Reggae and the Punk scene (The Clash, The Police).