Reggae got Blues
Introduction
No food on my table, no shoes to go on my feet
No food on my table and no shoes to go on my feet,
My children cry for mercy, Lord they ain't got no place to call their own.
The blues arose as both a social protest and a means for expression by the Afro-American slave. The institution of slavery had existed before the trans-Atlantic slave trade, but never before had a race suffered such discrimination; oppression and poverty as the West Africans have endured for the last four hundred years. " The African’s sole purpose in America was, for the most part, to provide the cheapest agricultural labor possible to procure"(Baraka, 3). Previous forms of slavery (Roman and Greek) utilized the intellectual capability of slaves, where as the institution of slavery in the Americas treated slaves like that of property, a master would relate to his slave as, ". if you twist the knob on your radio you expect it to play"(Baraka, 3). This, the non-human view of slaves that existed, viewed Africans as heathens and thought them to be primitive and inferior to the Euro-American. These so-called nonliterate peoples whose traditional histories were passed down generation to generation through oral tradition, were seen as primitive to the highly industrialized Euro-Americans. The profound beliefs and concepts of one culture (African) become absurd and intangible for a complete opposite culture (Euro-American)(Baraka, 7). Not only were the West Africans aliens to the their physical surroundings but aliens to a new "philosophical system"(Baraka, 7). With this in mind the West Africans who survived the western passage across the Atlantic to the Mississippi Delta had found a similar Jamaican Babylon and, " Lord they ain’t got no place to call there own". The blues are an extension of the West African oral tradition through spirituals, worksongs, seculars, and field hollers. From the late eighteen hundreds to the mid twentieth century afro- American’s have been slaves to King Cotton in the form of bound slavery, tenant farming and sharecropping. The endless cycle of debt, has Blues music centered on movement from oppression, and poverty while the protest may not always take serious form. I will examine the music of the Delta blues looking for connections to the mento/early reggae era in religious, social and lastly lyrical context.
RELIGION
African religions usually have a tight fit with a particular culture, language and belief system.
Janis Joplin One of the most colorful music legends of the 1960's was Janis Joplin. Blues legend Janis Lyn Joplin was born on January 19th 1943, the eldest child of parents Seth and Dorothy Joplin. Janis was born and raised in the small Southern petroleum industry town of Port Arthur, Texas. Her father was a canning factory worker, her mother a registrar at a local business college. Her non-aberrational upbringing coupled with the atmosphere of Port Arthur at the time; generally restrictive
Bob Marley Bob marley was born February 6th 1945. He was a Jamaican singer, guitarist, and songwriter, a pioneer of Jamaican reggae music. Probaly Considered one of the greatest artists of the genre, he was the first Jamaican reggae performer to achieve significant international stardom. He was born in Rhoden Hall, Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica . Marley was learning the welding trade in Kingston when he formed his first band group, the Rudeboys, in 1961. The group later became known as the Wailers
s band, The Love Brothers, which played Zulu pop music Mbaqanga. Dube, then started to learn English, and at the same time got involved in singing and writing too. Their resultant album was released under the name Lucky Dube and the Supersoul. While at school he got acquainted with the Rastafarian movement and decided to shift his style to the reggae beat. His first reggae album was a failure with few sales. However, he was not discouraged, nevertheless he decided drop the Supersoul element in his
Jamaica is the origin and home of a "ragged" style of dance music that had its roots in New Orleans R&B. It became known as “reggae”. The word "reggae" was coined around 1960. Compared with rock music, reggae music basically reversed the role of bass and guitar. This music is unique to Jamaica but actually has its foundations in the USA and Africa. As the early 1970s went on, reggae music began to gain international recognition. The late 1970s and early 1980s saw a shift in Jamaican music. As social conditions
Early 1960s, a mix Caribbean musical style of jazz, rhythm-and-blues, soul and calypso surfaced from the cultural setting of the urban underclass of Kingston, Jamaica, then later gained ground in Africa in the 80s. Public opinion about African reggae artists is that, they are either illiterate or abuse illegal substances. While such stereotypes hold true for some, here is a man whose career has broken the barriers of such stereotypes with a career of pre–and post–‘born again.’ I am waiting in a
Bob Marley is the most well-known Reggae musician. He did many great things throughout his life. Bob Marley had messages in his song lyrics and did whatever it took for them to be heard. He also helped and inspired many of his fans, as well as his family. He was also one of the few people that helped start a new genre of music and a new band that sang it. Bob’s songs, and the story behind them, is what effected society. Bob Marley had a tough life but he still managed to become one of the most famous
Late 1970s The 1970s was a revolutionary time for music; new genres were born, legendary artists entered the spotlight; music had a bright future ahead. After the big Rock-era, new genres blossomed from it; Funk, Reggae, Disco, and Punk all made their debuts. From these genres, we got classic songs like ‘Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin),’ ‘Y.M.C.A.,’ and ‘God Save the Queen’ being released throughout the 70s. The Sex Pistols, Sly and the Family Stone, James Brown, and countless other new
Rastafari (Davis and Simon, Reggae Bloodlines, 63). By 1988, Barrett conservatively calculated the membership of the worldwide movement to be 300,000 (2). Forsythe observed that Rastafarianism "represents a growing force wherever sizable West Indian communities are found--in Britain, Canada, the USA and in the Caribbean" (63). There are several possible explanations for the rapid growth of Rastafari. One major factor in its expansion was the emergence in the late 1960s of reggae music, a derivative of
There are several theories about how the word reggae originated. The first theory claims that the word reggae was coined on a 1968 Pyramid dance single, "Do the Reggay (sic)," by Toots and the Maytals. Some believe that the word is originated from Regga, the name of a Bantu-speaking tribe on Lake Tanganyika. Others say that it is a corruption of the word streggae, which is Kingston street slang for prostitute (The Origins of Ska …,n.d.). On the other hand, Bob Marley claimed that the word was
come out of the Jamaican reggae scene. Those familiar with the band feel the warmth of recognition and appreciation when the name comes up in a discussion of reggae music. That warmth and feeling is amplified for anyone who has heard or seen this special trio of singers perform their unique and powerful act in a live performance. For two decades the positive vibrations have been keeping us dancing and feeling the emotions of their spiritual message. Like many other reggae stars of Jamaica, Israel
financial support and occasionally arranged to see his son. It was now the late fifties and jobs were scarce in Jamaica. Bob followed his mother from their home in St. Ann to Trenchtown (West Kingston) to seek employment in the big city. Trenchtown got its name because it was built over a ditch, which drained the sewage of old, Kingston. In Trenchtown Bob spent a lot of his time with his good friend Neville Livingston, who people called by his nickname, Bunny. He began to attend a music class with
A Look Into Kingston Kingston has been the home to many famous reggae artists. Why do so many artists come from Kingston? Does it say something about the message of the music and or the conditions in Kingston that also encompasses trench town? Background of Kingston Kingston is located on the southern side of the island of Jamaica and is protected from the strong northeast trade winds by the vast Blue Mountain ranges. The city of Kingston stretches for more than 50 mi including 10-mi long
in and around both music and culture, effecting the music and the youth listening to it. In the modern era, one of the first big movements in music was jazz. Jazz was an evolution of music that brought together traditional European harmonies with blue notes and improvisation which are usually associated with traditional African music. This music, in its earliest and most basic form, was played and began to become personalized all over the world. However, there are places in the United States
Hey young world, today we are gonna focus on the top five most iconic legends of the twentieth and twenty-first century. Lets start with the king of pop himself, Michael Jackson. “Hee Hee!” Michael had his own sound that was introduced to the world in the 1970’s. With his electric voice, big Afro, and undeniably smooth dance moves he became a star. At the time no one could move like Michael Jackson, but everyone wanted to. From the crotch grabbing to the moonwalk, his dance moves launched him into
It was owing to this kind of attitude and purpose that Blues had such a strong vitality. Originally, Blues only expressed the sentimental and depressive feelings of the black people. But when it stepped into the popular music circle, it began to express some sentimental and sorrowful feelings that all the human beings held. And its early themes concerned about hard life, unfair fate, undone dream and broken love affair of Afro-Americans. And later some new elements were added into it, which was the