Music to Keep You Cool: Reggae

Reggae is a style of music that is perfect for hot summer days. It’s catchy, upbeat, and will make you want to get up and dance. Check out our playlist of the best reggae songs to keep you cool all summer long.

Reggae’s Rise to Prominence

Reggae music has its origins in the ska and rocksteady styles of the late 1960s. The style is characterized by a strong bass line, drums, and guitar. The lyrics are often about social issues, love, and religion. Reggae became popular in the 1970s with the release of several hit songs.

The sound of reggae

Reggae is a style of music that developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. It is a fusion of African and Caribbean music. The music is typically characterized by a strong bass line, drums, and guitars. The lyrics are often political or religious in nature.

Reggae became popular in the United Kingdom in the 1970s, and it has remained popular ever since. It has also gained popularity in other parts of the world, such as the United States and Australia.

There are many different subgenres of reggae, including ska, rocksteady, dub, and roots reggae. Reggae fusion is a recent subgenre that combines elements of reggae with other genres, such as hip hop, pop, and R&B.

The look of reggae

Reggae’s fashion consists of loose, brightly colored shirts and pants worn with a Rastacap or do-rag;’sandals or sneakers are also common footwear. The style is most commonly associated with Rastafarians, who wear it as a symbol of their religion. The color of clothing is often symbolic, with green representing the lush vegetation of Jamaica and red, gold, and black symbolizing the pan-African flag.

The Birth of Reggae

Reggae is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term reggae was first used to describe this new style of music in 1968. Reggae is rooted in the ska and rocksteady genre of Jamaican music. Ska and rocksteady were popular in the 1960s. Reggae is characterized by a 4/4 time signature, a strong rhythmic groove, and accents on the off-beat.

The early days of reggae

The early days of reggae were influenced by many factors, including the island’s native music, African music brought over by slaves, American R&B and rock ‘n’ roll, as well as the ska and mento genres. Reggae’s roots are in ska and rocksteady – two popular Jamaican genres that emerged in the late 1950s. Ska was a fast, rhythmic style that relied heavily on the offbeat, while rocksteady was its slower, more soulful counterpart.

The rise of ska

The word ska is said to come from a Jamaican Patois creole word for “fast” or “quick”. Ska evolved from mento and calypso music, and developed in JAmaica in the late 1950s. At the time, there were three main types of music in Jamaica: mento, gospel, and rhythm & blues. Ska was a happy medium between all three genres, and quickly became popular.

Ska is characterized by its offbeat (or skank) guitar strumming, walking bass lines, and horns. The horns were originally played by saxophones, but later ska bands incorporated trombones and trumpets as well. The first ska song is said to be “Real Rock” by Clement “Coxsone” Dodd’s band the Skatalites.

The rise of ska coincided with the independence of Jamaica from Britain in 1962. Jamaican nationalism was at an all-time high, and ska became the soundtrack to this nationalist movement. Jamaicans who had migrated to Britain also brought ska with them, leading to the spread of the genre throughout the world.

The birth of rocksteady

By 1966, ska had lost ground to a new musical phenomenon that would soon conquer the island: rocksteady. Rocksteady was slower than ska and more soulful, drawing on American R&B, JA jazz, and indigenous folk music. The new style was characterized by a laid-back, crooning vocal delivery and often featured Girl Groups backed by male vocal harmony groups. The first major hit of the rocksteady era was Alton Ellis’ “I’m Still in Love With You Girl” in 1966. The song’s success spurred a series of similar releases, including versions by The Techniques, The Paragons, and Ken Boothe.

The Golden Age of Reggae

The 1970s were the golden age of reggae, with the genre’s popularity skyrocketing thanks to the international success of Bob Marley and the Wailers. Reggae enjoyed a brief moment in the mainstream spotlight, but the genre has continued to endure and evolve in the decades since. Let’s take a look at the history of reggae and some of its most iconic artists.

The golden age of reggae

The golden age of reggae was the late 1960s to early 1980s. This period saw the development of roots reggae, dub and rocksteady – all subgenres that remain popular today. It was also a time when many iconic artists, such as Bob Marley and Dennis Brown, rose to prominence.

If you’re looking for some classic reggae tunes to keep you cool this summer, check out our list of 10 essential tracks from the golden age of reggae.

The birth of dub

The first dub tracks were adaptations of existing reggae tracks where the instrumental portion was isolated and repeated for the purpose of toasting, or chatting, over the rhythm. This style of toasting developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s in the dancehalls of Jamaica. Key players in the development of dub were producers like Lee “Scratch” Perry and King Tubby. Perry’s studio experiments would go on to shape not only dub, but also other genres like techno and hip hop.

The Modern Age of Reggae

Reggae is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The style is characterized by a strong bass line, guitar chords, and drum patterns. Reggae is often associated with the Rastafari movement, which is a religious and political movement that originated in Jamaica in the 1930s. The Rastafari movement promotes the spiritual use of cannabis and the use of dreadlocks.

The modern age of reggae

The modern age of reggae began in the late 1960s. This was when the music started to reach a wider audience outside of its native Jamaica. The first wave of reggae artists to achieve international fame were Bob Marley and the Wailers, Jimmy Cliff, and Desmond Dekker.

In the 1970s, reggae became more popular in the UK with the rise of dub and roots reggae. Artists such as Linton Kwesi Johnson and Aswad became popular in the British mainstream. Reggae also began to influence other genres of music, such as punk and 2-Tone.

In the 1980s, dancehall became the dominant form of Jamaican popular music. Artists such as Yellowman, Shabba Ranks, and Beenie Man achieved international success. Since then, reggae has continued to evolve, incorporating elements of electronic music and rap.

The rise of dancehall

The modern age of reggae began in the late 1970s with the rise of dancehall. This new style was faster, more energetic and often sexually explicit, and it quickly gained popularity in Jamaica. As the popularity of disco waned in the early 1980s, Dancehall became the dominant form of Jamaican music.

Dancehall is characterized by its own unique style of drumming, which is essential to understanding the sound. The basic rhythm is a strict two-beat pattern, played on a kick drum and snare drum. This foundation is then embellished with other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, hi-hats and cymbals. The result is an infectious groove that is perfect for dancing.

The lyrics of Dancehall songs are often raunchy and explicit, dealing with subjects like sex, violence and drugs. They are also often very political, calling out corrupt leaders and celebrating the struggles of the Jamaican people. Despite (or perhaps because of) its controversial lyrics, Dancehall has remained popular both in Jamaica and around the world.

In recent years, Dancehall has been increasingly influenced by American hip-hop and R&B. This has led to a new subgenre called ‘Rapso’, which combines elements of both genres. As Rapso grows in popularity, it will be interesting to see how it affects the sound of Dancehall music in the future.