E-mail me: discordia AT thedarktower.net
AIM: Rule Discordia
m u s i c
When most people think of Jamaican music, they immediately think "Bob Marley." And with good reason--he was undoubtedly the king of reggae. I won't go into details of his life here; there are others that can do that far better than I. For the most detailed information about Bob Marley, read Catch A Fire by Timothy White. It was really interesting to hear Jamaicans talk about Bob Marley--they never called him "Bob" or "Marley" or "Mr. Marley". They always called him by his full professional name, run together as if it were all one word--"Bobmaaahley"--and always, always spoken in a tone of extreme reverence.
I was never a huge fan of reggae myself, but after going to Jamaica I find myself a bit addicted to its upbeatness and its spiritual message. Although I detest most American Christian music, I can listen to a good spiritual reggae song, especially something like Morgan Heritage's song of Psalm 24. I usually listen to super-heavy Japanese dark gothy death metal, but reggae presents a nice change on those days when I just don't feel like hating things! ^_^
Apart from reggae, some other big musical genres in Jamaica are soca and dancehall. These two types are more pop-y and danceable, sort of club-type music. The really big thing in the touristy spots when I was there seemed to be soca or reggae covers of icky American pop songs. Anything by Celine Dion seemed to be fair game.
Some of my favorite Jamaican artists include Bob Marley, Morgan Heritage (4 stars!), Elephant Man, Beenie Man, Sizzla, and Red Rat (OHHH NOOOOO! ^_^).
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