Jamaican music

Jamaican music has many influences from various kinds of music from many countries such as Flk music, R&B from USA or Calypso and soca from Caribbean islands (Trinidad and Tobago), Jazz from New Orleans, Ska, Dub, as well as Ska, and Reggae music especially popular through Bob Marley.

Folk music became popular around the early 1900. Around same time Jamaica produced many notable jazz musicians.

During 1980s ragga and music was popular in Jamaica. Dancehall is more functional and had a quickstep with MCs. As influenced by ragga, technology influenced dancehall music.  Dancehall music has criticized by international organizations and indivisuals   for its violent lyrics.

Dancehall music seems to resurgent within the late 2000’s music scene with such as Christina Aguilera,’s “Woohoo”, Robyn’s “Dancehall Queen” and Swan Fyahbwoy.

In the late 1950s Ska was the mainstream music genre in Jamaica. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American Jazz and R&B.

After this reggae music emerged as American R&B in the late 1960s. It’s including internationally successful artists such as Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bonny Wailer.

Reggae and ska had a big influence on British punk rock and new wave bands on the 1970s.

By 1973, Dub music had emerged as a distinct reggae genre. After ths reggae fusion emerged as a mainstream in the late 1990s.

Nuyorican Soul

Nuyorican stands for Puerto Rican people from New York. This term was used around 1960 which means after The Cold War. Many Nuyoricans are second-and third-generation Puerto Rican Americans whose parents or grandparents arrived in the New York metropolitan area during the Great Migration.

The music style of Nuyorican soul is often Latin, Salsa, and sometimes also has an element of R&B and Jazz.

As one of examples Ray Baretto contributed to a fusion of many kinds of music such as R&B, Rock, Salsa and Jazz. He is a conga player and well known for his performance of unique style.

Tito Puente (1923-2000) is credited as “El Rey de los Timbales” (the king of timbales) and “the king of Latin music” as he pioneered the Mambo and Salsa sound which kept his career going for 50 years. He was from New York and he was gifted with his great talent of music. He played timbales, vibraphone, keyboard, and contributed to the development of Latin Jazz and Salsa music. The song called “Oye Como Va” and the album “Dance Mania” is well known as one of his biggest hits of all time.

The main record labels of Nuyorican soul are Fania, Tico, and Salsoul. They are all New York based record labels. Ray Barreto and Tito Puente had contracts with Tico.

Punk and Postmodernism

You can find the origin of punk rock in various places, you can even dates back to post-World WarⅡwhich means 1950s when the “do-it-yourself” attitude of the Skiffle craze. (Skiffle is a Jazz style music combining the element of folk music that was popular in 1950s Britain).

What first formed the punk rock was a garage bands of 60s such as Sonics and Wailers and they often had limited musical skill. Following these movement, British Invasion took place in Britain in the mid 60s. British Invasion is a movement that British music had overtaken America’s music scene in the mid 60s.

Besides those garage bands of the 1960s, it is also notable that aggressive instrumentation of The Who and the snotty attitude of the early Rolling Stones, dissonant style of The Velvet Underground, the sexuality, political texts and violent style of Detroit bands, they had all inspired the new era of punk rock.

Also Nirvana, as emerged as a Grunge band in the early 90s and still popular today, can be traced back to the movement stated above. Slightly after those who were called Grunge bands, what is called “pop punk” bands such as Green Day and Offspring came out in the music scene as a new style of punk rock.