It is unclear whether Jamaicans like to dance because the island is always full of such great music or if they feel they need to create such spectacular beats so they can dance but one thing is certain, the two go hand in hand. Wherever you go in Jamaica, music fills the air. You will also notice that it’s quite diverse, as every style has been created from different influences, time periods, events, etc.
Religious Music
Kumina is a popular religious type of music created by Jamaicans who are believed to have come from the Congo. This distinctive drumming style is not one you are likely to forget once you hear it for the first time. Kumina had a strong influence on reggae, ska and rocksteady.
When rastafari spread into Jamaica in the 1960s, the music scene was transformed, adding in this distinctive Kumina drumming to offer music that remains popular today.
Types of Music
Depending on where you travel in Jamaica, you will be gifted the pleasure of hearing different types of music. While some of these musical styles listed are not necessarily very popular today, they are still very important to the development of Jamaican music.
- Folk – 1907 was an important year for Jamaican folk music. Jamaica Song and Story by Walter Jekyll was published. This collection was made up for four parts being Dancing Tunes, Ring Tunes, Digging Sings and Anancy Stories. Every section had stories, melodies and songs but some of the collection was disputed by Dr. Olive Levin, decades later in the 1970s. She said it was well researched but argued errors. The most notable Jamaican folk songs are Jamaica Farewell and Linstead Market.
- Mento – Stanley Motto brought a new flavor of music to Jamaica in the 1950s. He combined folk with Trinidadian calypso, one of the most well-known songs from this era is Day-O. Mento bands were quite a craze in Jamaica for a brief time and some of the great artists like George Moxey and Count Lasher are still highly respected today.
- Jazz – The Alpha School located in Kingston is partially responsible for the abundance of fantastic jazz musicians that Jamaica has to offer. The island’s brass band tradition also increased opportunities for musicians to work. Unfortunately, many of the Jamaican jazz artists left the island to settle in the United States and London where they could actually make a living with their music.
- Ska – Prior to the birth of reggae and rocksteady, ska was the preferred musical choice in Jamaica in the 1950s. Ska is a unique blend of rhythm and blues, jazz, calypso and mento to create a very upbeat rhythm.
- Rocksteady – By the 1960s, groups like The Clarendonians and The Wailers were dominating the charts with this dance style music. Although the rhythm was much slower than ska, it was still widely accepted. The bass is prominent and bass, electric guitar and keyboards were used more often than horns.
- Reggae – Rocksteady made the transformation into reggae in the 1970s and remains one of the most popular types of music today, not just in Jamaica but around the world. Reggae accents the off beat and typically has a slower rhythm than both rocksteady and ska. Of course, the most well-known masters of reggae who have made this type of music what is today are Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh.
- Ragga and Dancehall – While ragga uses sequenced tracks and computerized beats, dancehall’s lyrics tended to focus on more carefree issues rather than using spiritual and political influences to create more light-hearted songs.
Music has always played an important role in the Jamaican population as far back as when the slaves were working in the cane and coffee fields. Today, if you hear a drum beat, you can be sure that singing and dancing will be close to follow.