Bob Marley did not invent reggae. Killer Opening Songs thought it necessary to kick off his regular column by making that specific point. He understands that this revelation could come as a surprise to those for whom the 'Legend' album by the late Jamaican musician has become one of the obligatory soundtracks at dinner parties (the other ones being 'Dummy' by Portishead and 'Buena Vista Social Club'). K.O.S. feels he ought to give credit where credit is due and other reggae stars deserve as much as or even more recognition than the creator of 'No Woman, No Cry'.
Which is why K.O.S. is bringing The Congos to the lounge this week.
Which is why K.O.S. is bringing The Congos to the lounge this week.
This trio formed in the 70s under the tutelage of the legendary reggae and dub star Lee 'Scratch' Perry. In fact it was Perry himself who oversaw the production of 'Heart of the Congos', the Congos' classic 1977 album wherefrom the Killer Opening Song is taken tonight.
One of the distinctive elements The Congos had from the very beginning was Cedric Myton's falsetto, a mellow pitch that complemented the band's strong musical offering. And as you will be able to see for yourselves tonight, despite being in his sixties the performer has kept his mettle.
Nobody knows for sure where the word reggae came from. It is thought (according to wikipedia) that it first appeared on a record by The Maytals in their 1968 hit, 'Do the Reggay', but it is not certain. What is certain, though, is that by the end of the 1960s reggae had been incorporated into Jamaica's musical canon alongside ska and rocksteady. In fact many people are divided as to whether the precursor of reggae was Theophilius Beckford's 'Easy Snapping' back in 1959. Others, on the other hand, believe that this slow, harmonic number gave birth to ska.
What should not be doutbted, though, is the influence that reggae has had over popular music since its creation. This is a genre that has touched upon issues like politics, religion, love, poverty and social injustice. And 'Fisherman' fits into this latter category. The first two stanzas are self-explanatory: 'Row fisherman row/keep on rowing your bouat/lots of hungry belly pickney they a shore, millions of them living in a bumbo hut/in a little hole sea-port town/three kids on the floor/and another one to come make four'.
One of the main characteristics of reggae singers is that they sing in 'patois', a variant of English commonly found in the Caribbean (I believe that the same linguistic phenomenon exists in Francophone countries in the same area). This makes it hard not only for other English speakers to understand but also for those of us for whom English is a second language. However, far from undermining the music, 'patois' enhances it with its singsong sound and its grammatical alterations.
Shortly after 'Heart of the Congos ' came out a dispute between The Congos and Perry put paid to any future collaboration. The trio released a few more records but they never achieved the success of their 1977 outing. In the mid 90s The Congos came back together and put out several albums. I hope you enjoy tonight's clip. Rastafari!
One of the distinctive elements The Congos had from the very beginning was Cedric Myton's falsetto, a mellow pitch that complemented the band's strong musical offering. And as you will be able to see for yourselves tonight, despite being in his sixties the performer has kept his mettle.
Nobody knows for sure where the word reggae came from. It is thought (according to wikipedia) that it first appeared on a record by The Maytals in their 1968 hit, 'Do the Reggay', but it is not certain. What is certain, though, is that by the end of the 1960s reggae had been incorporated into Jamaica's musical canon alongside ska and rocksteady. In fact many people are divided as to whether the precursor of reggae was Theophilius Beckford's 'Easy Snapping' back in 1959. Others, on the other hand, believe that this slow, harmonic number gave birth to ska.
What should not be doutbted, though, is the influence that reggae has had over popular music since its creation. This is a genre that has touched upon issues like politics, religion, love, poverty and social injustice. And 'Fisherman' fits into this latter category. The first two stanzas are self-explanatory: 'Row fisherman row/keep on rowing your bouat/lots of hungry belly pickney they a shore, millions of them living in a bumbo hut/in a little hole sea-port town/three kids on the floor/and another one to come make four'.
One of the main characteristics of reggae singers is that they sing in 'patois', a variant of English commonly found in the Caribbean (I believe that the same linguistic phenomenon exists in Francophone countries in the same area). This makes it hard not only for other English speakers to understand but also for those of us for whom English is a second language. However, far from undermining the music, 'patois' enhances it with its singsong sound and its grammatical alterations.
Shortly after 'Heart of the Congos ' came out a dispute between The Congos and Perry put paid to any future collaboration. The trio released a few more records but they never achieved the success of their 1977 outing. In the mid 90s The Congos came back together and put out several albums. I hope you enjoy tonight's clip. Rastafari!
Note: This post has been several months in the making. The reason why it had not seen the light until tonight is that the clip you are about to see or have seen, has been removed from youtube many times. At present the PRS (Performing Rights Society) has a funny brawl going on with google (remember that google bought youtube a couple of years ago) and therefore many clips are not available for UK users. Apologies if you can't see the video and I would really appreciate it if you let me know. Many thanks.
Next post: April, Poetry Month, to be published on Thursday 30th April, 11:59pm
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