Re: Reggae's Favorite "One-Liners"??

Date: Sat, 21 Jun 2003 15:33:34 +1000
Newsgroups: rec.music.reggae
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i am someone who constantly checks new dancehall, bashment and reggae for
new tunes to buy and get excited about - to say however that reggae is as
strong as ever is false, and thats by any measure of 'strong' you care to
nominate - creativity, activity, popularity. i wish it were not so and also
prefer to think we are on an upswing in the cycle (again).
much as i love some modern roots music like you jesse - in your heart of
hearts you surely realise that the best of it either harks back to the 70s
or is a straight out copy - the originality/creativity just aint so strong.
there is probably nothing wrong with this - every major music has a period
of explosive creativity and subsequent increase, and then decline, in
popularity - see hip hop and yes even jazz. and we havent even got to the
overpowering influence of us music on dancehall - surely if ja music was as
strong as you suggest it would be less likely to incorporate us influences?
shit in the 70s there was nothing to touch the music in reggae - it was
almost completely on its own. if that makes me a purist, fine, cause i sure
hate hip hop, jungle or r & b with my reggae.
like robert i've been into this thing for so long now that i know it is with
me until death and i dont have a problem accepting that the best is probably
behind us but i will continue to get excited about some new records and
always encourage others to take the music forward.
with reference to the dancehall point - while it is true that the vast
majority of the music is/was built for the dancehall that is still a
generalisation that requires a bit more thought. sight the familyman logic
from people funny boy that will always stay in my mind (my recollection, not
a quote) - like most day to day things in kingston, out of sheer necessity,
dancehall music is built for a purpose - to make people dance - that is its
function, no more. much of the music from the ja country on the other hand
exists for no other reason than for its own beauty (art?). well of course
this city/country divide is probably not so acute now but you see the point.
btw the collectors/trainspotters 'angle' is well played out
mark
http://www.firecorner.com/
in article email-address-deleted, Jesse I at email-address-deleted
wrote on 21/6/03 12:25 PM:
>
>
> Robert Schoenfeld wrote:
>>
>> "Jesse I" <email-address-deleted> wrote in message
>> news:email-address-deleted...
>>
>>> notice I said "not *just* collectors and trainspotters" robert? do you
>>> think this newsgroup should consist of history only? I have no problem
>>> with historical discussion - far from it - but I feel that reggae music
>>> is as strong as ever, and modern reggae often seems to get forgotten
>>> here. Thus, people like JJerfree make very valuable contributions to
>>> this group. forward ever, backward never!
>>
>> Jesse:
>> I may be a bit touchy on this topic since admittedly my interest is for the
>> traditional side of the music. However, you may be a bit overly sensitive
>> in thinking that modern reggae is forgotten here. IMO the two are not
>> mutually exclusive and I do not believe that Culture has to die for Sean
>> Paul to live and I believe that both can coexist. Nor do I take issue with
>> your point on JJerfree's participation. The group should be open and
>> comfortable for all.
>>
>> It is not a matter of forward ever, backward never. Modern reggae only
>> exists at all because it comes from somewhere. It did not and does not
>> spring full-blown from empty space. Jamaican artists, even the most modern,
>> all draw from a long tradition that began before most of us were even born.
>> Their ideas, their lyrics and their styles owe a real debt to history and if
>> we overlook that history we deny who we are -- as artists, musicians or even
>> just as listeners.
>
> really? and here I was thinking that the Satta riddim was brand new
> when Capleton voiced "Raggy Road" on it back in 1996! come on Robert,
> you're being pretty patronising. You've should have seen my radio
> playlists and seen your excellent Tenors release being played on the
> same show as tunes from the likes of Tenor Saw and Turbulence... I love
> and appreciate all eras of the music, and never wish to stop learning
> about them. You personally are a great source of knowledge on the music,
> and your contributions are very much appreciated. I was simply trying
> express my feeling that the current music of Jamaica is just as valid
> and interesting as it ever has been. You're right, it isn't a matter of
> "forward ever, backward never"; that was just a flippant way to end my
> post. But it's also not "forward never, backwards always" as a lot of
> RMR partipants seem to think. We just need a balance, which is why I
> originally wrote "we need more posts from selectors such as yourself
> [meaning JJerfree] and not just collectors and trainspotters" - the line
> that seems to have unnessarily put you on the defensive.
>
> At the risk of coming accross as patronising as you did above, reggae
> music is DANCEHALL music. It is music that was originally created with
> soundsystem dances in mind, and this is still the case today. The
> perspective of the soundsystem selector is just as important to this
> group as the perspective of the serious collector.
>
>> Modern reggae is riddim driven. Taditional reggae is less so. Both are
>> valid and I am not saying (and have never said) that one is all good or the
>> other is all bad. I am merely making the same point the same point that
>> Marley did: to know who you are one must know where you are coming from.
>> The rest of Marley's lyric stanza reads:
> <snip>
>
> I know that song mate. Because I check for all eras of reggae music,
> like any good selector. I think it would be safe to say that JJerfree
> knows his reggae history as well - regardless of whether or not he likes
> Ward 21.
>
> To reiterate in closing: I was never suggesting there is too much
> historical discussion in this group (if I didn't appreciate it I would
> read the dancehallreggae.com message board instead). I was simply trying
> to say there isn't always enough discussion of modern reggae, which is
> why I'd hate to see someone like JJerfree leave the group.
>
> respect,