Jamaican Ska

Jamaican Ska is another music genre which emanated out of Jamaica during the late 1950s to early 1960s. Jamaica Ska is precursor to Rocksteady another popular Jamaican music genre. Rooted in Mento, American jazz and R&B Jamaica Ska gain recognition across the international music fraternity rapidly.

Jamaica Ska music is played with a combination of many instruments. The guitar, bass guitar, trumpet, trombone, saxophone, piano, drums and organ are just some of the musical instruments used. The Jamaica Ska music is quite identifiable by the walking bass line on the offbeat. Jamaica Ska first and foremost was dance music in its inception. The music was then exported via immigrants to the U.K first before spreading throughout the world. Jamaica Ska was also known as blue beet music in the U.K during those years.

Although Jamaica Ska is dance music the first set of songs was heavily rooted in religious lyrics. Then there were nursery rhymes types of lyrics with a touch of Jamaican dialect. The third lyrics type was the rude boy and political which was then reflecting the social fabric of Jamaica.

By the early 1960s Jamaica Ska gave way to Rocksteady which is much slower rhythmically. However, around 1979 Ska rose again but this time out of England and spreading to other European countries and Australia. The third wave was when Jamaica Ska music had risen again during the 1990s engulfing many other countries.