Make Your Own Dub

There is a fun little "dub selector" over at Infinite Wheel. You start by selecting a shape (heart, star, wheel, etc.), which then loads up a screen with several continuously looping riddims. You then run you mouse over the various other shapes moving around to add sounds and effects to the dub.

The different shapes that you initially select correspond to a different set of backing riddims and breaks. Go give it a try!

"Stir It Up" Live in Studio

Here's a very nice clip of Bob Marley doing his thing. It is not clear what year this was filmed, but the song "Stir It Up" first appeared on Catch A Fire (1973). From the looks of Bob Marley's hair, this must have been filmed around the same time the album photo for Catch A Fire was taken.

Scratch Photo Gallery

There is a very cool photo gallery over at Scratch. Many vintage photos of famous (or soon-to-be famous) artists, including a very young Bob Marley (left):



Check it out, then give the Scratch streaming radio a listen!

Streaming Reggae Guide

There is fairly comprehensive list of streaming reggae and dub over at theStreamGuide. There are many links for dub and dancehall radios, such as BigUpRadio and Bigvibez.

Check out Scratch and Rastamusic for a wide variety of roots and modern Reggae, as well as rootsrockreggae for older reggae, ska, and even Jamaican oldies from the 60's.

Pandora Podcast: A Brief History of Reggae

In Episode 8 of the Pandora Podcast, the Soul Captives take us on a little trip through the history of early ska, reggae, rocksteady, and dub. Not only can the podcast be either downloaded or streamed, there are also various clips available from the different periods of Jamaican music. From the web page:

In episode eight, the Soul Captives show host Kevin Seal how to bubble and skank. They lay out the differences between bluebeat, ska, rocksteady, early reggae, roots reggae, and dub, while providing historical context. Guitarist and Pandora engineer Vic Wong mixes a live dub session for us, after he and organist (and pianist and Pandora music analyst) Ray Jacildo, drummer Jayme Arredondo, and bassist Mark Allen-Piccolo (pictured) perform in a variety of Jamaican rhythmic feels.

A Glimpse Into the Black Ark

Junior Murvin filling a pipe with ganja, the Heptones practicing a harmony, and Lee "Scratch" Perry clapping along behind the mixing board... it's all in this fantastic video clip from the film "Roots Rock Reggae - Inside the Jamaican Music Scene" (1977). According to this blog, this is an unreleased dub song that was recorded on the spot for the camera and video crews, whilst other sources claim that this performance was the reaction to hearing the news of an assassination attempt on Bob Marley's life.

A key highlight is about halfway through the clip... happy with the recording of the riddim track, Scratch flashes the Heptones a smile and proclaims "that's rasta!"

Reggae Lunch

The Reggae Lunch is a blog run by Edwin W. Lawrence (a.k.a. Doctor Tuna), Professor of Forensics at UVM. Although his radio show dates back to the early 80's, he has been uploading MP3 recordings of his show on a regular basis.

Also included is a brief artist list, as well as other reggae information, links, videos, and MP3s. Check it out!

Two Sevens Clash

First, a little historical background: Jamaica attained its independence from England in 1962. By the end of the decade -- along with the traditional agricultural and distribution sectors -- Jamaica had well established mining, tourism, manufacturing, and construction sectors. However, Jamaica's economy and infrastructure slowly crumbled during its second decade of independence.

Between 1972 and 1980, major shifts in economic policies were initiated, including many social reforms intended both to protect the weakest sections of the population and to promote the welfare of the poor through subsidized food, housing, education, health, and other important social services. By 1976, Jamaica had descended into a paroxysm of rioting, violence, and wholesale burning of ghetto areas.

It is no surprise that many believed the apocalypse would arrive by 1977. It was during this time that singer Joseph Hill had a "prophecy" of 1977 as the year of judgement. That year the band Culture released their debut single "Two Sevens Clash". The prophecies noted by the lyrics so profoundly captured the imagination of the people that on July 7th -- 7/7/77 -- businesses closed, citizens huddled in their homes for safety, and barely a soul was found outside of the home. The entire country held its breath, waiting for the apocalypse to arrive.

Alas, it took a few years for Joseph Hill to admit the truth -- that his apocalyptic "Two Sevens Clash" was not based on actual Rastafarian prophesy, as the song suggested. Instead, the liner notes claim that "one day Joseph Hill had a vision, while riding a bus, of 1977 as a year of judgement -- when two sevens clash -- when past injustices would be avenged".

Perhaps Joseph Hill's lyrics were more telling than people thought:

"I take a ride sometimes,
On Penn Overland and Bronx,
And sometimes I ride on bus X-82... say what!"

- Culture, Two Sevens Clash (1977)

Watch Culture perform the infamous song...