How to Play Reggae Guitar

When most people think of reggae, they only think of vocals. However, in reality, reggae is often accompanied by instruments. The most common instrument used in reggae music is the guitar. Are you interested in learning how to play reggae guitar? Do you want to join in on one of today's hottest music genres? If so, read on!

Reggae, originally started in the 1960's in Jamaica, has been rising in popularity ever since. Bob Marley is by far the most commonly known reggae artist, who used a guitar in most of his songs. If you want to know how to play reggae guitar, you should know that music reggae style, which is very similar to ska music, is played at a very slow pace. The music is usually not very complicated, but it can take some getting used to.

The most important thing you need to have before starting to learn how to play reggae guitar is a basic sense of rhythm. Reggae music relies heavily on rhythm, and without at least a basic knowledge of beats, you will find learning how to play reggae guitar very challenging. If you don't think that you have good internal rhythm, try some simple exercises. One good way to practice your rhythm is to tap along with a metronome, then turn the metronome off and continue the beat for a while. After a minute or so, turn the metronome back on, and see how well you maintained the beat.

When you are learning how to play reggae guitar, you will discover quite quickly that most notes in your music land on the off-beat. What this means is that if you are playing along with a metronome, most of your notes will be played while the metronome is NOT playing. The time between metronome beats is called the off-beat. Learning to play on the off-beat can be difficult at first, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes very natural.

If you are having trouble and can't seem to figure out just how to play reggae guitar, a very good thing to do is watch a professional. This can be done either by hiring a tutor, or simply watching videos of professionals playing. If you can afford a tutor, I would highly recommend getting one. If you cannot, there are also a number of affordable internet courses that teach you in the same way a private tutor would, but for much less money.

How to Play a Reggae Bassline?

Everybody loves reggae style. From Bob Marley to Morgan Heritage, reggae leaves people bobbing their heads with groovy basslines. Yes, in the genre of Reggae bass has a very prominent role.Reggae has a very rich history back in the 1960's following Ska and Rocksteady. It has a slower tempo; characterized by a rhythmic beat of the guitar known as skank. The one-drop drum is also a reggae signature.
To get the reggae bass sound you wanted, you need to learn and remember a few things. First, your hands will be fairly active but needs to get loose. Although most reggae chords are around the major and minor areas, the way they are chromatically played needs a lot of practice. With reggae, it's not about the notes but the way you play them. Next, try to play using a palm mute technique. You also may want to consider replacing your round wounds with flat ones. The reason being, you wanted to get that authentic "fat" sound that upright bass guitars produce-just back in the day. Not only that you wanted to emulate the sound but have a smoother feel; perfect for sliding. Another thing to consider is where to place your hands. Plucking the notes near the bridge will produce a clear sound which you do not want. Instead, place your plucking hand near the bridge; where you will make a dark reggae bass you wanted.
When choosing your guitar, look for those who have a pick near the bridge. It will further amplify the sound coming from that area. The Fender Jazz bass is an ideal instrument.
Restrain yourself from playing too many notes. Common reggae grooves have simple majors and minors within them-it is that simple. It is important to stay within the pattern of the beat-dropping the first note or not.
Drum and bass are more prominent to reggae than guitar. Guitars mostly provide the rhythmic off-beat patterns, tailing the drum beat along the song. If you notice in reggae songs, every instrument plays different roles compared from the standard set-up. The guitar provides the beat; the drum holds all together and the bass creates the melody.
Last but not the least, you need to relax. Reggae may have walking basslines and all but the important thing to remember is to allow yourself to follow the rest of the instruments while doing your pattern. It is easy to do this since the rest of the instruments are already providing the rhythm for you.

Reggae Music's Illustrious Ancestors - Mento, Ska & Rocksteady

Mento 

Jamaica's original rural folk music, called mento, is the grandfather of reggae style music and had significant influences on the formation of that genre. Jamaica's "country music" was inspired by African and European music as well as by American jazz and featured acoustic guitars, banjos, bamboo saxes, hand drums and marimbula (large thumb pianos) also called rhumba boxes, which were large enough to sit on and play. There were also a variety of hand percussion instruments like maracas. Mento's vocals had a distinctly African sound and the lyrics were almost always humorous and happy. Everywhere people gathered you could find a mento band and there were many mento and calypso competitions throughout the island. Mento also gave birth to Jamaica's recording industry in the 1950s when it first became available on 78 RPM records. Mento is still around today.

Before World War II, calypso from Trinidad and Tobago had made its way into Jamaica's music and, although quite different, the two were often confused. Jamaica's own calypso artists performed alongside its mento artists throughout the island, for locals and tourists alike. A calypso craze swept the U.S. and U.K. in the late 1950s as Harry Belafonte came onto the scene. Many of his songs were actually mento but they were more often described as calypso. 

After the war, transistor radios and jukeboxes had become widely available and Jamaicans were able to hear music from the southern U.S., particularly jazz and rhythm and blues from some of the greats like Fats Domino and Jelly Roll Morton, and records flooded into the island. 

And then, in the early 1960s, came American R&B. With a faster and far more danceable tempo, the genre caught on quickly in Jamaica. Attempting to copy this sound with local artists, Jamaicans added their own unique twists, blending in elements of their Caribbean heritage, fusing it with mento and calypso and jazz, to create a unique genre heavily driven by drums and bass and accented with rhythms on the off-beat, or the "upstroke".  This purely Jamaican genre dominated the Jamaican music scene at the time and was known as ... ska. 

Ska 

Coinciding with the festive mood in the air when Jamaica won its independence from the U.K. in 1962, ska had a type of 12-bar rhythm and blues framework; the guitar accented the second and fourth beats in the bar, essentially flipping the R&B shuffle beat, and gave rise to this new sound. 

Because Jamaica didn't ratify the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works until 1994, Jamaican musicians often created instrumental ska versions of songs by popular American and British artists; copyright infringement was not an issue! The Skatalites re-made Motown hits, surf music and even the Beatles in their own style. The Wailers' first single Simmer Down was a ska smash in Jamaica in late 1963/early 1964 but they also covered And I Love Her by the Beatles and Like a Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan.

Although the sound system concept had taken root in Jamaica in the mid 1950s, ska led to its explosion in popularity and it became a major, uniquely Jamaican, industry that continues to thrive today. Enterprising DJs with U.S. sources for the latest records would load up pickup trucks with a generator, turntables, and huge speakers, and drive around the island blaring out the latest hits. Essentially these sound systems were like loud mobile discos! DJs charged admission and sold food and alcohol, enabling them to profit in Jamaican's unstable economy. Thousands would sometimes gather and sound systems became big business. Amidst fierce competition, Clement "Coxsone" Dodd and Duke Reid surfaced as two of the star DJs of the day. Reliant on a steady source of new music, these two superstars began to produce their own records, ultimately becoming Studio One (Dodd) and Treasure Isle (Reid). 

Other important ska producers were Prince Buster, whose Blue Beat label records inspired many Jamaican ska (and later reggae) artists, and Edward Seaga, who owned and operated the West Indies Records Limited (WIRL) in the 1960s but went on to become Prime Minister of Jamaica and leader of the Jamaican Labour Party in the 1980s.

As Jamaicans emigrated in large numbers to the U.K., the sound system culture followed and became firmly entrenched there. Without the efforts of a white Anglo-Jamaican named Chris Blackwell, the rest of the world might not have come to know this Jamaican brand of music. Blackwell, a record distributor, moved his label to the U.K. in 1962 and began releasing records there on various labels, including the Island label. His early artists included the Skatalites, Jimmy Cliff and Bob Marley. Blackwell's international breakthrough came in 1964 when his artist Millie Small hit the U.S. airwaves with My Boy Lollipop.

Back in Jamaica, as American R&B and soul music became slower and smoother in the mid-1960s, ska changed its sound and evolved into... rocksteady.

Rocksteady 

Songs that described dances were very popular now in the U.S. and U.K, as well as Jamaica.  In the U.S., we had The Twist, The Locomotion, The Hanky Panky and The Mashed Potato. One popular dance-song in Jamaica was The Rock Steady by Alton Ellis. The name for this entire genre may have been based on that song title.

The only noteworthy difference between ska and rocksteady was the tempo. Both styles had the famous Jamaican rhythm guitar complemented by drums, bass, horns, vocals and a groove that kept you on your feet moving, but the drum and bass are played at a slower, more relaxed, pace and the rhythm is more syncopated.

Rocksteady arose at a time when Jamaica's poverty-stricken youths had become disillusioned about their futures after Jamaica gained independence from Britain. Turning into delinquents, these unruly youths became known as "rude boys".  Rocksteady's themes mainly dealt with love and the rude boy culture, and had catchy dance moves which were far more energetic than the earlier ska dance moves. Many bass lines originally created for rocksteady songs continue to be used in today's Jamaican music.

Reggae History 70s-80s

The Reggae beat has been through many stages since its formulation in Jamaica in the early 1960s. It began with the Ska beat which derives from a strong influence of rhythm & blues, and then Rocksteady, before reaching it's worldwide appeal as Reggae during the Seventies to early Eighties and producing such artist's as:

Peter Tosh, Dennis Brown, Junior Delgado, Burning Spear, Third World, Pat Kelly, Matumbi, Black Uhuru, Black Roots, Big Youth, The Mighty Diamonds, One Blood, Junior English, Bunny Wailer, Prince Lincoln , Pablo Gad, Aswad, Steel Pulse, Carol Thompson, Louisa Marks, Janet Kay, Sister Love, and many more big name Reggae performers. We must remember that Bob Marley was the fore runner for all the above mentioned artist's.

The 12" 45rpm vinyl record was first introduced during this period of reggae history, and toasting (an early form of rapping) was a also a seventies invention. It was started by Sound System DJs at dances to further entertain their audiences and became so popular that many artist's began adding toasting to their records to make their tunes unique.

The Reggae beat also became faster and more sophisticated musically, to keep up with the new sound coming in from the USA called Funk which used the aid of the new electronic musical instruments and included the famous syndrome used on many a tune.

Meanwhile artist's and musicians living in the UK had a hard time establishing a foot hold in the Reggae market due to Jamaica's dominance. Up to now Reggae did not have a romantic side, and it was felt that the lovers amongst us should be catered for, so Lover's rock was born right here in the U.K, showing a softer side to this wonderful music. Lovers rock also covered many of the popular pop songs in the UK charts and made cover versions almost the norm.

Even the vinyl records suddenly changed colour from their usual black, to green, white, yellow, blue, multi and many others in between.

Roots music, which had a heavy Reggae bass line and lyrics to match, really captured the mood of what life is like living in the ghetto. It also became the fore runner for another rasta reggae style, called Steppers, an almost dance beat that you step to. Last but not least Rockers derives mainly from taking the old Rock Steady rhythms and revamping them with a new bass line and beat. Think of it as early remixing of a slow tune into disco dance tune which is used today throughout the music industry.

You can find these tunes for sale on this site.

This period was also a very enterprising time for creating your own records labels although most of them are no longer around, but this website has many exhibits of these labels, plus many more to come, they are a rarity in their own right.

Reggae Music's Royal Empress - Queen Ifrica

"My music is music of upliftment. It is music that teaches. It shows you how not to complain, but to seek solutions for yourself." ~ Queen Ifrica

Conscious, roots reggae style music has always been a male-dominated genre, so it can be difficult for female artists to break through into the top. But this "Fyah Muma" (Fire Mother), the royal Rastafarian empress known as Queen Ifrica, is definitely setting a blistering pace to becoming the foremost female in this arena. Hallelujah - we've been waiting for her for too long!  

Born Ventrice Latora Morgan in Spanish Town, Jamaica, on March 25, 1975, this daughter of Ska king, Derrick Morgan, was raised in rural Jamaica. She was nicknamed Ifrica by her mother who thought her face was shaped like a map of Africa. Queen Ifrica burst onto the reggae scene in 1995 when she performed in, and won by a landslide, a Montego Bay talent contest. In 1998, Tony Rebel recognized her gifts and her quality and invited her to join his Flames Production family. Now, Queen Ifrica is using her substantial hereditary talents to help restore the cultural vibes to reggae music and to Jamaica as a whole.  

Her commanding stage presence, strong self-confidence, and her delightful voice and dynamic performances have created a demand for her on the international reggae scene as well. She has toured extensively and been warmly received throughout the U.S. and Europe, appearing at festivals such as Summer Jam (Germany, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008), Reggae on the River (California, 2006), One Love Festival Tour (US, 2006), Sierra Nevada World Music Festival (California, 2007), Reggae Sundance Festival (Holland, 2007, 2008), Ragga Muffins Festival (California, 2007, 2008), Rototom Sunsplash (Italy, 2007, 2008), Montreal International Reggae Festival (Montreal, 2007), Uppsala Reggae Festival (Sweden, 2008), Anthems of Love (Trinidad, 2008) and the Millennium Countdown (Bahamas, 2008). She has shared the stage with the legendary Abyssinians, Black Uhuru, Gregory Isaacs, Buju Banton, Culture, Sly & Robbie, Burning Spear and a host of others. This mother of two also mesmerized a hometown audience in Montego Bay, Jamaica, with her fiery performance at the 2008 Reggae Sumfest. Visiting nearly every continent, she would like to perform in Africa in the upcoming year.  

Stirring up controversy and social awareness by addressing topics like incest and child molestation, Queen Ifrica claims to find inspiration for her music in the people she meets while doing community outreach work. She believes she was put here for a special purpose - to do her part for all the suffering people in the world. Her songs are uplifting, teaching us to appreciate life and to look for solutions wherever there are problems. Some of her role models in the industry were Sister Carol, Rita Marley and Marcia Griffiths.  

Sometimes drawing on her own personal experiences, this mother of two has covered religious discrimination in Natty Fi Grow, Jamaica's violence and negativity in Randy, a poignant rage against gangster violence in Boxers and Stockings, the pain of lost love in Goodbye Love, downtrodden communities living in poverty in Zinc Fence, domestic violence in Below the Waist, incest and child molestation in Daddy Don't Touch Me There, and the dangers of Jamaica's latest skin bleaching trend in Mi Nah Rub. This Rasta Empress doesn't shy away from social commentaries. She proves you can sing about anything; it just has to be done with class.  

Bold and vibrant, sweet and sultry, Queen Ifrica's voice and delivery have improved over the years. She fills arenas with beauty and positive vibes while sharing with us her brand of socially uplifting culture music. She exemplifies what consciousness combined with talent can achieve and proves herself to be a fine example for all women.

Jammin' In Jamaica - The History Of Jamaican Dub Music

Around the explosive, political and musically transitional period of the late '60s, America, Jamaica and England were affected by a new production technique that first reared its head in Jamaican studios. Special effects units like delays, echoes, and reverbs had gained popularity through producers like Osbourne (King Tubby) Ruddock, who owned a sound system and cut acetates at Duke Reid's Treasure Isle Studio. By accidentally leaving out parts of the vocal mix to a song, Ruddock stumbled upon a new formula that offered more options for performing studio magic. He took this new mix with him to a dance, and played the recognizable version first. Then he played his 'accident,' and the dub mix was born. Not only did he blow the people away that night; he ran back into the studio to do it again.

In the 1970s when a single was released, it was often answered by another record that gave the second artists' commentary on the first record. Sometimes, many spin-off versions came out of this technique, known as toasting. This form of rapping caught on later in the United States via the concrete jungles of New York City. On many Rap mixtapes and CDs, artists would modify toasting by 'dissing' each other when they had beef among themselves. Though some of the product was hard to find, fans ate up the resulting, often-exclusive releases anyway. Toasting utilized catch-phrases that incorporated the sharp Jamaican dialect--it added a rhythmically expressive, deep melodic quality to Reggae music. When many of my fellow Jamaicans speak, their accents often make them sound like the music: quite rhythmic, quite expressive, quite melodious, quite harmonic, and quite textural. Some popular Jamaican phrases follow:

Babylon - hard living, trouble My yute - homeboy

Bwoyfren' - boyfriend N'yam - eat food

Cool runnin's - it's all good 'Ole on a likkle - wait just a minute

Cho' - never mind Oonu - you all

Diy'yah - over here Pickney - children

Frock - a dress Redi dress - showing out

Is fi' mi - it's mine Roll tide - keep it moving

Good good - that's fine Selectah - a DJ

Gweh - get out of my face S'mody - somebody

Gwine - going Soccamibassa - dressed poorly

Gyalfren' - girlfriend Tegereg - troublesome; a P.I.T.A.

Leggo beas' - wild, unruly Tump you - hit you

Maahgah - skinny Whe' mek? - why?

Dialects of Jamaican 'patois' can be spoken fast, slow, or moderately. Some of the diction is easier to understand than others because it may depend upon which region of Jamaica one is from. Some people may have emotional inflections in their speech patterns, while others may have musical ones. One thing for sure is that unless you can't hear, you will definitely know it when a person from the islands is talking or singing...'yah, mon.' But even without vocals, this underground Dub music of Jamaica was still shaping itself into a more defined entity. By 1973, 'King Tubby' Ruddock was experimenting with instrumental versions of songs by manipulating sounds on the tracks. His equipment contained a disc-cutter, mixing console, tape machines and effects units. He worked with the top producers on the island to compose and release the dub album "Blackboard Jungle."

Instrumental versions of songs soon showed up on the B-sides of singles, called 'dub mixes.' Whether tracks were abruptly punched-in with buttons or smoothly faded-in with the sliding fader, they were still given a heavy dose of sound effects. In some cases, interesting effects were created by running a looped tape over the heads of a tape machine. To facilitate this method, a section of the tape was identified for 'surgery' or 'splicing.' Splicing occurs by putting the section of tape on a 'chopping block' with vertical and diagonal grooves etched into it. The grooves guided a razor blade as it sliced the tape at the beginning and end of the section to be cut. The two ends of the isolated tape were then taped together and run through the tape rollers, which passed the tape over the three heads (erase, record and playback) in a repeated, looped manner.

The playback head picked up the signal and played it till the 'stop' button was depressed. If the splice wasn't precise, this procedure could become tedious and time-consuming. This method may not have caught on in the fast-paced world of 'put it together quick' Rap music, but sampling sure did. Electronically-made sounds and sampling went on to become worldwide phenomena. Like tape looping, Jamaicans used sampling to create new music such as Dancehall Reggae. You'll want to see the chapter "What Makes Music" in the forthcoming "Musicology 102" for more on sampling. If the info in that chapter tweaks your interest, we'll be covering more studio techniques that you may find interesting in the sequel to that book, "Musicology 103."

Dub remixes were released as a standard configuration by the mid '70s, and DJ's constantly played them in the clubs. The open relationship between the United States and Jamaica allowed new reggae styles and trends to drift between the two cultures. By the end of the decade, Rap music made its introduction by creatively looping drum and bass lines with a rhythmic (non-melodic) vocal track and new sounds. Rap brought showmanship to a new level by using the techniques of Jamaican Dancehalls and sound systems, courtesy of innovative DJs like Kool Herc. In case you may have forgotten, we opened up the book chapter by talking about the DJ who brought thunder to the clubs. 'Big ups' to these unsung heroes--they changed the era's musical protocol by breaking down music and remixing it. In America, R&B, Funk, Jazz and Dance music were also broken down and rebuilt; adding anticipation, excitement and exhilaration to physical activity (dancing) and other types of live performances.

The Rising Popularity of Reggae Festivals

In the modern cosmopolitan world, people are exposed to a wide variety of culture and musical influences. The reggae concert has grown to become a popular choice among many music lovers. A historical predecessor to modern styles like hip hop and rap, it offers a wide variety of choices to the contemporary fan. In recent times, the increasing popularity of these genres has led to the growing demand for reggae festivals at cities like Miami. This allows people a chance to interact with other reggae lovers and meet the best bands of the genre.
There are a number of different music festivals across the world, each catering to a different genre. What began as a trend in the early 60s has taken over as one of the more prominent events today. Musicians of different genres come together and perform on stage providing fans and music lovers with moments of high energy and intensity. Festivals like the Miami music festival have grown popular among crowds wanting to witness their music idols in the flesh. The experience of enjoying a reggae festival live is unparalleled to songs and CD repetitions of it. This is one of the reasons why fans hold a special place for music festivals.
Reggae Music festivals are not only a popular option with fans, but are also preferred by many artists. Rock stars like Bob Marley and the Wailers were known to visit these festivals to share their own new releases and bring out their best. The enthusiasm of fans and the interaction with their favorite stars makes these festivals a much visited event across the world. There are many cities hosting this reggae concert for the requirement of their fans. For most people, these concerts are an annual tradition and keep alive the spirit of music.
Considering the increasing popularity of reggae and rock music, it can be a difficult task for fans to locate the latest reggae festivals happening. In addition, finding tickets for these events can be a difficult task for many fans. The growing popularity of events like the Florida music festivals also make it difficult for people to obtain these tickets on time. The solution for this problem lies on the internet. Many reggae concert fans are turning to the internet in order to find tickets and acquire the best seats to the next event in the calendar.
These reggae festivals and concerts are a great opportunity for fans and musicians alike. But with the popularity of the genre growing, it has become difficult for fans to obtain tickets for these concerts in time. This can be accomplished with the help of the internet. There are many online websites offering information and helping fans obtain tickets to the next reggae concert in the city. This is growing to be the preferred mode of reservation for many people as it saves time and helps them obtain tickets conveniently. This can be the best way to spread the love for Reggae to different parts of the world.

Gospel Reggae - A New Exciting Christian Genre Gospel Reggae

These days being a Christian is not just about wearing uncomfortable clothing and say 'Amen' to everything. Nope not anymore, these days modern Christians live a modern lifestyle. For example I am a Gospel Reggae DJ... read on to hear my story.
Okay so I was born and raised in the United Kingdom in a community that had a very strong Caribbean population, especially Jamaicans. Although I am a hybrid of Irish and Scottish roots my neighbourhood had a very strong impact on my life and from a very young age I was in love with all things Jamaican, not least the sweet, sweet sounds of Reggae Style.
True Reggae has a real sense of class and vintage about it, which like wine is more appreciated the older it gets. Artists such as the great Bob Marley, Dennis Brown and Gregory Isaacs have tracks that are simply legendary and will get any dancehall rocking.
This wonderful musical genre was my passion for years. So it will be no surprise for you to learn that when I became a Christian the first thing I did was look for Gospel Reggae music.
During the mid nineties there was not much of a choice, in fact I have to be honest and say some of the material released was pretty dire. However in recent years a number of high profile Reggae artists have become Christian. This includes people like Papa San, Chevelle Franklyn and Stitchie. In fact I have just heard that Sasha a well known female vocalist from Jamaica who has featured with greats such as Sean Paul has now become a Christian and is releasing music.
So my passion has become an obsession and I now enjoy a worldwide reputation as a specialist DJ playing nothing but Gospel Reggae. I have my own radio show and am part of a Gospel Reggae Sound called Soulcure... life is good.
These days Gospel Reggae has come far, in fact there are so many new albums released even an addict like me struggles to keep up. There are now specialist web sites including a number of online web stores that stock literally thousands of the latest Gospel Reggae and Gospel Dancehall music. You can purchase singles as downloads and hard copy CD's. In addition to this the same can be found on the big online stores such as Amazon and iTunes.
I know many people are very interested in the music and would love to hear it.