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 The word "reggae" was coined around 1960 in Jamaica to identify a "ragged" style of dance music, that still had its roots in New Orleans rhythm'n'blues. However, reggae soon acquired the lament-like style of chanting and emphasized the syncopated beat. It also made explicit the relationship with the underworld of the "Rastafarians" (adepts of a millenary African faith, revived Marcus Garvey who advocated a mass emigration back to Africa), both in the lyrics and in the appropriation of the African nyah-bingi drumming style (a style that mimicks the heartbeat with its pattern of "thump-thump, pause, thump-thump"). Compared with rock music, reggae music basically inverted the role of bass and guitar: the former was the lead, the latter beat the typical hiccupping pattern. The paradox of reggae, of course, is that this music "unique to Jamaica" is actually not Jamaican at all, having its foundations in the USA and Africa.

An independent label, Island, distributed Jamaican records in the UK throughout the 1960s, but reggae became popular in the UK only when Prince Buster's Al Capone (1967) started a brief "dance craze". Jamaican music was very much a ghetto phenomenon, associated with gang-style violence, but Jimmy Cliff's Wonderful World Beautiful People (1969) wed reggae with the "peace and love" philosophy of the hippies, an association that would not die away. In the USA, Neil Diamond's Red Red Wine (1967) was the first reggae hit by a pop musician. Shortly afterwards, Johnny Nash's Hold Me Tight (1968) propelled reggae onto the charts. Do The Reggay (1968) by Toots (Hibbert) And The Maytals was the record that gave the music its name. Fredrick Toots Hibbert's vocal style was actually closer to gospel, as proved by their other hits (54-46, 1967; Monkey Man, 1969; Pressure Drop, 1970).

A little noticed event would have far-reaching consequences: in 1967, the Jamaican disc-jockey Rudolph "Ruddy" Redwood had begun recording instrumental versions of reggae hits. The success of his dance club was entirely due to that idea. Duke Reid, who was now the owner of the Trojan label, was the first one to capitalize on the idea: he began releasing singles with two sides: the original song and, on the back, the instrumental remix. This phenomenon elevated the status of dozens of recording engineers.

Reggae music was mainly popularized by Bob Marley (1), first as the co-leader of the Wailers, the band that promoted the image of the urban guerrilla with Rude Boy (1966) and that cut the first album of reggae music, Best Of The Wailers (1970); and later as the political and religious (rasta) guru of the movement, a stance that would transform him into a star, particularly after his conversion to pop-soul melody with ballads such as Stir It Up (1972), I Shot The Sheriff (1973) and No Woman No Cry (1974).

Among the reggae vocal groups, the Abyssinians' Satta Massa Gana (1971) is representative of the mood of the era.

In 1972 reggae became a staple of western radio stations thanks to the film The Harder They Come.

Useful Web Sites

http://www.scaruffi.com/history/reggae.html

http://www.scaruffi.com/vol3/tubby.html 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Marley 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Cliff 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Tosh 

BUNNY WAILER

Bunny Wailer, also known as Bunny Livingston (born Neville O'Riley Livingston April 10, 1947 in Jamaica), is a singer songwriter and percussionist and was an original member of reggae group The Wailers along with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. His father Thaddeus "Toddy" Livingston lived for some time with Bob Marley's mother Cedella Booker and had a daughter with her named Pearl Livingston.

As he was by some way the least forceful of the trio, he tended to sing lead vocals less often than Marley and Tosh in the early years, but when Bob Marley left Jamaica in 1966 for Delaware, to be replaced by Constantine "Dream" Walker, he began to record and sing lead on some of his own compositions, such as "Who Feels It Knows It", "I Stand Predominant" and "Sunday Morning". His music was very influenced by gospel and the soul of Curtis Mayfield. in 1967, he recorded "This Train", based on a gospel standard for the first time at Studio One.

PETER TOSH

Peter Tosh, born Winston Hubert McIntosh (October 9, 1944 – September 11, 1987) was the guitarist in the original Wailing Wailers, a reggae musician, and a trailblazer for the Rastafari movement.

Tosh grew up in the Kingston, Jamaica slum of Trenchtown. He stood out because of his height at 6 feet, 4 inches. His short-fuse temper and unveiled sarcasm usually kept him in trouble, earning him the nickname Stepping Razor after a song written by Joe Higgs, an early mentor. He began to sing and learn guitar at a young age, inspired by the American stations he could pick up on his radio. After an illustrious career with the Wailers and as a solo musician, he was murdered at his home. Though robbery was officially said to be the motivation behind Tosh's death, many believe that there were ulterior motives to the killing, citing that nothing was taken from the house.

Dennis Emmanuel Brown (February 1, 1957 – July 1, 1999) was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, he had recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the pioneers of lovers rock, a sub-genre of reggae. Legendary singer Bob Marley cited Brown as his favorite singer,^[1] and dubbed him "The Crown Prince of Reggae

JIMMY CLIFF

Jimmy Cliff OM (born James Chambers, 1 April 1948, Somerton District in St. James, Jamaica)^[1] is a Jamaican ska and reggaemusician, best known among mainstreamMany Rivers to Cross" from The Harder They Come, a film soundtrack which helped popularise reggae across the world ^[2], and for a cover of "I Can See Clearly Now" from the film "Cool Runnings." audiences for songs like "Sittin' in Limbo", "You Can Get It If You Really Want It", "

 TOOTS & THE MAYTALS

The Jamacian musical group Toots and the Maytals, originally called simply The Maytals, are one of the best known ska and reggae vocal groups. Their sound is a unique, original combination of gospel, ska, soul, reggae and rock.

Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, the leader of the group, was born in May Pen, Clarendon, Jamaica in 1945, the youngest of seven children. He grew up singing gospel music in a church choir, but moved to Kingston in 1958 at the age of thirteen.

Toots Hibbert (born Frederick Nathaniel Hibbert, 10 December 1945, May Pen, Parish of Clarendon, Jamaica) is a ska and roots reggae singer and leader of the reggae band Toots and the Maytals.

  THESE ARE ONLY SOME OF JAMAICA'S REGGAE AMBASSADORS. REDEMPTION'S MISSION IS TO KEEP ON CARRYING THE TORCH OF REGGAE...FAR AND WIDE.