Music Banter - It's Ska Week!

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- - It's Ska Week! (https://www.musicbanter.com/reggae-ska/55474-its-ska-week.html)

I must admit I don't know much about ska, its history and origin, so I will call Wikipedia and Allmusic for help. I know there are some pretty knowledgeable fans of this genre here on the forum, so if they could provide their insight and thoughts on ska and its development that would be great.

Quote:

Ska is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. It is characterized by a walking bass line accented with rhythms on the upbeat. In the early 1960s, ska was the dominant music genre of Jamaica and was popular with British mods.

Music historians typically divide the history of ska into three periods: the original Jamaican scene of the 1960s (First Wave), the English 2 Tone ska revival of the late 1970s (Second Wave) and the third wave ska movement, which started in the 1980s (Third Wave) and rose to popularity in the US in the 1990s.

Ska - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
List of ska musicians - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Quote:

Ska marked the true beginning of Jamaican popular music, coming to prominence during the early and mid-'60s right around the time the island was granted its independence. Ska ensembles were generally a blend of electric instrumentation and horns most popular in jazz (saxophone, trumpet, trombone). Although structurally simple, ska has a bevy of influences, synthesizing American R&B, jump blues, Jamaican mento, calypso and other Caribbean styles, big-band swing, Afro-Cuban jazz, pocomania and other local religious folk music, and European ballroom dances. Of those, the first three -- R&B, jump blues, and mento -- were the most important building blocks.

Explore: Ska | AllMusic

Nobody? :( Nobody knows any ska songs? I find that hard to believe. Even I know some ska songs mostly from the the second wave, revival of the late 70s, early 80s.

The Specials - Ghost Town

Madness - One Step Beyond

Come on, ska week is almost over and nobody participated. That's disappointing.

more ska than reggae (roots reggae)

my favourite of the 2nd Wave 2-tone groups

the first and still the biggest ska hit

already merging with Mento to form roots reggae

the original Wailers were a ska group

My friend really likes Streetlight Manifesto... they're relatively recent I believe. I don't know any particular songs, though.

Let's post some Ska interpretations from across the globe:

and finally my favourite Ska track:

Yeah, I have some Ska in my collection but I rarely listen to it.

This is one of my favorite tunes but its not technically ska though but they definitely have a heavy reggae vibe to them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrd00d (Post 1033335)

My friend really likes Streetlight Manifesto... they're relatively recent I believe. I don't know any particular songs, though.

I'll help you out:

There were a lot of ska bands popping up in the early to late 90s..three of my favorites.

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones

No Doubt

Less than Jake

Quote:

Originally Posted by Liljagare (Post 1033776)

There were a lot of ska bands popping up in the early to late 90s..three of my favorites.

You are so right about this and now that I think about it.

here is one that hasn't been posted yet.

I know it also has elements of swing but yeah.

this is my fave mighty mighty bosstones song