Ska Education and Discussion

Brain Toad · 01-15-2005, 07:29 PM

Ska Education and Discussion

I decided to do this after I tired of all the ska threads we get. Face it, ska is a big genre, second or third most discussed genre here in punk, so why not have a discussion thread just for it. Also why not learn, learning is fun!

First and foremost, check out Kithkin's two threads on Ska. The first offers explnations of waves, the second offers a very good list of bands.

http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71269
http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=185472

Ska is a form of Jamician music that formed in the early 1950s, it led to creation of rocksteady the one of Jamica's most famous imports, reggae. In basic ska is a blend of American R&B and traditional Jamican music such as mento and calypso. Ska is the permier genre listened to rude boys and girls, as well as the first wave of skinheads.

After World War II Jamicans began purchasing radios in large numbers and could pick up signals from the southern United States, most notably, New Oreleans. With these American airwaves came the sounds of New Orleans R&B. The Jamicans loved it. To meet the demand for this type of music, entrpenurs such as Prince Buster, Clement Dodd, and Duke Reed set up sound systems, which were portable discotheques that appeared at dances and gatherings.

When R&B fell out of favor in New Orleads in 1960, the Jamicans began recording their own interpretation of the music. Ska is known for is accented upbeats on guitar and piano. The orgin of the name is disputed between the traditional Jamican greeting "Love Skavoovie", or the sounds the music made, described by guitarist Ernest Ranglin as "skat! skat! skat!". The use of these upbeats may of come from minsinterpretations of early jazz and rock and roll broadcasts, which would sound like the off beat sounds we hear in ska because of the break up in weak radio signals. Others disagree with this and say that it is not a misinterpretation, but Jamica's response to America's music.

As American music changed, so did the influence on Ska. As jazz and rock and roll became more popular in the States, Ska bands started doing insturmental covers of popular American and British songs. And in 1966-67, when soul came into place, Ska made its transion into rocksteady, which lasted as the predominant genre until reggae in the late 60s.

In the early 60s, ska was brought to the UK by Prince Buster and U-Roy. This music had a big impact on the UK folk, and they began their own versions of ska, marking the birth of the 2nd wave. The 2nd wave was pioneered by the record label Two-Tone. Two-Tone saw the first influences of punk on the genre along with British rock and pop. The music was sped up and given a British accent.

The third wave was when Ska hit America. American punk had a big influence on this wave of ska, along with hardcore and other predominat American punk sub-genres. A lot bands from the third wave didn't always follow the same sound however. Some went so far as being just punk with a bit of ska, while some went the oppsite direction and started making first and second wave type ska.

Rocksteady:
Rocksteady came about around 1966 due to an unusually hot summer (which meant that people couldn't dance as fast) as well as a genrally desire for change. Bass lines became more intricate, horns were increasingly deemed irrevelant and keyboards or extra rhythm guitars filled the space. many ska bands such as Desmond Dekker & The Aces, The Paragons (who did the original Tide Is High which was later slaughtered by Blondie and Atomic Kitten), The Gaylads and The Maytals adopted the genre (which took it's name from an Anton Ellis track) popularising it. After a few years Rocksteady transmuted into Reggae with tracks such as Toots & The Maytals "Do The Reggay."

Dances:
For a skanking tutorial, see the first link above to Kithkin's post.
Moonstomping is another ska/reggae dance move, which consists of lifiting your knees high and stomping them to the beta of the music. This move is often associated with the skinheads in ska

Bands:
1st Wave:
Desmond Dekker
Laurel Aitken
Prince Buster
Symarip
The Ethiopians
The Skatalites
Toots & the Maytals
Hepcat (part of the third wave, but play 1st wave)
The Slackers (part of third wave, but play 1st wave)
Judge Dread

Two-Tone:
Bad Manners
Madness
The (English) Beat
The Selecter
The Specials
Special Beat
The Toasters (part of the third wave, but play two-tone)

Third Wave:
Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution
Big D and the Kids Table
Catch 22
Less Than Jake
Mad Caddies
Mephiskapheles
MU330
Mustard Plug
The O.C. Supertones
Operation Ivy
Pain
Reel Big Fish
RX Bandits
Ska-P
Skankin' Pickle
Streetlight Manifesto
Choking Victim
The Heatskores
Deltones
Hotknives
The Loafers
Maroon Town
Potato 5
The Riffs
Skadows
The Trojans

Now being discussing ska. Keep it to this thread, new threads about ska need not to be made. Any one else who would like to contribute is free, and I'll add any new info into this post.

Enjoy

Additions:
Rocksteady definition by sketchyjoe
Moving of bands and addition of bands by Oi!Tricky
Moonstomping explanation by superskankinactionhero

SantaDuJuan · 01-15-2005, 07:36 PM

What about Rocksteady?

superskankinactionhero · 01-15-2005, 07:37 PM

nice one nick, we've been in need of something like this! anyone who wants to know anything about ska, ask it in this thread and there's bound to be someone who'll be able to help you out. for now, i'm pretty sure everyone who reads that will have a basic knowledge of ska, it covers most of the stuff anyone getting into ska will need!

p.s. don't limit this to just ska, include reggae, dub etc

Brain Toad · 01-15-2005, 07:39 PM

Yeah, expand to other ska influence genres and Jamican music. I didn't cover rocksteady, because I don't know about it, and Wikipedia didn't cover it.

sketchyjoe · 01-15-2005, 07:48 PM

Rocksteady: Rocksteady came about around 1966 due to an unusually hot summer (which meant that people couldn't dance as fast) as well as a genrally desire for change. Bass lines became more intricate, horns were increasingly deemed irrevelant and keyboards or extra rhythm guitars filled the space. many ska bands such as Desmond Dekker & The Aces, The Paragons (who did the original Tide Is High which was later slaughtered by Blondie and Atomic Kitten), The Gaylads and The Maytals adopted the genre (which took it's name from an Anton Ellis track) popularising it. After a few years Rocksteady transmuted into Reggae with tracks such as Toots & The Maytals "Do The Reggay."

Rocksteady is often overlooked compared to ska or reggae but it's a great genre. Check out some of the bands I mentioned and you'll see. The Trojan Rocksteady Box Set is a good place to start and is reckoned by many to be the best of the Trojan Box Sets.

superskankinactionhero · 01-15-2005, 07:48 PM

*goes to his favourites*

overview of rocksteady:

http://ska.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=ska&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fhome1.swipnet.se%2F%7Ew-64697%2Frocksteady.htm

it's pretty good actually, not AMAZING though

sketchyjoe · 01-15-2005, 07:51 PM

I wrote mine myself.

superskankinactionhero · 01-15-2005, 07:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sketchyjoe

Toots & The Maytals "Do The Reggay."

this song set the name for the whole reggae genre

sketchyjoe · 01-15-2005, 08:01 PM

I know. There's another song that was released a few months later that actually considerd the first proper Reggae record but I can't remember it off the top of my head.

Jessizzle · 01-15-2005, 08:08 PM

The Heatskores need to be mentioned in this thread. becuase they are awessome ska/punk.

Im bad with my lables. so that makes them 3rd wave?

superskankinactionhero · 01-15-2005, 08:11 PM

it wasn't toots and the maytals - pressure drop was it?

Jessizzle · 01-15-2005, 08:15 PM

hm. i know the dead kennedys are punk. but does anyone else think they have an "upbeat" sound,?

superskankinactionhero · 01-15-2005, 08:28 PM

in some songs/parts they have upbeat parts, but not really the same sort of upbeat, their's is more rock n roll-ish i feel. and please keep this thread alive for another twelve hours! by that time i'll have slept, gone to work and come back again.

pedro durruti · 01-15-2005, 08:30 PM

Not generally, but DK have an upbeat sound in some songs, but so do tons of bands

roofee0 · 01-15-2005, 08:38 PM

The only problems I have are the placements of Hepcat, The Slackers, and The Toasters because waves are more of a time period than a sound.

pedro durruti · 01-15-2005, 08:42 PM

They're both sound and periods of time. Each wave is characterized by certain sounds but that doesn't necessarily mean trad/two tone bands can't be new

roofee0 · 01-15-2005, 08:49 PM

Well, I've always seen the wave numbers as time periods and then trad, two tone, and such are just some of the styles that were generally played in those times. I'm not quite sure if that made sense at all. It's hard to explain.

pedro durruti · 01-15-2005, 08:52 PM

Yeah I know what you mean. If someone said third wave I wouldn't know whether they were talking about skapunk or a traditonal sounding band, but if someone said first wave I would assume they were talking about one of the original Jamaican bands of the 60's

pedro durruti · 01-15-2005, 08:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ihatehate

What about Rocksteady?

Hey, I've got an idea! Let's quote a really long post just to piss everyone off! Yeah!!

Vietnow · 01-15-2005, 08:58 PM

What's Ska?

01-15-2005, 07:29 PM	#1
Brain Toad Best Ex-Supermod Ever Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 18,345	Ska Education and Discussion Ska Education and Discussion I decided to do this after I tired of all the ska threads we get. Face it, ska is a big genre, second or third most discussed genre here in punk, so why not have a discussion thread just for it. Also why not learn, learning is fun! First and foremost, check out Kithkin's two threads on Ska. The first offers explnations of waves, the second offers a very good list of bands. http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71269 http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=185472 Ska is a form of Jamician music that formed in the early 1950s, it led to creation of rocksteady the one of Jamica's most famous imports, reggae. In basic ska is a blend of American R&B and traditional Jamican music such as mento and calypso. Ska is the permier genre listened to rude boys and girls, as well as the first wave of skinheads. After World War II Jamicans began purchasing radios in large numbers and could pick up signals from the southern United States, most notably, New Oreleans. With these American airwaves came the sounds of New Orleans R&B. The Jamicans loved it. To meet the demand for this type of music, entrpenurs such as Prince Buster, Clement Dodd, and Duke Reed set up sound systems, which were portable discotheques that appeared at dances and gatherings. When R&B fell out of favor in New Orleads in 1960, the Jamicans began recording their own interpretation of the music. Ska is known for is accented upbeats on guitar and piano. The orgin of the name is disputed between the traditional Jamican greeting "Love Skavoovie", or the sounds the music made, described by guitarist Ernest Ranglin as "skat! skat! skat!". The use of these upbeats may of come from minsinterpretations of early jazz and rock and roll broadcasts, which would sound like the off beat sounds we hear in ska because of the break up in weak radio signals. Others disagree with this and say that it is not a misinterpretation, but Jamica's response to America's music. As American music changed, so did the influence on Ska. As jazz and rock and roll became more popular in the States, Ska bands started doing insturmental covers of popular American and British songs. And in 1966-67, when soul came into place, Ska made its transion into rocksteady, which lasted as the predominant genre until reggae in the late 60s. In the early 60s, ska was brought to the UK by Prince Buster and U-Roy. This music had a big impact on the UK folk, and they began their own versions of ska, marking the birth of the 2nd wave. The 2nd wave was pioneered by the record label Two-Tone. Two-Tone saw the first influences of punk on the genre along with British rock and pop. The music was sped up and given a British accent. The third wave was when Ska hit America. American punk had a big influence on this wave of ska, along with hardcore and other predominat American punk sub-genres. A lot bands from the third wave didn't always follow the same sound however. Some went so far as being just punk with a bit of ska, while some went the oppsite direction and started making first and second wave type ska. Rocksteady: Rocksteady came about around 1966 due to an unusually hot summer (which meant that people couldn't dance as fast) as well as a genrally desire for change. Bass lines became more intricate, horns were increasingly deemed irrevelant and keyboards or extra rhythm guitars filled the space. many ska bands such as Desmond Dekker & The Aces, The Paragons (who did the original Tide Is High which was later slaughtered by Blondie and Atomic Kitten), The Gaylads and The Maytals adopted the genre (which took it's name from an Anton Ellis track) popularising it. After a few years Rocksteady transmuted into Reggae with tracks such as Toots & The Maytals "Do The Reggay." Dances: For a skanking tutorial, see the first link above to Kithkin's post. Moonstomping is another ska/reggae dance move, which consists of lifiting your knees high and stomping them to the beta of the music. This move is often associated with the skinheads in ska Bands: 1st Wave: Desmond Dekker Laurel Aitken Prince Buster Symarip The Ethiopians The Skatalites Toots & the Maytals Hepcat (part of the third wave, but play 1st wave) The Slackers (part of third wave, but play 1st wave) Judge Dread Two-Tone: Bad Manners Madness The (English) Beat The Selecter The Specials Special Beat The Toasters (part of the third wave, but play two-tone) Third Wave: Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution Big D and the Kids Table Catch 22 Less Than Jake Mad Caddies Mephiskapheles MU330 Mustard Plug The O.C. Supertones Operation Ivy Pain Reel Big Fish RX Bandits Ska-P Skankin' Pickle Streetlight Manifesto Choking Victim The Heatskores Deltones Hotknives The Loafers Maroon Town Potato 5 The Riffs Skadows The Trojans Now being discussing ska. Keep it to this thread, new threads about ska need not to be made. Any one else who would like to contribute is free, and I'll add any new info into this post. Enjoy Additions: Rocksteady definition by sketchyjoe Moving of bands and addition of bands by Oi!Tricky Moonstomping explanation by superskankinactionhero Last edited by Brain Toad; 01-16-2005 at 06:48 PM.

01-15-2005, 07:36 PM	#2
SantaDuJuan My first name is DuJuan Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: I love Virginia Posts: 5,793	What about Rocksteady? Last edited by SantaDuJuan; 01-16-2005 at 12:34 PM.

01-15-2005, 08:08 PM	#10
Jessizzle OMFG sean! Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: in the front row Posts: 7,828	The Heatskores need to be mentioned in this thread. becuase they are awessome ska/punk. Im bad with my lables. so that makes them 3rd wave? Last edited by Jessizzle; 01-15-2005 at 08:43 PM.

01-15-2005, 07:37 PM	#3
superskankinactionhero Return of the Redi Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Taunton, S/W UK Posts: 4,473	nice one nick, we've been in need of something like this! anyone who wants to know anything about ska, ask it in this thread and there's bound to be someone who'll be able to help you out. for now, i'm pretty sure everyone who reads that will have a basic knowledge of ska, it covers most of the stuff anyone getting into ska will need! p.s. don't limit this to just ska, include reggae, dub etc

01-15-2005, 07:39 PM	#4
Brain Toad Best Ex-Supermod Ever Join Date: Jun 2003 Posts: 18,345	Yeah, expand to other ska influence genres and Jamican music. I didn't cover rocksteady, because I don't know about it, and Wikipedia didn't cover it.

01-15-2005, 07:48 PM	#5
sketchyjoe GREAT GOOGA-MOOGA! Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Desolation Row, London Posts: 16,337	Rocksteady: Rocksteady came about around 1966 due to an unusually hot summer (which meant that people couldn't dance as fast) as well as a genrally desire for change. Bass lines became more intricate, horns were increasingly deemed irrevelant and keyboards or extra rhythm guitars filled the space. many ska bands such as Desmond Dekker & The Aces, The Paragons (who did the original Tide Is High which was later slaughtered by Blondie and Atomic Kitten), The Gaylads and The Maytals adopted the genre (which took it's name from an Anton Ellis track) popularising it. After a few years Rocksteady transmuted into Reggae with tracks such as Toots & The Maytals "Do The Reggay." Rocksteady is often overlooked compared to ska or reggae but it's a great genre. Check out some of the bands I mentioned and you'll see. The Trojan Rocksteady Box Set is a good place to start and is reckoned by many to be the best of the Trojan Box Sets.

01-15-2005, 07:51 PM	#7
sketchyjoe GREAT GOOGA-MOOGA! Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Desolation Row, London Posts: 16,337	I wrote mine myself.

01-15-2005, 08:01 PM	#9
sketchyjoe GREAT GOOGA-MOOGA! Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Desolation Row, London Posts: 16,337	I know. There's another song that was released a few months later that actually considerd the first proper Reggae record but I can't remember it off the top of my head.

01-15-2005, 08:11 PM	#11
superskankinactionhero Return of the Redi Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Taunton, S/W UK Posts: 4,473	it wasn't toots and the maytals - pressure drop was it?

01-15-2005, 08:15 PM	#12
Jessizzle OMFG sean! Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: in the front row Posts: 7,828	hm. i know the dead kennedys are punk. but does anyone else think they have an "upbeat" sound,?

01-15-2005, 08:28 PM	#13
superskankinactionhero Return of the Redi Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Taunton, S/W UK Posts: 4,473	in some songs/parts they have upbeat parts, but not really the same sort of upbeat, their's is more rock n roll-ish i feel. and please keep this thread alive for another twelve hours! by that time i'll have slept, gone to work and come back again.

01-15-2005, 08:30 PM	#14
pedro durruti incendiarism Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: zemzem Posts: 8,664	Not generally, but DK have an upbeat sound in some songs, but so do tons of bands

01-15-2005, 08:38 PM	#15
roofee0 Banned Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: texas Posts: 739	The only problems I have are the placements of Hepcat, The Slackers, and The Toasters because waves are more of a time period than a sound.

01-15-2005, 08:42 PM	#16
pedro durruti incendiarism Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: zemzem Posts: 8,664	They're both sound and periods of time. Each wave is characterized by certain sounds but that doesn't necessarily mean trad/two tone bands can't be new

01-15-2005, 08:49 PM	#17
roofee0 Banned Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: texas Posts: 739	Well, I've always seen the wave numbers as time periods and then trad, two tone, and such are just some of the styles that were generally played in those times. I'm not quite sure if that made sense at all. It's hard to explain.

01-15-2005, 08:52 PM	#18
pedro durruti incendiarism Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: zemzem Posts: 8,664	Yeah I know what you mean. If someone said third wave I wouldn't know whether they were talking about skapunk or a traditonal sounding band, but if someone said first wave I would assume they were talking about one of the original Jamaican bands of the 60's

01-15-2005, 08:58 PM	#20
Vietnow Nagasaki Wetdreams Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Chatham, Ontario Posts: 2,420	What's Ska?