Roots Archives Forum

Just read this book (again...) and was inspired to let everyone know that if you haven't had the opportunity to read it, please do yourself a favor and buy it, as it is one of the best (in my opinion the best) books on reggae in general that I have ever had the pleasure of reading.
Here's a quote:
"Root's reggae's unique interplay of density and sparseness had set the stage for the texturally and spatially oriented practices of dub, a style in which the Jamaican pop song was electronically deconstructed and reconfigured by a generation of studio engineers who had variously tuned into the potentials of Africa, outer space, nature, psychedelia, and the late modernist machine."
Great stuff...

P.S. check this out http://www.slideshare.net/GrantGoddard1 ... cember1995

It's an interesting book, but I think Christopher Partridge's "Dub in Babylon" is better.

What do others think?

Started reading it some time ago, but found it hard to get through so put it aside. Will give it another try.

Started it years ago and never finished it. It has some good bits but it's too much like a badly written ddissertation.

He keeps saying throughout that he will demonstrate something and then never does. Plus some of his explanations for how and why dub was developed are laughable.

Dub was clearly just engineers twiddling knobs to create backing tracks for DJ's to sing over at dances. It wasn't African slaves crying out in anguish... That was the backdrop for the music not the reason for its initial development

Well, I can see where you are coming from, and it is a bit of a tough read at points (a lot of points) but I think overall it's a much more educational and intriguing book than say "Dub In Babylon", which is more about post-punk than dub in many parts. Dub In Babylon is a VERY good book, but I am partial to "Dub".

And BMC, it is a tough read in the beginning at times, but well worth pushing through till the end.

What I enjoy about this particular book is the way in which Veal looks at the surrounding culture in terms of the people who were the target audience.
"With a depressed post-war economy, few Jamaicans could afford to purchase recordings on a regular basis, and the enjoyment of music was mainly a communal, public affair. From the 1950's onward, most Jamaicans enjoyed music via Sound Systems"

The way in which I listen to my records is MUCH different from the way in which it was originally enjoyed.

I found it a very enjoyable and informative book. It does look at dub from a very academic perspective though which can make it a bit hard to read in some ways.

I think as far as REALLY delving deep into the different artists mixing techniques and strategies, as well as providing insight as to who really did what and when, this book cannot be beat.