Irie Beats

Reggae music is fairly well known in the United States, but mention ska, and you'll most likely be met with a blank stare. Microsoft Word's spell checker doesn't even recognize "ska" as a word, but offers "sky", "ski", and the postal abbreviation for Kansas as alternatives. Everyone knows Bob Marley is the king of reggae, but comparatively few know he got his start playing ska back in Jamaica. The different styles of reggae - roots, rocksteady, dub, and dancehall, are all actually spin-offs of ska. The three "waves" of ska have gone on to influence popular (and not-so-popular) styles of music all over the world.

Ska's first wave began in newly independent Jamaica. Producers at the infamous music outfit "Studio One" were looking for something new to play, and came up with "ska". Based on traditional island calypso music, ska is "inverted" R&B - instead of the first and third beats of each measure being emphasized, ska accents the second and fourth. The first ska band, the Skatalites, established the distinctively ska practice of playing the upbeats with a piano or a clean guitar lick, and added the signature horns. Bob Marley and Pete Tosh were part of the Wailing Wailers, who had ska hits in Jamaica before reggae brought them worldwide fame. First wave ska evolved into reggae in Jamaica, by touching off "rocksteady". According to popular belief, the Jamaican summer was too hot for dancing to quick ska, so the artists started playing slower songs. More complex bass and drumlines set rocksteady apart from traditional ska. First wave ska band the Toots & Maytals coined the term "reggae" (they spelled it "reggay") with a rocksteady record. Combinations of ska and rocksteady with African music (via the Rastafarian religion) led to emergence of "roots" reggae, which became popular all over the world, elevating Bob Marley, Pete Tosh, "Burning Spear", and others into stardom.

The second wave was a British phenomenon. While roots reggae was popular in the US in the late '70's, punk rock was the dominant force in the UK. Ska influence worked its way into the punk scene, making a sound different from both traditional ska and traditional punk, which became known as "Two-tone". Two-tone Ska keeps the first wave's beat structure, and brings in fast paced electric guitar from punk, for a distinctly "party" style of music. Where the first wave had large horn sections, the trumpets and trombones usually took a backseat in the second wave. The first two-tone group was the Specials, who started the "2-Tone" record label, which exclusively produced second wave records. The whole movement is associated with promoting racial harmony, as most of the bands of the era had both white and black members (hence "two-tone"). The Specials produced a string of hits in England, and a few crossed the Atlantic to the States, but in general, the second wave stayed in Europe. The Madness and the English Beat were two other successful Two-Tone groups. The second wave ended in the mid-'80's, following the breakup of The Specials. Today, second wave music is most commonly heard as background music in commercials (you'll know it when you hear it), but former Specials members still play shows to old and new fans.

In the 1990's, a number of alternative and punk bands from California started experimenting with the second wave sound, including well-known groups like No Doubt and Sublime. The ska "underground" grew in Southern California, with the formation of California-centric bands like the Nuckle Brothers, O.C. Scholars, and Suburban Rhythm, starting a new wave. The third wave sound is a broader category than the second - the brass sections might be the focus of one band's songs, but another band might not have horns at all. Some bands adopt the first wave ska's short guitar licks, while others leave the ska elements to rhythm guitar and play punk rock on the lead guitars. Popular music started to take note of California's growing scene, and the third wave took off. No Doubt signed to major label Interscope records, and their CD "Tragic Kingdom" was a nationwide bestseller. Sublime signed with Universal - their self-titled CD was just about to be released when front man Bradley Nowell overdosed. Sublime became popular in spite of (or maybe because of) Nowell's death; singles from their CD still get radio play today. Lots of new third wave bands got signed to major labels as a result of the commercial success of the sound - Reel Big Fish, made up of O.C. Scholars and Nuckle Brothers members, produced a pair of gold-selling records. Outside of California, Florida's ska-punk band Less Than Jake got recognition, and Boston's Mighty Mighty Bosstones had a #1 single in 1997. Ska saturated popular music - even MTV got caught up, devoting a whole show to ska music, "Skaturday", which featured videos by third wave bands. Things died down in the States after 1998, with several bands breaking up or changing styles, but the third wave started to catch on in Europe, thanks to Internet music sharing - Reel Big Fish played sold out shows on their first European tour without even having an album available on the continent.

Ska's three waves and their spinoffs are all separate entities - combining with other styles of music has produced a very diverse library of music, from rocksteady's slow drum and bass sound to rapid fire punk with horns blasts in the third wave. However, they all owe their existence to the creative producers in Kingston. It might be time for a 4^th wave - major labels have signed Reel Big Fish, Less Than Jake, and Forces of Evil again, and are eying newcomers Suburban Legends and Streetlight Manifesto. New group Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution promise to shake things up if a fourth wave does happen - they're a 15 piece acoustic-instruments-only band, and they even have violins. Whatever direction the world population's tastes go, ska's been an international influence, whether or not Word knows how to spell it.