Book overview
Learn Authentic Rhythm & Lead Parts for Reggae, Ska, Rocksteady, Dub and More
It's no understatement to say that reggae music forever changed the world. A compelling mix of soul, jazz, R&B and Jamaican mento, it's the ultimate feel good music with its hypnotic, laidback grooves.
The Reggae & Ska Guitar Book is a one-of-a-kind guide to the guitar styles at the heart of reggae.
In fact, it's is a chronological guide to the development of reggae through the decades and shows how to play its many sub-genres with authentic, stylistically accurate guitar parts.
Your journey includes scheduled stops at:
- Ska, the early years - how American R&B combined with elements of calypso and mento
- Rocksteady - the bridge between the original ska and later reggae eras
- Reggae - the emergence of seminal groups including Bob Marley & The Wailers
- Dub - how versions or "doubles" creatively expanded the sound of reggae
- Ska revival - an offshoot of the punk/mod eras, explore the sounds of The Specials, Madness, The Selecter and more
- The Third Wave - how ska burst upon the US from a California-based revival, with bands like Reel Big Fish, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Sublime
- Lovers Rock - reggae surfaces again, this time combining the sweet melodic soul of Motown with laidback Jamaican grooves
- Going Full Circle - how reggae influenced world music and artists such as Paul Simon, Eric Clapton and The Police
- Dancehall and Beyond - fusing island musical sensibilities with hip-hop, dancehall adopted a new type of reggae drum groove that has influenced countless contemporary pop records ever since
Learn the Essential Techniques of Reggae Guitar
With each sub-genre of reggae and ska came refinements and changes to the role of the guitar. There is so much more to it than hitting chord stabs on the up-beats! You'll learn...
- The skank groove that forms the backbone of the ska sound
- Stylistically accurate major and minor chord voicings
- How to introduce double-stops, triplet ideas and sliding articulations
- Single-note pentatonic riffs and fills
- How to play the chicken scratch technique pioneered by Hux Brown
- Using delay pedal effects to expand your sonic arsenal
- Adding jazz, rock 'n' roll licks, and even modal scales to spice up single-note accompaniments in the style of the greats
- The rhythms and approach of the ska-punk movement of the Third Wave
