SKA-BOOM! (Page 1 of 3)

The whole Ska thing started in Jamaica (big surprise), but it only started in the early 60's, which was a surprise to me anyway.

Ska is only one of many styles of Jamaican music, reggae obviously, dancehall, rock-steady, mento (a sort of Jamaican folk music) etc. Reggae was played in the summer simply because it was too hot to dance. Dancehall, rock-steady, and Ska were played in the winter, when everybody had more energy to dance.

The main man behind the whole Ska thing was Cecil Bustamente Campbell or Prince Buster for short (celebrated in Madness' first single The Prince). Buster was also known as Judge Dread, delivering justice to Rude Boy and Gangsta alike.

At this time the Kingston, ghettos were full of young men with no work who took on the identity of Rude Boys, which was a means of being somebody when society was telling you that you were nobody.