Early Reggae

Rooted in ska and rocksteady — genres that had formed when Jamaican musicians started tinkering with the American R&B they heard on the radio — reggae started to make its presence felt in the late '60s before conquering the world. "54-46 Was My Number" by Toots & The Maytals was right at the vanguard of the emerging genre in 1969 (the title referred to Toots' prison number, following a marijuana bust).

A couple of reggae's most soulful vocalists stand out among our Next Steps.

Time has conferred classic status on the pioneering rocksteady/reggae transition work of Delroy Wilson, who had been picked up by Studio One as a teenager, then really came into his own with late-'60s cuts like "Run Run". Another artist whose soulful voice was ideally suited to reggae's slow tempo was Alton Ellis ("Big Bad Boy"), while the Melodians delivered one of the first Rastafarian anthems, "Rivers of Babylon".

Is that a melodica we hear? Augustus Pablo must be in Deep Cuts.

Before Bob Marley became the reggae icon we know and remember today, he honed his craft with the Wailers, who recorded a bunch of outstanding tracks with the Upsetters, Lee "Scratch" Perry's house band — one such was "Small Axe/Battle Axe". The artist responsible for attaching the distinctive sound of the melodica (basically, a big kazoo) to early reggae was Augustus Pablo, who released the steamy "Bedroom Mazurka" in 1973.

Some say the word reggae derives from streggae (Jamaican slang for "loose woman"); others — notably Bob Marley — have sourced its origins in the Spanish word for "the king's music"; and the phrase rege-rege can also mean a "quarrel". Whichever version you prefer, it's fair to say that once reggae had arrived, it took hold fast, thanks to classic early tracks like these. All the icons, innovators, and heroes are here, including Jimmy Cliff (who released the landmark "Many Rivers to Cross" in 1969), the Abyssinians (check out the harmonies on "Yim Mas Gan"), and the Wailers (featuring Bob Marley). Get your skank on.