Rastafarianism in Reggae

During all the apocalyptic activity of the '60s and '70s in America, Jamaica was developing its own millennial cult and indigenous pop music. Both Rastafarianism and Reggae music started as standard western forms but were later mixed and twisted with the African culture of Jamaica's black population, in much the same way interracial influences formed the original rock and roll sound. Reggae started out as a variation of American Rhythm & Blues music from the 1950s, but gradually incorporated local rhythms and more African influences, mutating into something else entirely. Likewise, the basic root of Rastafarianism is the Holy Bible and the fundamental tenants of Western Christianity. The true Rasta "knows the Bible like the back alleys of his shantytown … He sleeps, eats and does everything by it and never stops reading it and meditating on it." 76 Specifically, Rastafarians looked to Revelation for their salvation because of its promise of divine retribution for the downtrodden, much like the poor marginalized folk and blues singers during the Depression.

During slavery, black Jamaicans developed a powerful metaphor for their situation: kidnapped from Africa by white colonialists, they identified themselves as being in a situation similar to the Israelites who were forced to live in Babylon for 70 years. As Rastafarianism developed, its followers came to believe that they were a lost tribe of black Israelites, the chosen people who would be redeemed by God at the end of the world. Much like the Nation of Islam in America, they believed that it was Africans, not Jews, who were the true people of God and would receive his final blessing. The Rastafarians believed their Babylon was all of Western society: the government, the police, the Church, and any person or system that was oppressive. 77

For instance, Desmond Dekker's 1968 international hit "The Israelites" is a sufferer's lament about the poor Jamaican's place in Babylon. "Get up in the morning, slaving for bread, sir / So that every mouth can be fed / Poor me, the Israelite." Over a rather quick reggae rhythm, Desmond is backed by deep, mournful moans, emphasizing the pain of the lost Rastafarian waiting for his deliverance, "After a storm there must be a calm." The sound is clearly influenced by American rock music, apparent in both the doo-wop like vocal interactions and exuberant, pulsating beat. 78

Black Nationalist Marcus Garvey came to be regarded as a prophet by the Rastafarians. 79 They took his message of repatriation to Africa as a holy prophecy and it became their promised land. Much like Daniel and John had promised true believers a heavenly kingdom after the defeat of evil--personified in Revelation by 'the Whore of Babylon' and two satanic beasts--Rastafarians believed that when Jamaica's oppressive, exploitative government fell they would be allowed to return to the paradise of Africa, which was literally a heaven on earth. 80 Drawing heavily from Ethiopian Christianity, Garvey and the Rastafarians maintained that David, Solomon and the Queen of Sheba were black Ethiopians. 81

Garvey went bankrupt in 1919 when he attempted to establish the Black Star Line, a fleet of ships to bring Western blacks back to Africa and commercially connect scattered black communities. 82 The Black Star Line failed but remained a prominent image in Rastafarian lore. Much like the millennialist Cargo Cults of the Pacific, they looked to God to overthrow the evil Western colonialists and viewed modern ocean liners as the method of God's salvation. 83 Because both cults arose on islands, it seems only natural that the most dominant features of island life, the ocean and distance, should be prominent in their millennial beliefs.

One of the most unique things about Rastafarianism is that there is no canon and there are no leaders. The only unifying threads are the belief in Jah and the use of ganja (marijuana) as a holy sacrament, a gift from god. 84 Rastafarians grow their hair into thick, tangled ropes called dreadlocks based on the example of Jesus and a passage from the Book of Numbers, "All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow." 85 They also believed that letting their hair grow long and tangled was a sign of their natural African heritage. Because of their appearance, drug use and rejection of society they were labeled as criminals and outcasts by Jamaican authorities.

It was crucial to the British social order in Jamaica and elsewhere that the black majority be kept inferior to the white minority, even after the end of slavery white rule was entirely dependent upon the compliance of the vast African population. Even after 1962, when Jamaica gained independence from Britain, poverty was still rampant, the national inferiority complex persisted and the Jamaican government remained close to British authorities for financial aid. The status quo was retained even after independence and Jamaican authorities continued targeting the Rastafarians. As a result, Rastafarians came to view black Jamaicans as still existing in a state of mental colonialism; they were still inferior to whites and still occupied the lowest rung of the social ladder. Like the Depression in America, conditions were terrible in Jamaica and the majority of people lived in total, hopeless poverty, "a 'blazing' warzone of cardboard shacks, human waste, and steel-gray cement factories," despite the promise of independence that had finally been realized. 86

Before leaving Jamaica, Garvey prophesized, "Look to Africa, where a black king shall be crowned," in his fictional play The Coronation of the King and Queen of Africa. 87 In 1930, a black king was crowned -- in Ethiopia no less, the longest continual black civilization (stretching over 5000 years) and the only African state not to fall under the control of Europe for a significant period of time. 88 Prince Ras Tafari Makonnen was crowned Emperor Haile Selassie I--a name which meant "power of the holy trinity" 89 --and was given the titles King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Elect of God and Light of the World. 90 Rastafarians took all this quite literally and believed him to be God incarnate, the reborn Christ, whom they called 'Jah', a shortening of "Jehovah". Their vision of a living black deity was a rejection of the Western Church and its teachings of a white Christ. 91

When Ethiopia defeated Mussolini's occupying Italian Army in 1941 92 , the Rastafarians viewed it as a sign from above and looked to Revelation 5:5, "Weep not; lo, the lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and the seven seals," signaling the imminent end of the world. 93 They began to identify not just Africa but Ethiopia specifically as a black paradise that contrasted sharply with the 'hell' of Jamaica. Ethiopia was free from the poisons of colonial western society, a place they would return to with the aid of the divine emperor. 94 Rastafarians identified this return to Africa via the Black Star Line as a modern day story of Exodus. Like the Jews who fled from slavery in Egypt, they expected to receive Jah's word once they found Mount Zion, which had moved in the Rastafarian mindset from Israel to Africa. 95

Max Romeo's 1976 "War Ina Babylon" explores some basic tenants of Rastafarianism, detailing a "tribal war inna Babylon." The Bible identifies two enemy tribes in the service of Satan--Gog and Magog--but presumably the war Romeo speaks of is between the 'tribes' of white and black. 96 By this time, reggae's form had solidified and as a result, the beat was slower but much more intense than "The Israelites". More percussive elements enter the song as well, and the clipped group vocals and inclusion of patois also make the song sound much more distinctly Jamaican. He details his problems with police and barbers because of Rastafarian beliefs and dreadlocks, which were viewed as antisocial at best and criminal at worst. The song even contains a prophecy from Garvey himself, "Marcus garvey prophecise, say / One mus' live 10 miles away, yeah, in this time / I-man satta at the mountain top / Watching Babylon burning red hot, red hot." 97 Just as Robert Johnson had, Romeo ascends the mountain (presumably Zion) to watch the final judgment of all his enemies as they perish in the tribal war. Romeo based his image of war-torn Babylon on the violent 1972 presidential elections in Jamaica. 98

Mirroring the trajectory of the Nation of Islam and Black Power movements in America, the Rastafarians embraced their African roots and preached black consciousness as an escape from mental slavery. They latched onto traditional drum music like mento or burra that retained elements of the African folk culture they had lost. "The brethren realized that just as Europe had gone to great lengths to develop and preserve its cultural identity, so too should the black man--whether in Africa or in exile." 99 The dominant feature of African culture is and was music, and the chief instrument in African music is the drum. The surviving African music eventually became the basic rhythms of reggae.

The beat slowed over the years and the electric bass guitar, when it became available, took the horn section's place as the lead instrument. This sound produced reggae in 1968. 100 American soul influences had penetrated Jamaica, resulting in an increased emphasis on powerful, complex vocal melodies. The influence of funk also made itself felt as reggae artists attempted to wring every ounce of energy and passion they could from the slow African rhythms. Unlike the upbeat, major-chord happiness of ska, reggae placed an importance on passion, heartache and pain. Similar to folk and blues singers, reggae musicians and their fans were usually rooted in the poorest of ghettos, in the worst of conditions, as a result the Rastafarian faith was being embraced like it never had been before and a whole generation grew dreadlocks and smoked ganja.

Although American influences are easy to spot, the embrace of Rastafarianism increasingly gave reggae its musical direction and lyrical content. Although its unclear if all Rastafarians identified with reggae, most reggae musicians were Rastafarians. As a result, reggae songs are littered with references to Mount Zion, Babylon and Jah. The slower, heavier, hypnotic rhythms of reggae marked a musical return to Africa: if they couldn't get to the Promised Land by taking the Black Star Line, they could go there through music. The musicians began using slang and Jamaican street language called patois in their songs, as a symbol of their African heritage. 101 The apocalyptic images and millennial hopes of the Rastafarian movement also showed up in reggae music. Because most reggae songs were based on a single, constant rhythm the songs have no real beginning or ending and much like the apocalyptic songs of Funkadelic, Black Sabbath, or the Doors, reggae took on a hypnotic feeling of endless movement. When the songs reach their arbitrary conclusion they either fade out slowly or cut off suddenly, like the unexpected end of the world. Similar to the chaos of Funkadelic's "Wars of Armageddon", "the sounds of reggae … are the sounds of screeching tyres, bottles breaking, wailing sirens, gunfire, people screaming and shouting, children crying … the sounds of the apocalyptic thunder and earthquake. The sounds of reggae are the sounds of a society in the process of transformation … undergoing a profound political and historical change." 102

A song that perfectly captures the new sound of reggae and the apocalypticism of the Rastafarians is Willie Williams' "Armagideon Time" his single hit from 1979. The song emphasizes the thick, African rhythms, with only minimal guitar and organ accompaniment. The main instruments of the song are the deep, distant drums and the absolutely throbbing bass guitar, which is typical of Jamaican basslines in that it is played in a quick series of eighth-notes with long pauses in between. The mood is dark and excessively thick, the slow-moving molasses of a song is almost entirely supported by the bassline, with an excellent, jazzy trumpet solo serving to add a much-needed lighter touch. Despite the dread mood of the song, Williams doesn't sound particularly scared of the 'armagideon' because of his belief in Jah. "A lot of people won't get no supper tonight / A lot of people won't get no justice tonight / The battle is gettin hotter / In this iration, it's armagideon time … You must remember to praise Jehovah / and he will guide you." 103

During the 70s, reggae was beginning to become an international phenomenon thanks to Chris Blackwell's efforts to promote Jamaican music through his Island Records label. This was assisted in large part by the film The Harder They Come, featuring Jimmy Cliff, and its accompanying soundtrack, which is credited as first introducing many westerners to the music coming out of Jamaican. 104 No other Jamaican musician reached the same kind of international attention and fame as Bob Marley. Playing Jamaican music since the ska days of the 1960s, The Wailers were already one of the most popular reggae groups in Jamaica. However, when two of the original songwriters, Peter Tosh and Bunny Livingston, quit the group Bob Marley was left in sole control. Reggae was moving from becoming a singles-oriented music in Jamaica to an LP format for the world market. The first album by 'Bob Marley and the Wailers', Natty Dread, was an international success and landed Marley his first Top 40 hit in the UK, "No Woman, No Cry". But international attention didn't preclude him from using lyrics based on the millennial hopes of his Rastafarian faith.

"The Belly Full (But We Hungry)" points to his belief that reggae was a holy music. Over a slow rhythm Marley and his mournful backup singers paint a picture of poverty and despair in Jamaica, only relieved by the holiness of reggae music and the power of Jah. "Cost of livin' gets so high / Rich and poor they start to cry … We're gonna dance to Jah music, dance / Forget your troubles and dance / Forget your sorrows and dance / Forget your sickness and dance." As earlier, if Rastafarians could not physically get to Africa, they could get there through music. Dancing is capable for a moment of fulfilling the holy promise of God's heavenly kingdom, free from disease and suffering. 105

Marley's first truly worldwide hit was "Exodus", a 7-minute rhythmic epic in the tradition of Funkadelic. There is constantly something happening throughout the song and all types of instruments make their appearance: drums, bongos, guitars, organ, piano, horns, electronic effects and more. It's a dense polyrhythmic journey with the driving rhythm implying movement and the multiple backup singers offer a sense of communal experience. 106 The lyrics of the song once again attempt to tie the plight of Jamaicans with that of the Israelites fleeing slavery in Egypt. "We're leaving Babylon, y'all / We're going to our Father's land … Jah come to break downpression / Rule equality / Wipe away transgression / Set the captives free / Exodus, all right! Movement of Jah people!" 107 The song is also based on Marley's experience of moving to Britain (the source of mighty Babylon in Jamaican) after an assassination attempt.

The assassin after Marley was part of a much larger pattern of violence occurring in Jamaica in 1976. Elections were happening again and the political violence was especially bad. The year has gone down in Jamaican history as one of the country's bloodiest elections, over 100 people died in political violence during a 5-month period. The violence did not end with the election either. Gangs were exploding across the country and the national economy was worse than it had ever been, instigating a series of riots and lootings. 108 Just as the political violence in America in the late '60s took on apocalyptic overtones, so did the violence in Jamaica.

The reggae band Culture attempted to capitalize on the chaos with their hit single "Two Seven Clash". Much like the Beatles' "Helter Skelter", the song actually convinced people of an impending apocalypse. "Two Sevens Clash" predicted that the world would end when the holy number 7 dominated the calendar on the seventh day of the seventh month of 1977, the year the 'two sevens clashed'. Sure enough, "on July 7, 1977, Jamaica came to a standstill. Businesses closed, the army was placed on high alert, and citizens huddled in their homes for safety, alternately despairing and rejoicing over what was to come. The entire country held its breath, waiting for the apocalypse to arrive." Even the Jamaican community in Britain was terrified. 109 The song is celebratory of the impending apocalypse though, weaving an uplifting but unintelligible patois coda with a series of made-up prophecies quoted from Marcus Garvey. The joyous music seems to belie the very real fear that it struck in the Jamaican populace, although it was later revealed that the song was the product of Culture singer Joseph Hill's imagination and not actually based on any Rastafarian prophecies at all.

With the increased international attention though, the apocalyptic message of Rastafarianism became diluted. Much like in rock and roll, the message became a secular symbol that could be used without any religious connotation. Apocalypticism had gone pop once again, but nowhere else in the world was a country's popular music basically a religious music as it was in Jamaica. 110 The trapping of Rastafarianism became fashion in the countries that imported reggae records. People all over the world were smoking marijuana, growing dreadlocks and flashing the red, gold and green of the Ethiopian flag as symbols of their love of reggae music, without any knowledge or belief in the religion of Rastafarianism itself. Political parties in Jamaica also co-opted the symbols of the religion, using reggae music as campaign songs and reggae lyrics as slogans. 111 The once-maligned, outlawed Rastafarian became the single most identifiable symbol of Jamaican culture and was used by the Jamaican government to promote tourism. 112 Although Rastafarianism itself was being exhausted and co-opted, reggae continued to gain more and more sales around the world until Bob Marley's death of cancer in 1981. It wasn't only the loss of reggae's biggest star that contributed to the music's slump though, it was also the election of right-wing Prime Minister Edward Seaga, which coincided with similarly stifling conservative backlashes in America and Britain. 113

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76 Owens, Joseph. Dread: The Rastafarians of Jamaica. Heinemann, 1982.

77 King, Stephen A. Reggae, Rastafari, and the Rhetoric of Social Control, 10. Mississippi: University of Mississippi Press, 2002.

78 Dekker, Desmond. "The Israelites", 1968.

79 Another interesting cross-over between the Nation of Islam and the Rastafarians: The father of Malcolm X, the most infamous minister of the NOI, worked in Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association. X, Malcolm. The Autobiography of Malcolm X. NY: Ballantine Books, 1965. 80 King, 11.

81 Baumgartner, 222.

82 Winders, James A. "From 'Reggae, Rastafarians and Revolution: Rock Music in the Third World." Reggae, Rasta, revolution: Jamaican music from ska to dub, edited by Chris Potash. NY: Schirmer Books, 1997. 14-15.

83 Baumgartner, 224.

84 Winders, 14-15.

85 Furgusson, Isaac. "'So Much Things to Say': The Journey of Bob Marley". Reggae, Rasta, revolution, 53.

86 King, 27.

87 Winders, 16.

88 Willner, Jeff. "Ethiopia to Sudan". <link> , August 21, 2001.

89 Winders, 16.

90 King, xvi.

91 King, 11.

92 Anonymous, "Emperor Haile Selassie (1930-1974)". <link>, 2004.

93 Winders, 16.

94 Baumgartner, 223.

95 King, 11.

96 Revelation 20: 8.

97 Romeo, Max. "War Ina Babylon", War Ina Babylon, 1975.

98 Anderson, Rick. "War Ina Babylon", All Music Guide.

<link3>, April 2nd, 2004.

99 Reckord, Verena. "Reggae, Rastafarianism and Cultural Identity". Reggae, Rasta, revolution, 9.

100 King, 46.

101 King, 46.

102 King, 45, quoting Linton Kwesi Johnson.

103 Williams, Willie. "Armagideon Time", 1979.

104 In another crossover between Rastafarianism and The Nation of Islam, Jimmy Cliff actually retired and converted to the NOI during the mid 70s. He returned to music and Rastafarianism later in the decade though. Interview with Rolling Stone, "Jimmy Cliff: Paving the Way for Reggae", August 6 1981.

105 Marley, Bob. "The Belly Full (But We Hungry)", Natty Dread, 1975.

106Bush, Josh. "Exodus", All Music Guide. <link>, April, 6, 2004.

107 Marley, Bob. "Exodus", Exodus, 1977.

108King, 94.

109Greene, Jo-Ann. "Two Sevens Clash", Two Sevens Clash, 1977.

110 Reckord, 11-12. 111 King, 137. 112 King, 123-125. 113 De Stefano, George. "Remember Reggae?", Reggae, Rasta, Revolution, 88.