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Maroon Music from the Earliest Free Black Communities of Jamaica: Drums of Def
- Artist:
Various Artists - Release Date: 1983
- Total Time: 41:44
- Type: Collection (various artists), Lyrics are included with the album
- Genre: World
Review
For anyone interested in the roots of reggae and other popular Afro-Carribean musical forms, these rare field recordings of the ritualistic chants of the Nyahbingi order of the Rastafarian religion will provide an invaluable cultural history lesson. Recorded during President Ronald Reagan's historic 1982 visit to Jamaica, the album captures the passionate mood as the hills of Trelawney ring with the pulsating sounds of the Nyahbingi drums. Simple songs like "Got to Move" and "Keep Cool Babylon" feature repetitive chants accompanied only by trancelike drumming and rattles, providing the missing link between modern reggae and its ancient African roots. But the righteous anger of lyrics criticizing Reagan, Pope John Paul II, and other oppressive forces of Babylon stands in stark contrast to conscious reggae's more positive sociopolitical messages. This is raw, primal stuff, but undeniably powerful. ~ Bret Love, All Music GuideTracks
| Track Title | Composers | Performers | Time |
| Got to Move | (2:53) | ||
| Tell Them Wherever I Go | (3:44) | ||
| Weeping and Moaning | (3:39) | ||
| I, I, I | (3:24) | ||
| Fire Man | (6:26) | ||
| Fire Burn | (2:27) | ||
| White Boy a Follower | (3:40) | ||
| Keep Cool Babylon | (3:47) | ||
| Think I Never Know | (5:45) | ||
| Armagiddion | (5:59) |
