SOLID FOUNDATION: An Oral History Of Reggae (David Katz via Bloomsbury)

Despite the recent crop of books covering the history of reggae from myriad angles, there are many reasons to purchase ‘Solid Foundation’ by David Katz. Katz’s first book, ‘People Funny Boy’, tackled the tricky enigma of producer Lee Perry, and one might see ‘Solid Foundation’ as a widening of the viewfinder putting Perry’s story, alongside countless others, into context. Beginning with Jamaican music’s earliest incarnations, the ball quickly starts rolling with th earliest purveyors of ska, and the very first of the islands’ soundmen – owner’s of the huge outdoor speaker rigs that form the lifeblood of reggae to this very day.

From the outset, Katz’s thorough research puts paid to certain n apocryphal tales, and sets the music and people of Jamaica into context. For example, the fact that one of the earliest sound operators was Chinese, or the mixed Cuban, West Indian and in one case, Jewish parentage of some of the musicians and producers. Bearing this in mind the history of a music that is both an amalgamation and an original form starts to make perfect sense.

As ska melds into rocksteady, the book follows reggae’s development where deejays such as U-Roy prefigure dancehall and rap music, and engineers like King Tubby make sounds that would influence musicians and producers the world over.

Having interviewed over 250 people for the book, Katz has a job on his hands keeping to a strict narrative, and he by and large succeeds. Occasionally the story creaks under the sheer weight of detail he has uncovered, but he always manages to bring it back to its’ themes before it descends into a mere factual list.

Crucially, this is an oral history as opposed to Katz’s interpretation and understanding, and though he fills in certain gaps where necessary, it is really the music’s purveyors that unfold the story. Katz extracts amusing and informative anecdotes from Bunny Lee, Dennis Alcapone, Prince Allah and Sugar Minott, amongst others, that brings the individual characters to life and provides a natural insight into the creative process.

Most importantly ‘Solid Foundation’ is a thoroughly readable account that serves as a great introduction for someone who wants to go further. 9/10

Chris Menist