Product Details

• Format: Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Shanachie
• VHS Release Date: July 27, 1993
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 6301311876
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #386,098 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Fans of 1970s reggae are sure to rejoice at the chance to hear Jimmy Cliff and Joe Higgs talk about their music, to see hyperkinetic producer-musician Lee "Scratch" Perry at work in his legendary Black Ark studio (with Junior Murvin, the Heptones, and the Upsetters), and to enjoy the lively sounds of the Mighty Diamonds, Ras Michael, and U-Roy in concert. Fans of Jamaica's best-known musical export, Bob Marley and the Wailers, may be a little disappointed, however, because the documentary includes only a couple of brief performance clips--though, granted, even momentary glimpses of Mr. Music at his peak are better than none at all.

This 1977 installment of director Jeremy Marre's 14-part Beats of the Heart series also features early black-and-white footage of Jimmy Cliff and Toots & the Maytals in concert, the Gladiators in the studio, and the Abyssinians, Third World, and Inner Circle in rehearsal. Scenes of Kingston street life are interspersed with the performance footage and interviews to illustrate the narrator's claim that "Reggae music is much more than entertainment in Jamaica today. It's a powerful social force that mirrors the pressures of everyday life, putting them into words and rhythm--describing, revealing, persuading." --Kathleen C. Fennessy

From the Back Cover

Kingston, Jamaica, 1977 -- a flashpoint year for reggae music and Jamaica: police and thieves battling in the street as politicians battle for power and reggae musicians fight for peoples' souls. "Roots, Rock, Reggae" presents a rare glimpse into the roots of reggae from the rough and tumble Trenchtown ghetto to the placid hills behind Kingston where followers of Rastafari drum and sing hymns. Features performances, interviews, and studio scenes with Jimmy Cliff, Bob Marley, Toots and The Maytals, Jacob Miller & Inner Circle, The Abysinnians, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Ras Michael & Sons of Negus, Joe Higgs and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Top-rankin' documentary, February 3, 2004

By 

Xam "mixed media man" (nyc) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Roots Rock Reggae - Inside the Jamaican Music Scene (DVD)

Anyone who is interested in roots reggae and dub will absolutely flip out over this documentary. Filmed in 1977, an incredibly important year in Jamaica, it covers the music/culture/politics of Jamaica (mostly music though). With unforgettable moments- like entering Lee "Scratch" Perry's BlackArk studio while the Heptones are recording. Then there's the late great Jacob Miller, in underwear, working out a song with the InnerCircle. The Gladiators recording, Mighty Diamonds live, and Joe Gibbs sings a beautiful trenchtown song. Get the idea? This is hugely important to anyone who loves this excellent music. The narration is also insightful and there are many scenes which capture tranchtown and the hard life of Jamaica.
This DVD is an absolute must-have for anyone who loves reggae. The picture and sound quality are totally fine, especially considering this was a small documentary that was probably made with very little money. I am sure that the DVD transfer was as good as it could be (and it's perfectly fine).
One side-note to reviewers that complain about the picture/sound- this was a small project in 1977, this is not Star Wars or Terminator. Don't have some ridiculous expectation that everything has to be up to the level of a big-budget hollywood blockbuster Ultimate edition DVD. It seems that reviewers all over Amazon like to complain too much about picture/sound quality. I personally own hundreds of DVDs and find that many complaints i've read are just flat-out wrong. I think people just feel the need to complain about something, but don't let them fool you.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A chance to see the real thing, April 14, 2002

By 

john pazdan (chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Roots Rock Reggae - Inside the Jamaican Music Scene (DVD)

Are you a musician who needs some heavyweight inspiration? Do you love roots reggae? Ever wonder what the Black Ark/Randy's/ Randy's Record Store etc looked like from the inside in '77? It's all here, plus the Congos, a great Joe Gibbs acoustic song, Jacob Miller writing a tune with Inner Circle and a lot more.

14 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clarification, May 6, 2003

By 

John W. Lawler "The Dubguy" (Paradise, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Roots Rock Reggae - Inside the Jamaican Music Scene (DVD)

Just to clarify something: in another review it is stated "at one point, it makes the erroneous claim that Rastafarianism was started by Marcus Garvey, which is not true". Well, it is true (sort of), although Marcus himself wasn't a rastifarian - a statement (prophesy) he made during a speech, that a "king (of kings) will rise out of Afrika, from the line of David" was what initially sparked the Rastifarian belief, which officially started when Haile Seliassie (a name that came with the crowning - his birth name was Ras Tafari, get it?), 225th in line from the house of David, was crowned as Emperor of Ethiopia. When Burning Spear sings "Macus Garvey words come to pass..." he is reffering to the prophesy...