What Are Some Books About Mento Music?
What Are Some Books About Mento Music? Though often marginalized in mainstream Jamaican music scholarship, mento has inspired a range of academic, historical, and cultural publications that document its musical structure, social role, and historical evolution—serving as key texts for students, researchers, and cultural practitioners.
Introduction
Mento’s role as Jamaica’s first recorded popular music form makes it essential to the country’s musical and cultural history. Yet, scholarly and literary attention to mento has been relatively limited, often folded into broader works on Caribbean or Jamaican music. This article provides a curated list of foundational books—some dedicated entirely to mento, others with essential chapters or analyses—that offer rich insights into mento’s origins, development, lyrical style, and influence.
1. Foundational Works on Jamaican Folk and Popular Music
a. Olive Lewin – Rock It Come Over: The Folk Music of Jamaica (2000)
- This is the most authoritative source on mento’s folkloric roots.
- Based on decades of fieldwork, Lewin analyzes:
- Mento’s rhythmic structures,
- Instrumentation (e.g., rhumba box, banjo),
- Oral transmission and social function.
APA Citation:
Lewin, O. (2000). Rock It Come Over: The Folk Music of Jamaica. University of the West Indies Press.
b. Kenneth Bilby & Peter Manuel – Caribbean Currents: Caribbean Music from Rumba to Reggae (2006)
- Offers a comparative overview, with a dedicated section on mento.
- Places mento in the wider Caribbean soundscape.
- Valuable for understanding cross-genre influences.
APA Citation:
Manuel, P., & Bilby, K. (2006). Caribbean Currents: Caribbean Music from Rumba to Reggae. Temple University Press.
2. Broader Reggae and Jamaican Music Histories with Mento Coverage
a. Steve Barrow & Peter Dalton – The Rough Guide to Reggae (2004)
- Focuses on reggae, but includes a historical preface on mento and early Jamaican recordings.
- Useful as a gateway text for readers transitioning from reggae back to mento.
APA Citation:
Barrow, S., & Dalton, P. (2004). The Rough Guide to Reggae. Rough Guides.
b. Kevin Chang & Wayne Chen – Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music (1998)
- Starts its narrative with mento as the cultural root of all subsequent genres.
- Blends anecdotal storytelling with academic research.
APA Citation:
Chang, K., & Chen, W. (1998). Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music. Temple University Press.
3. Ethnomusicological and Anthropological Perspectives
a. Michael Veal – Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae (2007)
- While focusing on dub and reggae, Veal’s work situates mento as an origin point of Jamaican musical aesthetics.
- Emphasizes rhythmic innovation and Afro-diasporic continuity.
APA Citation:
Veal, M. E. (2007). Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae. Wesleyan University Press.
b. Kenneth Bilby – Words of Our Mouth, Meditations of Our Heart (2016)
- Features interviews with pioneering Jamaican musicians who often reflect on mento as a starting point in their careers.
- Oral histories and song transcriptions offer first-person insight into mento’s legacy.
APA Citation:
Bilby, K. (2016). Words of Our Mouth, Meditations of Our Heart. Wesleyan University Press.
4. Jamaican Cultural Studies and Identity
a. Mervyn Alleyne – Roots of Jamaican Culture (1988)
- While not focused solely on mento, Alleyne explores how mento encapsulates Afro-Jamaican cultural retentions, linguistic patterns, and social dynamics.
- Essential for understanding mento beyond music—as a cultural artifact.
APA Citation:
Alleyne, M. (1988). Roots of Jamaican Culture. Pluto Press.
5. Supplementary Sources and Collections
- Jamaica Journal (Institute of Jamaica) – Occasional articles on mento history, lyrics, and performance.
- Gleaner Archives – Historical newspaper features on mento bands, festivals, and early record labels.
- Global Reggae (edited by Carolyn Cooper) – Mentions mento’s influence in shaping Jamaican identity.
Conclusion
Books about mento may not flood the market, but the ones that exist are culturally vital and academically rich. From Olive Lewin’s anthropological fieldwork to Bilby’s oral histories and Barrow’s global reggae guide, these works form the literary spine of mento studies. For any student, researcher, or music educator, they are indispensable in understanding Jamaica’s first voice in popular music.
References
- Alleyne, M. (1988). Roots of Jamaican Culture. Pluto Press.
- Barrow, S., & Dalton, P. (2004). The Rough Guide to Reggae. Rough Guides.
- Bilby, K. (2016). Words of Our Mouth, Meditations of Our Heart. Wesleyan University Press.
- Chang, K., & Chen, W. (1998). Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music. Temple University Press.
- Lewin, O. (2000). Rock It Come Over: The Folk Music of Jamaica. University of the West Indies Press.
- Manuel, P., & Bilby, K. (2006). Caribbean Currents: Caribbean Music from Rumba to Reggae. Temple University Press.
- Veal, M. E. (2007). Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae. Wesleyan University Press.