Originally broadcast on Channel 4 in 1982, this exhaustively researched sixpart series covers the history and evolution of Jamaican music. Its first appearance on DVD, it covers the formative styles of mento, ska, rocksteady and sound-system culture, to the then present day of 1981-82 in the immediate aftermath of the death of Bob Marley. Enthusiastically narrated by Mikey Dread, Deep Roots Music is a classic document of its time, shot on film on location in Jamaica and impressively crammed with an informative mix of interviews with folklorists, cultural historians, musicians and an impressive stash of previously unseen footage.
Part One examines the African roots of traditional Jamaican music and how diverse forms such as poco, mento and calypso morped into ska with rare archive footage of The Skatalites and Toots & The Maytals. Part Two concentrates its focus on the sound-systems through charting the evolution of DJing and toasting with a combination of historic footage of and interviews with Tommy McCook and The Skatalites, Millie Small, U-Roy and the Jack Ruby Hi-Power sound-system pumping out the watts on a Saturday night Ocho Rios. Crucial business all round.
