I Don't Like Reggae, I Love It: The History of Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da
Ska Boom - An American Ska & Reggae PodcastPlay episode
Show notes
In this episode of I Don’t Like Reggae, I Love It, a special audio series on the historical origins and impact of reggae on popular music, I go back to the beginning and tell the story behind the granddaddy of all cod reggae tracks – Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da by The Beatles. As Beatlemania was reaching a frenzy in 1964, ska music was also exploding in popularity in the UK. And like everyone else in England, The Beatles were listening. After an early and brief exploration with ska in their song "I Call Your Name," it was just a few years later that the band would experiment with Jamaican music again but in a bigger, more direct way. As more non-reggae artists began to appropriate the sound of reggae and white audiences responded, this new “regatta de blanc” as The Police called their second album, received a less than flattering name – cod reggae. It’s a harsh but efficient way of describing reggae music reconfigured for a mass audience.If you’ve listened and received some value from this episode, then please help support the podcast for as little as $3 per month on Patreon. Supporters get access to exclusive content like special episodes of this series and advanced promo chapters from the book. Just go to patreon.com/skaboompodcast for more information or click this link: https://patreon.com/skaboompodcast?utm_medium=social...Please note: The music clips included in this podcast fall under the “Fair Use Doctrine” as defined by Section 107 of the Copyright Act. The law allows for use of music clips for purposes of criticism, comment, and news reporting.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
