African Rock ‘n’ Roll Roots
Think rock ‘n’ roll is the devil’s music? Blame it on the drums.
The roots of rock can be traced all the way back to the throbbing tribal percussion of the Yoruba and Dahomean peoples, whose traditions stretched several hundred miles along the West African coast (from western Nigeria into Benin and Togo). As the natives of this region were sold into slavery, their traditions gradually spread throughout the “New World,” with Haitian Vodou, Brazilian Candomblé, Cuban Santería and Trinidadian Shango all originating from the same cultural sources and all connected via the transatlantic slave trade.
Each of these religions developed its own instruments and styles of rhythmic syncopation, but all had in common the ritualistic use of hypnotic percussion as the basis for transcendental (and often trance-inducing) songs of praise. As frightened slave owners in the Americas began to recognize the role of the drums in non-Christian forms of worship and illicit means of communication (after all, they don’t call it the “talking drum” for nothing!), the slaves were largely forced to abandon both their religious practices and the use of the drums.
But even as they developed a new form of praise-song– the spiritual– the enslaved Africans found ingenious ways to hold onto their ancient musical traditions, with the swing of an axe or a hammer done in time to the singing to keep the ever-important beat.
With the abolition of slavery, African-Americans soon added instruments like the guitar and the harmonica to turn the spiritual into the blues, the blues into jazz, then rhythm & blues, then rock ‘n’ roll, and later hip-hop. Now, several hundred years after its original importation, still the beat goes on. –Bret Love
If you enjoyed our story about African Rock ‘n’ Roll Roots, you might also like:
GLOBAL CULTURE: Ayub Ogada (Kenya)
GLOBAL CULTURE: The West African Griot
INTERVIEW: Sierra Leone Refugee All-Stars
