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Quiz about Real Roots Reggae
Quiz about Real Roots Reggae

Real Roots Reggae Trivia Quiz


This quiz covers international reggae artists from the 70s and early 80s era which was the height of the roots Rastafarian and the social consciousness movement in reggae music.

A multiple-choice quiz by GavinXL. Estimated time: 7 mins.
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Author
GavinXL
Time
7 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
339,213
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
15
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
10 / 15
Plays
309
Last 3 plays: Guest 1 (11/15), Guest 82 (3/15), Guest 66 (4/15).
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Question 1 of 15
1. This Saint Ann's Bay native is one of the most revered of the first generation of roots reggae artists. His breakthrough album was a 1975 masterpiece dedicated to black liberation leader Marcus Garvey. Nearly all of his 40-plus albums have themes of Rastafarian spirituality. His birthname is Winston Rodney but he's known to reggae music fans as: Hint


Question 2 of 15
2. This longstanding reggae group was a vocal trio formed by St. Catherine Parish native Joseph Hill. Known for the fervent intensity of their militant Rastafarian stance, their 1978 album "Two Sevens Clash" became a classic of the roots reggae genre. They also sang "The International Herb", an anthem to the healing powers of cannabis. Hint


Question 3 of 15
3. Wailing Souls are Kingston vocal group that has gone through numerous personnel changes over the years. One of their biggest hits had the same title (but it wasn't the same song) as a best selling 1970 song by Motown soul singer Edwin Starr. What was the same name/different song title that was a big hit for both the Wailing Souls and Edwin Starr?
Hint


Question 4 of 15
4. Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare are the most celebrated drum and bass session players in reggae music. In addition to playing with such pop music luminaries as Grace Jones, Bob Dylan and No Doubt, Sly and Robbie have played on hundreds of recording sessions. What reggae band have Sly and Robbie been full time members of since 1980? Hint


Question 5 of 15
5. Known as the Cooler Ruler, this reggae singer died on October 25, 2010 in London England. His velvety smooth crooning voice earned him the title of the king of lover's rock, but he also wrote sufferer's tales, songs of Rastararian consciousness and protest songs aimed at the corrupt Babylon system. He was the founder of the Kingston based African Museum record label. Who was this prolific reggae musician?
Hint


Question 6 of 15
6. This Kingston based roots reggae singer laid the groundwork for the rise of the dancehall music scene and was a protégé of reggae music producer Coxsone Dodd. His albums "Ghetto-Ology" (1983), "Slice of the Cake" (1984) and "Sufferer's Choice" (1988) exemplify the "dubwise riddims" of the dancehall style. His single "Rub A Dub Sound" laid the groundwork of the emerging "ragga" style. Hint


Question 7 of 15
7. This UK based was formed by a group of West Indian nationals living in the Handsworth ghetto of the British steel manufacturing town of Birmingham. This band gained notoriety playing as an opening act in punk clubs for groups like the Clash, Generation X and the Stranglers. The band was fronted by singer/guitarist David Hinds and the band wore elaborate stage costumes for their live appearances. When playing the anti-racist anthem, "Ku Klux Klan" band members donned white sheets and staged a mock lynching of a black victim. Who were these Handsworth based reggae revolutionaries? Hint


Question 8 of 15
8. This Kingston born, UK based dub poet first gained notoriety as a political activist and member of the Race Today collective. Many of his early dub poems chronicled the uprisings against the London police by Jamaican nationals in London's Brixton ghetto. On his first album "Dread Beat an' Blood" (1978) the artist recited poetry in Jamaican patios while backed by the music of Dennis Bovell's Dub Band. Who was this unique innovator of dub poetry? Hint


Question 9 of 15
9. This reggae music legend is one of the earliest innovators of the deejay style of reggae music. His albums "Rasta Ambassador", "Natty Rebel" and "Jah Son of Africa" made him a sensation in the UK in the late Seventies. His style of toasting is utterly relaxed while complete in synchronicity with the music. He was born Ewart Beckford in Jones Town Jamaica but reggae music fans all over the world know him as: Hint


Question 10 of 15
10. This member of the original Wailers refused to travel with the band on the American leg of its 1973 tour ostensibly because of the poor quality of the food available in the United States. Which member of the Wailers refused to tour because of his strict adherence to the Rastafarian ital dietary regimen? Hint


Question 11 of 15
11. Which one of these reggae music artists was NOT killed by a gun shot incident? Hint


Question 12 of 15
12. This reggae singer was born with the name Ervin Spencer in the rough and tumble Waterhouse district of West Kingston. He was a founding member of Black Uhuru, prior to Sly and Robbie's involvement with the band, but left Black Uhuru in 1977 to pursue a solo career. This sweet voiced singer was at the height of his popularity when he released a dub heavy album called "Laser Beam" backed by a Sly and Robbie edition of the Aggrovators and along with members of the Roots Radics. In partnership with a songwriter named Gold, he produced the popular 1982 album "Ravin' Tonight." The performing name used by Ervin Spencer is which one of the following stage names? Hint


Question 13 of 15
13. This reggae instrumentalist was best known for his association with uber producer King Tubby and his virtuosity on a children's wind instrument known as the melodica. His all instrumental album "East of the River Nile" (1977) was universally hailed as dub reggae masterpiece and was one of the few dub albums that reached a sizable cross-over audience. Who is this notable dub music artist and reggae producer? Hint


Question 14 of 15
14. Which maverick entrepreneur had his earliest business success founding a record label at age 21 with the mission of bringing unknown reggae artists to the attention of audiences in both the UK and the United States? This swashbuckling international titan of business is practically a household name in both the UK and the USA. Hint


Question 15 of 15
15. A reggae music quiz isn't complete without at least one question about the lyrics of Bob Marley. Which 1974 Bob Marley and the Wailers song contains the following lyrics:

"Cause - 'cause - 'cause I remember when a we used to sit
In a government yard in Trenchtown,
Oba - obaserving the hypocrites - yeah! -
Mingle with the good people we meet, yeah!
Good friends we have, oh, good friends we have lost
Along the way, yeah!
In this great future, you can't forget your past"
Hint



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Score Distribution

quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. This Saint Ann's Bay native is one of the most revered of the first generation of roots reggae artists. His breakthrough album was a 1975 masterpiece dedicated to black liberation leader Marcus Garvey. Nearly all of his 40-plus albums have themes of Rastafarian spirituality. His birthname is Winston Rodney but he's known to reggae music fans as:

Answer: Burning Spear

In 1969, another St. Ann's Parish native, Bob Marley, arranged the meeting between Winston Rodney and Studio One producer Coxsone Dodd that resulted the beginning of Burning Spear's highly successful four decade singing career.
2. This longstanding reggae group was a vocal trio formed by St. Catherine Parish native Joseph Hill. Known for the fervent intensity of their militant Rastafarian stance, their 1978 album "Two Sevens Clash" became a classic of the roots reggae genre. They also sang "The International Herb", an anthem to the healing powers of cannabis.

Answer: Culture

Culture ended its four decade run as a vocal group on August 19, 2006, when the beloved lead singer Joseph Hill collapsed on stage and passed away.
3. Wailing Souls are Kingston vocal group that has gone through numerous personnel changes over the years. One of their biggest hits had the same title (but it wasn't the same song) as a best selling 1970 song by Motown soul singer Edwin Starr. What was the same name/different song title that was a big hit for both the Wailing Souls and Edwin Starr?

Answer: War

Edwin Starr's version of "War" was originally recorded by the Temptations and written by Temptation member Norman Whitfield. The completely different reggae song with the same title was recorded in 1984 by the Wailing Souls and featured session superstars Sly and Robbie on drums and bass. The Wailing Souls version of "War" appears in numerous roots reggae anthologies.
4. Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare are the most celebrated drum and bass session players in reggae music. In addition to playing with such pop music luminaries as Grace Jones, Bob Dylan and No Doubt, Sly and Robbie have played on hundreds of recording sessions. What reggae band have Sly and Robbie been full time members of since 1980?

Answer: Black Uhuru

A quartet of Black Uhuru albums: "Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (1981), "Red" (1981), "Chill Out" (1982) and "Anthem" (1984) are among the most influential roots reggae albums of the Eighties. Sly and Robbie continued to perform with Black Uhuru on "Dynasty" (2001) the band's only album in the first decade of the 21st Century.
5. Known as the Cooler Ruler, this reggae singer died on October 25, 2010 in London England. His velvety smooth crooning voice earned him the title of the king of lover's rock, but he also wrote sufferer's tales, songs of Rastararian consciousness and protest songs aimed at the corrupt Babylon system. He was the founder of the Kingston based African Museum record label. Who was this prolific reggae musician?

Answer: Gregory Isaacs

Gregory Isaacs and the Roots Radics scored his biggest international hit with "Night Nurse" in 1982. The All Music Guide estimates that Gregory Isaacs has released over 500 albums in Jamaica, North America and the UK over his 40 year singing career.
6. This Kingston based roots reggae singer laid the groundwork for the rise of the dancehall music scene and was a protégé of reggae music producer Coxsone Dodd. His albums "Ghetto-Ology" (1983), "Slice of the Cake" (1984) and "Sufferer's Choice" (1988) exemplify the "dubwise riddims" of the dancehall style. His single "Rub A Dub Sound" laid the groundwork of the emerging "ragga" style.

Answer: Sugar Minott

Sugar Minott was the voice of Kingston's downtrodden and specialized in singing sufferer's tales of unemployment and the harsh living conditions in the Trenchtown ghetto. Sugar Minott died of unknown causes on July 10, 2010, after being admitted to the University Hospital of the West Indies in St. Andrew with chest pains.
7. This UK based was formed by a group of West Indian nationals living in the Handsworth ghetto of the British steel manufacturing town of Birmingham. This band gained notoriety playing as an opening act in punk clubs for groups like the Clash, Generation X and the Stranglers. The band was fronted by singer/guitarist David Hinds and the band wore elaborate stage costumes for their live appearances. When playing the anti-racist anthem, "Ku Klux Klan" band members donned white sheets and staged a mock lynching of a black victim. Who were these Handsworth based reggae revolutionaries?

Answer: Steel Pulse

Steel Pulse was the first reggae band to ever play at an American Presidential inauguration (Bill Clinton's in 1993).
8. This Kingston born, UK based dub poet first gained notoriety as a political activist and member of the Race Today collective. Many of his early dub poems chronicled the uprisings against the London police by Jamaican nationals in London's Brixton ghetto. On his first album "Dread Beat an' Blood" (1978) the artist recited poetry in Jamaican patios while backed by the music of Dennis Bovell's Dub Band. Who was this unique innovator of dub poetry?

Answer: Linton Kwesi Johnson

The dub poetry of Linton Kwesi Johnson set the stage for the rise in popularity of rap music in the United States, in the late Seventies and early Eighties. In 1985 Linton Kwesi Johnson toured the United States with Gil Scott Heron, the New York based jazz poet who was another influential force on contemporary American rappers.
9. This reggae music legend is one of the earliest innovators of the deejay style of reggae music. His albums "Rasta Ambassador", "Natty Rebel" and "Jah Son of Africa" made him a sensation in the UK in the late Seventies. His style of toasting is utterly relaxed while complete in synchronicity with the music. He was born Ewart Beckford in Jones Town Jamaica but reggae music fans all over the world know him as:

Answer: U-Roy

U-Roy wasn't the first Jamaican toaster but he's often referred to as "the Originator." He began working as a sound system deejay in 1961.
10. This member of the original Wailers refused to travel with the band on the American leg of its 1973 tour ostensibly because of the poor quality of the food available in the United States. Which member of the Wailers refused to tour because of his strict adherence to the Rastafarian ital dietary regimen?

Answer: Bunny Wailer

Bunny Wailer claimed he had food issues, but by 1973, many observers say that both Bunny and Peter Tosh were at odds with Bob Marley because of his emerging role as the central performer and frontman for the band. By the end of 1973 both Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh were out of the Wailers. Bunny Wailer's promising solo career never took off because of his reluctance to travel outside of Jamaica.
11. Which one of these reggae music artists was NOT killed by a gun shot incident?

Answer: Gregory Isaacs

Isaacs died in London in 2010 after a long battle with lung cancer. Even Bob Marley himself was the of survivor gunshot wounds inflicted by a Jamaican posse member in the home of then Jamaican Prime Minster Michael Manley. Ironically Marley and Manley were meeting at Manley's home to plan the "Smile Jamaica", a free concert which called a moratorium on gun violence during the 1976 Jamaican national elections.
12. This reggae singer was born with the name Ervin Spencer in the rough and tumble Waterhouse district of West Kingston. He was a founding member of Black Uhuru, prior to Sly and Robbie's involvement with the band, but left Black Uhuru in 1977 to pursue a solo career. This sweet voiced singer was at the height of his popularity when he released a dub heavy album called "Laser Beam" backed by a Sly and Robbie edition of the Aggrovators and along with members of the Roots Radics. In partnership with a songwriter named Gold, he produced the popular 1982 album "Ravin' Tonight." The performing name used by Ervin Spencer is which one of the following stage names?

Answer: Don Carlos

Don Carlos reunited with the original members of Black Uhuru in 1990 to make the album "Now."
13. This reggae instrumentalist was best known for his association with uber producer King Tubby and his virtuosity on a children's wind instrument known as the melodica. His all instrumental album "East of the River Nile" (1977) was universally hailed as dub reggae masterpiece and was one of the few dub albums that reached a sizable cross-over audience. Who is this notable dub music artist and reggae producer?

Answer: Augustus Pablo

Augustus Pablo died of the nerve disorder myasthenia gravies on May 18, 1999. He was a strong believer in the Rastafarian religion.
14. Which maverick entrepreneur had his earliest business success founding a record label at age 21 with the mission of bringing unknown reggae artists to the attention of audiences in both the UK and the United States? This swashbuckling international titan of business is practically a household name in both the UK and the USA.

Answer: Richard Branson

Richard Branson's earliest business venture was founding the Virgin record label in 1971. Virgin and its subsidiary Front Line Records provided international distribution pipeline to bring the latest reggae music to fans in the United States, Canada, the UK and the rest of Europe. Branson's ubiquitous Virgin Group became the launching pad for his more more lucrative business projects such as Virgin Atlantic Airways, Virgin Mobile (telecommunications), Virgin Healthcare and Virgin Fuels. According to Wikipedia, Branson is a "transformational leader" in the management lexicon.
15. A reggae music quiz isn't complete without at least one question about the lyrics of Bob Marley. Which 1974 Bob Marley and the Wailers song contains the following lyrics: "Cause - 'cause - 'cause I remember when a we used to sit In a government yard in Trenchtown, Oba - obaserving the hypocrites - yeah! - Mingle with the good people we meet, yeah! Good friends we have, oh, good friends we have lost Along the way, yeah! In this great future, you can't forget your past"

Answer: No Woman No Cry

The Bob Marley songbook is considered to be one of the most enduring and valuable musical catalogs in the music publishing business. Marley's widow Rita and the nine Marley children still earn a windfall of royalty payments and music licensing fees, thirty years after his death.
Source: Author GavinXL

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