About the Author:
During the 80's, Beth Lesser edited and published Reggae Quarterly Magazine, the first international reggae publication to focus on Dance Hall style music.
In 1989, Ms Lesser was asked to write what became the first book to examine the digital revolution in Jamaican music, King Jammys, published by Black Star in Finland. An expanded edition was later published by ECW Press, Toronto, Canada, in 2002.
A few years later, Soul Jazz, requested that Ms Lesser write a book about the 80's that could showcase her photographs from the period. Dance Hall: The Rise of Dance Hall Culture came out in 2008.
In 1989, Ms Lesser was asked to write what became the first book to examine the digital revolution in Jamaican music, King Jammys, published by Black Star in Finland. An expanded edition was later published by ECW Press, Toronto, Canada, in 2002.
A few years later, Soul Jazz, requested that Ms Lesser write a book about the 80's that could showcase her photographs from the period. Dance Hall: The Rise of Dance Hall Culture came out in 2008.
Details
Format: Flex Cover Book, 12" x 12", 218pp
Label: Soul Jazz Books
Year: 2023
Condition: New
Originally published in 2008.
The definitive photography book and essential guide to Jamaican Dancehall in the 1980s featuring 100s and 100s of amazing photographs - all with accompanying text, interviews and biographies.
'Dancehall' is an essential reference book for anyone interested in Reggae and captures a previously unseen era of musical culture, fashion and lifestyle in stunning, vibrant color.
Dancehall is a culture that encompasses music, fashion, drugs, guns, art, community, technology, and more. Born in the 1950s out of the neighbourhood soundsystems of Kingston, Dancehall grew to its height in the 1980s before a massive influx of drugs and guns made the scene too dangerous for many.
Today Dancehall remains at the centre of Jamaican musical and cultural life. From its roots in Kingston in the 1950s to its heyday in the 1980s, Dancehall conquered the globe spreading to the USA, UK, Canada, Japan, Europe and beyond.
In the early 1980s Jamaica was in the throes of political and gang violence - photographer Beth Lesser ventured where few other dared and this book is a never-before-seen record of the exciting, dangerous and vibrant world of Dancehall.
Living in Jamaica in the late 70s and early 80s she photographed and documented a cultural explosion as producers, singers, DJs and soundsystems who all made a living out of the slums of Kingston. With unprecedented access to the incredibly vibrant music scene during this period, Beth Lesser’s photographs are a unique way into a previously hidden part of Jamaican culture.
Label: Soul Jazz Books
Year: 2023
Condition: New
Originally published in 2008.
The definitive photography book and essential guide to Jamaican Dancehall in the 1980s featuring 100s and 100s of amazing photographs - all with accompanying text, interviews and biographies.
'Dancehall' is an essential reference book for anyone interested in Reggae and captures a previously unseen era of musical culture, fashion and lifestyle in stunning, vibrant color.
Dancehall is a culture that encompasses music, fashion, drugs, guns, art, community, technology, and more. Born in the 1950s out of the neighbourhood soundsystems of Kingston, Dancehall grew to its height in the 1980s before a massive influx of drugs and guns made the scene too dangerous for many.
Today Dancehall remains at the centre of Jamaican musical and cultural life. From its roots in Kingston in the 1950s to its heyday in the 1980s, Dancehall conquered the globe spreading to the USA, UK, Canada, Japan, Europe and beyond.
In the early 1980s Jamaica was in the throes of political and gang violence - photographer Beth Lesser ventured where few other dared and this book is a never-before-seen record of the exciting, dangerous and vibrant world of Dancehall.
Living in Jamaica in the late 70s and early 80s she photographed and documented a cultural explosion as producers, singers, DJs and soundsystems who all made a living out of the slums of Kingston. With unprecedented access to the incredibly vibrant music scene during this period, Beth Lesser’s photographs are a unique way into a previously hidden part of Jamaican culture.