Before reggae, rock steady, or even ska, mento ruled Jamaica's musical consciousness. Originally a rural folk music, coalesced from African and European influences, mento took on a more modern tenor ...

A dozen years ago, finding Jamaican mento music from the 1950s was nearly impossible. The pre-ska, acoustic calypso music -- which can still be heard on the island's resorts and tourist spots -- was ...

KINGSTON Jamaica – For centuries, the voice of the Jamaican people has been amplified through its music, the foundation of which is mento. While the genre lost its sway by the 1950s, its legacy has ...

Chris Nickson reviews the CD Mento Madness: Motta's Jamaican Mento 1951-56. The disc is a compilation of material from the Jamaican "MRS" label founded by Kingston business man Stanley Motta. The CD ...

In Jamaican music’s immediate family, there are reggae, dancehall, ska, rocksteady, dub and mento and Nyabinghi. Close cousins? That would be hip-hop, reggaeton, EDM and Afrobeats. Learn about all the ...

During rehearsal, the music is spiritually uplifting for members of the Jamaican Folk Revue. In the church meeting room, they tell stories through lyrics, about love and marriage, dance and games, ...

Gilzene and the Blue Light Mento Band revive Jamaica’s earliest recorded music complete with “rhumba box”, while the precocious Portico Quartet carve out their distinctive other-worldly indie jazz ...