- Paperback: 351 pages
- Publisher: University of the West Indies Press (2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 9766400288
- ISBN-13: 978-9766400286
From the Back Cover
"Rock It Come Over" describes the music and lore of slavery from
the early sixteenth century through emancipation in 1838 to the mid
twentieth century. Lewin explores the role of music in the lives of the
slaves as a method of communication, as a form of resistance and
subversion, as a repository of oral history and beliefs, and,
ultimately, as a means of survival. The work is based on decades of
research into the music sung and played by the working people of
Jamaica. Lewin relates the music to traditions that preserve the African
way of life, such as Revivalism and its strong heritage of faith and
worship. She has a special interest in the Kumina cult and describes in
detail the life and beliefs of Kumina queen, Imogene "Queenie" Kennedy. "Rock
It Come Over" is the most extensive study of Jamaican fold music yet
published. It is also an examination of the roots of that music and a
record of the folk heritage that is, in spite of many efforts, rapidly
retreating before the pressures of life today.
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