Originally posted to Instagram, June 6, 2020.
"Well, the oppressors are trying to get me down
Trying to drive me underground
And they think that they have got the battle won
I say, 'Forgive them, Lord, they know not what they've done,'
'Cause as sure as the sun will shine
I'm gonna get my share now, what's mine
And then the harder they come
The harder they fall, one and all"
I had a totally different album post planned for today, but earlier this week, I unearthed this classic 70s soundtrack from another box of records put out on the curb by @laura.fries' neighbor, and then a day or two later I read about the title song being used in Black Lives Matter protests in the UK. I figured there was no better time to share this record with all of you- Various Artists, 'The Harder They Come'.
This album began its life as the soundtrack to a hit 1972 Jamaican gangster film. Internationally, though, this collection of classic reggae tracks from the late 60s and early 70s was the outside world's introduction to the danceable rhythm and lyrical social commentary of Jamaican pop music. It was wildly popular. Every song on the album became a classic and inspired covers in other popular music genres (punk, disco, pop, etc.), and I don't think it's an exaggeration to say it changed the course of popular music in the 1970s. All of this from out of the music scene of one small island in the Caribbean, at the time recently independent from colonial rule. And not only is this album musically historic and lyrically relevant, it's also physically impossible to listen to classic reggae and be sad at the same time. So if you haven't listened to it before, do yourself a favor and listen to 'The Harder They Come'. You'll be glad you did.
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