Rock It Come Over: The Folk Music of Jamaica by Dr. Olive Lewin, published by The University of the West Indies Press, is to be launched tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. at the undercroft of the Assembly Hall, UWI, Mona Campus.
The book describes the music and lore of slavery from the early 16th century through emancipation in 1838 to the mid-20th century.
The author 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. Dr. Lewin relates the music to traditions that preserve an 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.
The book 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.
Dr. Lewin is director of the Jamaica Folk Singers and cultural director of Grace Kennedy and Co. Ltd.
