Trop Rock Music - what is it?
TROP ROCK (trop-rok) -- a mixture, including rock-n-roll and country music blended with an island style theme and lyrics. See also Buffettesque, Gulf & Western, and Caribilly.
This lens may demonstrate this diversity the best, and the artists I am including here are more nationally known than those from my other Trop Rock lenses: Trop Rock Music and Trop Rock Music - Some More Artists.
They are known as country artists, blues artists, reggae artists, and island artists. One common thread is that they are all artists of unquestionable talents and they are all connected to the tropics - and we claim them as part of the Trop Rock Nation. For those who already love the genre, you'll appreciate the information I have here for you. For those of you not quite convinced, thanks for stopping by -- pour yourself a boat drink and settle down under that palm tree and let's see what else we can find for you to listen to.
Bob Marley
Reggae music is part of trop rock -- possibly by virtue of it's connection to the islands, maybe it's something more ethereal than that. But, the two are connected. And, when you say reggae, most folks think first of Bob Marley. That he died of cancer in May of 1981 at the age of 36 has not diminished his success, nor his still growing popularity. Bob Marley's hits include "I Shot the Sheriff", "No Woman, No Cry", "Three Little Birds", "Exodus", "Could You Be Loved", "Jammin", "Redemption Song", and "One Love". His posthumous compilation album "Legend" (1984) is the best-selling reggae album ever, with sales of more than 12 million copies.from Wikipedia:
He was born February 6, 1945 in the small village of Nine Mile in Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica. He and Neville "Bunny" Livingston (later known as Bunny Wailer) were childhood friends, and they began playing music together in their teens. In 1963, Bob Marley, Bunny Livingston, Peter McIntosh, Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith formed a ska and rocksteady group, calling themselves "The Teenagers". They later changed their name to "The Wailing Rudeboys", then to "The Wailing Wailers", and finally to "The Wailers". By 1966, Braithwaite, Kelso, and Smith had left The Wailers, leaving the core trio of Marley, Livingston, and McIntosh. Marley took on the role of leader, singer, and main songwriter. The Wailers broke up in 1974 with each of the three main members going on to pursue solo careers. Despite the breakup, Marley continued recording as "Bob Marley & The Wailers" with a new backing band. In 1975, Marley had his international breakthrough with his first hit outside Jamaica, "No Woman, No Cry" from the Natty Dread album.
Bob Marley on Amazon
Legend - The Best Of Bob Marley And The Wailers (New Packaging)
Amazon Price: $10.49 (as of 07/10/2009) 
Marley Legend: An Illustrated Life of Bob Marley
Amazon Price: $23.10 (as of 07/10/2009)
One Love: The Very Best of Bob Marley & the Wailers
Amazon Price: (as of 07/10/2009)
Bob Marley - Positive Day T-Shirt
Amazon Price: (as of 07/10/2009)
Exodus
Amazon Price: (as of 07/10/2009)
Kenny Chesney
For some more great information on Kenny Chesney, see the excellent Kenny Chesney lens by Kimberly Dawn Wells here on Squidoo.from his website:
For Kenny Chesney - the singer/songwriter from Luttrell, TN, and the reigning Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year - music has always been the current that's run through his life. Kenny got his first guitar during his freshman year in college, and loved singing for people - even if it was just the dishwasher. His break came with a publishing deal at Acuff-Rose, an old school Nashville publishing company that once signed Hank Williams. Kenny Chesney grabbed on and didn't let go. Along the way, he's accrued some amazing stats: including three summers of over a million fans and playing stadium shows in markets like Pittsburgh, Boston, and Washington, DC. His albums "When The Sun Goes Down", "No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems", and "Greatest Hits" have passed quadruple platinum.
So, why is Kenny Chesney included with Trop Rock artists? I'll start with the fact that Kenny is a Jimmy Buffett fan (he is one of the guest artist's on Buffett's License To Chill" CD), and in turn, Buffett is a Chesney fan. And, well, give him a listen sometime - you can hear the islands in his tunes, and nearly feel the sand between your toes.
Kenny Chesney on Amazon
Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates
Amazon Price: $9.49 (as of 07/10/2009)
Kenny Chesney - Greatest Hits
Amazon Price: $8.99 (as of 07/10/2009)
Kenny Chesney - Road Case: The Movie
Amazon Price: $19.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
Kenny Chesney (Blue Banner Biographies)
Amazon Price: $23.13 (as of 07/10/2009)
Live: Live Those Songs Again
Amazon Price: $9.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
Trop Rock Legends on Flickr
Kenny Chesney in concert
Kenny Chesney in concert
Jerry Jeff Walker
Jerry Jeff Walker
The Sauce Boss in concert
The Sauce Boss & Big Jim
The Sauce Boss in concert
The Sauce Boss in concert
The Sauce Boss & Big Jim
The Sauce Boss in concert
The Sauce Boss & Big Jim
Jake Shimabukuro in concert
Jake Shimabukuro in concert
Jake Shimabukuro in concert
Jake Shimabukuro in concert
Bob Marley
Kenny Chesney andThe Old Blue Chair
Bob Marley mural on Haight Street
Jerry Jeff Walker at Gruene Hall
Memorial Bust Of Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
Jerry Jeff Walker in Key West, FL
Jerry Jeff Walker
Jerry Jeff Walker has been recording albums since 1967, and is still touring and performing today. He is the man credited with getting Jimmy Buffett started down the road that led to where he is today by giving him that first ride to Key West. He was born Ronald Clyde Crosby on March 16, 1942 and has achieved his great reknown as a country music singer. Among his legions of fans are many within the ParrotHead community, including Jimmy Buffett. Jerry Jeff has an annual birthday celebration bash in Austin, Texas. This party has become an enormous event in Texas and brings some of the biggest names in country music out for a night of picking and swapping stories under the Austin skyline. Jimmy Buffett attended the 2004 Birthday bash. In addition to yearly, very well attended sojourns to Belize, Walker was a featured performer at Meeting Of The Minds (annual Parrothead convention) in 2006 in Key West, FL. Check out the album "Cowboy Boots & Bathing Suits" that he recorded in Belize in 1998 to get a feel for his Trop Rock following. Jerry Jeff Walker on Amazon
Ultimate Collection
Amazon Price: $10.97 (as of 07/10/2009)
Gypsy Songman
Amazon Price: (as of 07/10/2009)
Mr. Bojangles
Amazon Price: $13.96 (as of 07/10/2009)
Jerry Jeff Walker: The One and Only
Amazon Price: (as of 07/10/2009)
Too Old to Change/Jerry Jeff
Amazon Price: (as of 07/10/2009)
Jake Shimabukuro
-- yep, that's a ukelele that he's playing!
Jake's websitefrom Jake's MySpace page:
Jake Shimabukuro, the ukulele virtuoso who has reinvented the instrument, has built up a huge following in his native Hawaii, as well as Japan, and is now conquering hearts and musical minds all over the U.S. His performance of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is an internet-performance legend (Google it!), a reputation which he added to with his recent performance on NBC-TV's "Late Night with Conan O'Brien."
Jake's music is, as Duke Ellington would have put it, "beyond category". His recent gigs range from touring with Jimmy Buffett, Bela Fleck, and his own band to recording with Ziggy Marley and performing the National Anthem at a Rockets-Knicks game at Madison Square Garden.
Jake Shimabukuro on MySpace
Jake Shimabukuro on Amazon
Sunday Morning
Amazon Price: $16.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
Million Miles Away
Amazon Price: $14.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
Gently Weeps
Amazon Price: $16.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
Crosscurrent
Amazon Price: $16.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
My Life
Amazon Price: $52.98 (as of 07/10/2009)
Trop Rock on YouTube
See? I told you these guys were everywhere!!
The Sauce Boss
Bill Wharton
from his website:One morning in the early 70's. The Sauce Boss (Bill Wharton) walked out of his house and found a 1933 vintage National steel Guitar in his front yard. That lead him down the Blues path. Deep in the shed, he penned "Let the Big Dog Eat", which was featured in Jonathan Demme's film "Something Wild". Years later he combined his blues with his hot sauce in a big pot of gumbo, made right on stage. Singing the recipe, he mixed his music and cooking together into a new medium.
Since 1990, The Sauce Boss has fed over 135,000 people -- all for free while he playing his own swampy Florida blues. A Sauce Boss event transcends performance. It's a soul-shouting picnic of rock & roll brotherhood... involving everyone. And at the end of the show, everyone eats.
His songs "Let the Big Dog Eat" and "Great Big Fanny" appeared on the Jimmy Buffett compilation album "Margaritaville Café Late Night Menu". Jimmy Buffett sings about The Sauce Boss in his "I Will Play for Gumbo" song. Parrotheads are now phlocking from all over the country and are also bringing the Sauce Boss to "play' and a' sway' with the gumbo" at their events.
The Sauce Boss on Amazon
Florida Blues
List Price:
Used Price: $13.15
Sky Blues
List Price: $15.98
Used Price: $5.99
The Best of the Sauce Boss
List Price: $8.98
Used Price: $21.42
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
IZ
from his MySpace page:"Bruddah Iz" was a beloved figure in Hawaiian music during the 1990s. His pure, light tenor was as famous as his sumo-sized physique; at one point he weighed over 750 pounds. Kamakawiwo'ole co-founded the popular musical group the Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau with his brother Skippy, who died of a heart attack in 1982. Israel began a solo career in 1993, and his 1996 album 'N Dis Life won Hawaiian music awards for album of the year, island contemporary album of the year and best male vocalist. Kamakawiwo'ole's popularity in Hawaii was such that after his death, his body lay in the state capitol building -- he is one of only three people to ever be accorded that honor, and the only non-politician). His version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," a tune first made famous by Judy Garland, became particularly famous after his death.
IZ on MySpace
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole on Amazon
IZ in Concert: The Man and His Music
Amazon Price: $13.99 (as of 07/10/2009)
Wonderful World
Amazon Price: $14.99 (as of 07/10/2009)
IZ: The Songbook Collection, Guitar / Ukulele Edition
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 07/10/2009)
Alone in IZ World
Amazon Price: $14.99 (as of 07/10/2009)
In Dis Life
Amazon Price: $13.99 (as of 07/10/2009)
Trop Rock Legends Websites
For more information on any of the artists featured in this lens, you can check out their websites.
Once you've had a chance to check them out, vote here for your favorite.
Sauce Boss
2 points
Jerry Jeff Walker Home Page
1 point
Bob Marley
1 point
Jake Shimabukuro
0 points
Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo`ole
0 points
Kenny Chesney
0 points
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Trop Rock Fan Notebook
The Coconut Telegraph
If you liked what you saw here, or have an artist you'd like to see, or if you just want to say hi, please leave me a note here -- and thanks for visiting.
This lens is proud to be a member of the ParrotHeads Group.
Lisa @ seafair wrote
Hi!
Im looking for a band for August 1 and 2 that lives in Washington state or Oregon.
Any suggestions, please email to lisa@seafair.com
THANK YOU!!
Lisa
Posted January 28, 2009
Ruthie wrote
love that Sauce Boss
Posted November 25, 2007
fefe wrote...
I didn't know what Trop Rock was. I will have to check it out beyond Kenny Chesney. :)
Posted September 29, 2007
rksmythe wrote...
Great lens, My 18 year old son is actually into this style of music. Thanks for the info.
Posted August 24, 2007
BigJim wrote...
Thanks for pulling all this info together. Great series of lenses on Trop Rock. Thanks for joining the Parrotheads Group.
Posted August 24, 2007
My Trop Rock Lenses
If you like what you saw here, please visit my other Trop Rock lenses.-
Trop Rock Music
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"Buffettesque" -- "Gulf & Western" -- "Cari-Billy" ??? What am I talking about here? It's Trop Rock. For those who already love the genre, that's all that needs t...
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Trop Rock Music - Some More Artists
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What am I talking about here? It's Trop Rock. And you're going to love it. If you didn't see my first Trop Rock lens, you can go there for some additional information. For those who already love the genre, you'll appreciate th...
