AFRO-IRISH LINKS: BOOK

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Paperback: 136 pages
Publisher: SWIPE (2019)
Language: English
ISBN: 978-0-244-53174-4

Book Contents:
The book draws on the information that was discussed in our interviews with several notable academics (Ellen Campbell-Grizzle, Laurent Dubois, Sir Howard Fergus KBE, Eamonn Galldubh, Nicole Jacoberger, Mary Caton Lingold and Meleisa Ono-George) as well as research carried out by the SWIPE team.

Topics covered in the book:

• A Shared Musical Heritage: Humankind’s music heritage; Music and society in Africa and Ireland in the seventeenth century; how the Irish came to be in the Caribbean; how African slaves attempted to preserve their culture; African and Irish connections; a look at the history of the banjo and how it became a feature of Caribbean folk music, traditional Irish music and Appalachian music.
• Preserving African Culture - From the Maroons to Reggae: a brief history of the Jamaican Maroons; the cultural traditions of the Maroons; how slavery and rebellion influenced Jamaican music and Rastafari; European and African influences on reggae; Caribbean musical genres and dances.
• Montserrat: Emerald Isle of the Caribbean.
• Barbados: Tuk Bands and Art-Music.
• Caribbean and Irish Migration to Slough: interviews with people from Slough on their experiences of migrating to England from the 1960s onwards.
• The book also contains a Tribute To Dani Richardson; the visit to the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool; information on SWIPE and the project team; a bibliography and resources for further research.

Introduction by Paul Crooks

"When an old man dies, a library burns to the ground."
African Proverb
 
“If you’re lucky enough to be Irish, You’re lucky enough.”
Irish Proverb

Jamaican people living in Slough have some appreciation of the Jamaica’s Irish heritage. Some will know of Jamaican towns with names such as Irish Town, Dublin Castle, Caramel, Kildare, Belfast and Middleton. Others answer to Irish surnames passed down through generations; names such as: Collins, O'Hare, McCormick, McCarthy, Burke, Clarke, O'Callaghan, McKay and O'Connor.

Barbadians also answer to Irish surnames. Some speak of communities of people living in Barbados of Irish descent.

The flag of Montserrat is adorned with Erin, female personification of Ireland, playing the golden harp.

Then there are others, younger people of both Caribbean and Irish descent, living in Slough, who have little or no knowledge of a Caribbean and Irish heritage that was once shared.

This booklet provides some insight into what is an intriguing topic. It describes how two apparently disparate cultures - African and Irish - blended through music and dance. It also describes and how they influenced the development Caribbean music culture down through the generations.

The book is published with a view to giving Caribbean and Irish communities in Slough deeper and mutual appreciation of a shared, but not often spoken about, heritage.

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Supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund