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<\/p>\nIn the late 1950s and early 60s, rock \u2018n\u2019 roll was taking its cues from Black blues musicians from the Mississippi Delta to Chicago. By the 1970s and 80s, rock \u2018n\u2019 roll was migrating south, past the Florida Keys, past Cuba and the Cayman Islands, all the way to Jamaica, where reggae music was finding its footing starting in the late 1960s.<\/p>\n
Rock \u2018n\u2019 roll in its purest form has always been an amalgamation of styles that Black communities first established and perfected. And indeed, reggae is no exception. While reggae-influenced music might seem commonplace today, there were several notable tracks in the 1970s and 80s that helped establish this genre\u2019s ubiquity outside of Jamaica. These are some of the best.<\/p>\n
\t\t\tVideos by American Songwriter\t\t<\/p>\n
\u201cD\u2019yer Mak\u2019er\u201d by Led Zeppelin<\/p>\n
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Kicking off this list of classic rock songs that brought reggae to the mainstream is a Led Zeppelin track that uses a Jamaican joke as its title<\/a>. \u201cD\u2019yer Mak\u2019er\u201d is the punchline of a joke in which an Englishman talks about his wife going on an island vacation; another Englishman asks, \u201cJamaica?\u201d, to which the first Englishman says, \u201cNo, she left of her own accord.\u201d (In an English accent, \u201cdid you make her\u201d and \u201cJamaica\u201d sound incredibly similar.)<\/p>\n The 1973 release date of this classic Led Zeppelin track means that it was one of the first mainstream rock bands to bring reggae and dub, which had only been officially recognized for less than a decade at that point, to the global zeitgeist.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Tide Is High\u201d by Blondie<\/p>\n \t\t\tPlay video<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t In the case of Blondie\u2019s 1980 track, \u201cThe Tide Is High\u201d, they weren\u2019t just embodying the reggae sound. They were covering an actual reggae track<\/a> first recorded by rocksteady singer John Holt and the Paragons. This version came out in 1967, but it wouldn\u2019t take off until Blondie put out their version 13 years later. Blondie\u2019s rendition of \u201cThe Tide Is High\u201d peaked at No. 1 around the world, including in the United States and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n The song has been covered many times since then, including by British girl group Atomic Kitten. At the risk of aging myself, this was a notable version in my life thanks to The Lizzie McGuire Movie soundtrack. But I digress, moving on\u2026<\/p>\n \u201cRoxanne\u201d by The Police<\/p>\n \t\t\tPlay video<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t In between Led Zeppelin and Blondie\u2019s fusion of mainstream rock and classic reggae sounds were The Police\u2019s 1978 and 1979 albums, Outlandos d\u2019Amour and Regatta de Blanc. Many consider the latter release to be their most reggae-coded album. But Outlandos has plenty of backbeat grooves, too, including the iconic track \u201cRoxanne\u201d<\/a>. The song didn\u2019t make it into the Top 10 in the U.K. or U.S., but it remains one of the band\u2019s most ubiquitous tracks today.<\/p>\n Although Sting originally thought of the song as a bossa nova number, the syncopated rhythm and driving bass line give \u201cRoxanne\u201d an undeniable Caribbean flavor. Other honorable mentions worth including on this rock and reggae list are \u201cMessage In A Bottle\u201d and \u201cWalking On The Moon\u201d, both of which appear on Regatta de Blanc.<\/p>\n \u201cI Shot The Sheriff\u201d by Eric Clapton<\/p>\n \t\t\tPlay video<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t![\"Play\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1782930313_401_hqdefault.jpg\")
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