Rake & Scrape music is said to have originated in Cat Island, where the locals are renowned for their ingenuity at using the materials at hand to make whatever they need.
For example, musicians would combine a piece of wood, some fishing line and a worn tin tub to create the bass instrument in a "rake'n' scrape" band at a local nightclub. Accompanied by a Conchshell (horn), an old comb covered with paper (harmonica), an old carpenter's saw scraped with a piece of metal, and topped off by a drum that really smokes (goat skins stretched over wood and heated over a flame), Cat Island bands produce a unique sound.

Traditionally, rake'n' scrape music was used to accompany the Bahamian Quadrille and the Heel and Toe Polka, forms of dance that can still be seen today during cultural celebrations.
Today's musicians are more likely to use goombay drums, a carpenter's saw and the concertina.