Bob Marley (1945-1981)
We remember the brilliant and evocative music Bob Marley gave the world; music
that stretches back over nearly two decades and still remains timeless and
universal. Marley has been called "the first Third World superstar," "Rasta
Prophet," "visionary," and" "revolutionary artist." Bob Marley's career
stretched back over twenty years. During that time Marley's growing style
encompassed every aspect in the rise of Jamaican music, from ska to contemporary
reggae. In 1964, as
a founding member of a group called the Wailing Wailers, Bob first hit the
Jamaican charts.
It's difficult to properly understand Bob Marley's music without considering
Rastafari. His spiritual beliefs are too well known to necessitate further
explanation. It must be stated, however, that Rastafari is at the very core of
the Wailers' music. In 1972 the Wailers signed to Island Records. For the first
time a reggae band had access to the best recording facilities and were treated
in the same way as a rock group. The Wailer's first album, Catch A Fire broke
all the rules: it was beautifully packaged and heavily promoted. The Catch A
Fire album was followed a year later by Burnin', an LP that included some of the
band's older songs, such as "Duppy Conquerer," "Small Axe," and "Put In On,"
together with tracks like "Get Up Stand Up" and "I Shot The Sheriff" In 1975 Bob
Marley & The Wailers released the extraordinary Natty Dread album, and toured
Europe that summer. The shows were recorded and the subsequent live album,
together with the single, "No Woman No Cry," both made the UK charts. By that
time Bunny and Peter had officially left the band to pursue their own solo
careers. Rastaman Vibration, the follow-up album in 1976, cracked the American
charts. It was, for many, the clearest exposition yet of Marley's music and
beliefs, including such tracks as "Crazy Baldhead," "Johnny Was," "Who The Cap
Fit" and, perhaps most significantly of all, "War," the Iyrics of which were
taken from a speech by Emperor Haile Selassie. In 1977 Exodus was released,
which established Marley's international superstar status. In 1978 the band
released Kaya, which hit number four on the UK chart the week of its release. In
April that year he returned to Jamaica (he had left in 1976 after the shooting
that had almost cost him his life), to play the One Love Peace Concert in front
of the Prime Minister Michael Manley, and the then Leader of the Opposition
Edward Seaga. And at the end of the year he visited Africa for the first time,
going initially to Kenya and then on to Ethiopia, spiritual home of Rastafari. In 1979 the Survival
LP was released. Bob Marley & the Wailers were now the most important band on
the road that year and the new Uprising album hit every chart in Europe. At the end of the
European tour, Bob Marley & The Wailers went to America. Bob played two shows at
Madison Square Garden but, immediately afterwards he was seriously ill. Cancer
was diagnosed. He died in a Miami Hospital on May 11,1981.
On Thursday, May 23,1981, the Honorable Robert Nesta Marley was given an
official funeral by the people of Jamaica. Bob Marley was 36 years old.
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