Bob Marley and the Wailers

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Bob Marley and the Wailers
Bob-marley-wailers-crystal-palace.jpg
Bob Marley and the Wailers performing at Crystal Palace, London (1980)
Background information
Also known as
  • Bob Marley & the Wailers
  • The Teenagers
  • The Wailing Rudeboys
  • The Wailing Wailers
  • The Wailers
Origin Kingston, Jamaica
Genres
Discography Bob Marley and the Wailers discography
Years active1963–1981
Labels
Spinoffs
Spinoff of The Upsetters
Past members
Website bobmarley.com

Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as The Wailers and prior to that The Wailing Rudeboys, The Wailing Wailers and The Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Robert Nesta Marley), Peter Tosh (Winston Hubert McIntosh), and Bunny Wailer (Neville Livingston).

Contents

During 1970 and 1971, Wailer, Marley and Tosh worked with renowned reggae producers Leslie Kong and Lee "Scratch" Perry.

They released four albums before signing to Island Records in 1972. Two more albums were created before Tosh and Wailer left the band in 1974, citing grievances over label treatment and ideological differences. Marley carried on with a new line-up, including the I-Threes that put out seven more albums. Marley died of cancer in 1981.

The Wailers were a groundbreaking ska and reggae group, noted for songs such as "Simmer Down", "Trenchtown Rock", "Nice Time", "War", "Stir It Up" and "Get Up, Stand Up".

History

Early years

The band formed when self-taught musician Peter Tosh (1944–1987) met the singers Bunny Wailer (1947–2021) and Bob Marley (1945–1981) in 1963. They developed a ska vocal group called The Teenagers.[ citation needed ]

The band topped the Jamaican charts with "Simmer Down", which was recorded in 1963 at Studio One with the rhythm section from the studio house band The Skatalites. "Simmer Down" was an overnight hit and played an essential role in changing the musical agenda in Jamaica from imitating foreign artists, to capturing the lives and spirit of Jamaica. [1]

Wailer, Marley and Tosh recorded with Lee "Scratch" Perry and his studio band the Upsetters. They also worked with renowned reggae producer Leslie Kong, who used his studio musicians, called Beverley's All-Stars (Jackie Jackson, Paul Douglas, Gladstone Anderson, Winston Wright, Rad Bryan, Hux Brown) to record the songs that would be released as an album titled The Best of The Wailers . [2]

By late 1963, singers Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith had joined the group. The line-up consisted of Braithwaite on vocals, Marley on guitar, Tosh on keyboard, Wailer on percussion, with Smith and or Kelso on backing vocals. Kelso remembered those early recordings fondly:

After we rehearsed, under this big mango tree on Second Street in Trench Town, the next morning, I think it was in late 1963, we went to Studio 1 and recorded Simmer Down and some other songs. It was Peter, Bunny, Junior, Bob, and me. I will never forget. Sid Bucknor was the engineer, and Coxsone was also there along with Roland and Jackie Mittoo. We recorded Simmer Down about 10 times, probably because Dodd wanted to get the best cut, she said. [3]

In 1965, Kelso left the band. Marley, Tosh, Wailer and Braithwaite took turns on lead vocals. [4] Braithwaite left shortly after providing lead vocals for the single "It Hurts to be Alone", leaving the band consisting of the trio of Wailer, Marley and Tosh. [4] The band's first full-length album, The Wailing Wailers , was released the same year, a compilation of tracks recorded at different times.

In 1966, they created a rocksteady record label Wail N Soul M. [5] Constantine "Dream" Walker provided backing vocals from 1966 to 1967.[ citation needed ]

In May 1970, the band recorded with renowned reggae producer Leslie Kong; producing The Best of the Wailers , which they released later in 1971 as their fourth album. Over the rest of 1970 and 1971, the band worked with Lee 'Scratch' Perry, producing the bands second and third albums, Soul Rebels (1970) and Soul Revolution Part II (1971). During this time, the Upsetters members Aston "Family Man" Barrett (bass) and his brother Carlton Barrett (drums) [6] were recruited as instrumental backing for The Wailers.[ citation needed ]

Signing to Island Records

In 1972, while in London, the Wailers asked their road manager Brent Clarke to introduce them to Chris Blackwell, who had licensed some of their Coxsone releases for his Island Records. The Wailers felt they were due royalties from these releases. Blackwell was not convinced, but he was impressed by their character. He thought they "exuded power and self-possession" despite being poor. Despite not having seen the band perform live, he advanced them £4,000 to record an album. He did not even require them to sign anything, feeling they deserved a break. [7] [8] Jimmy Cliff, Island's top reggae star, had recently left the label. His departure may have primed Blackwell to find a replacement. In Marley, Blackwell recognized the elements needed to snare the rock audience: "I was dealing with rock music, which was really rebel music. I felt that would really be the way to break Jamaican music. But you needed someone who could be that image. When Bob walked in, he really was that image." [9] The Wailers returned to Jamaica to record at Harry J's in Kingston, which resulted in the foundational tracks what would make up the album Catch a Fire . Primarily recorded on an eight-track, Catch a Fire marked the first time a reggae band had access to a state-of-the-art studio and were accorded the same care as their rock 'n' roll peers. [9]

The tracks were taken to Island Studios in London and worked on by Blackwell, with Marley supervising. Blackwell desired the tracks to appeal to rock audiences in the United Kingdom and United States, to whom the band would be novel. [10] [8] To this end, he made the tracks sound "more of a drifting, hypnotic-type feel than a reggae rhythm". [11] He restructured Marley's mixes and arrangements. The tracks were overdubbed with the help of Wayne Perkins on guitar and John “Rabbit” Bundrick on keyboard. [10] The mix deviated from the bass-heavy sound of Jamaican music, and two tracks were omitted. [9] The album released in April 1973, closely followed by Burnin' in October 1973.

Tosh and Livingston departure and I-Threes

The I-Threes from left to right: Judy Mowatt, Rita Marley, and Marcia Griffiths Bob Marley I Threes.jpg
The I-Threes from left to right: Judy Mowatt, Rita Marley, and Marcia Griffiths

In 1974, Livingston left the band due to various disagreements with Blackwell, including not getting paid for the English leg of their Burnin' tour, and his refusal to play in the "freak clubs" that Island had booked the band. Tosh believed that producer Blackwell, whom he unfavorably called "Chris Whiteworst", was responsible for the bad relationship between the band members. He thought Blackwell favored Marley over the rest of the band, giving him more attention and money, [9] and with the decision to release their albums under the name "Bob Marley and the Wailers" instead of "The Wailers".[ citation needed ]

Marley continued with a new line-up, which included the Aston Barrett (bass), Carlton Barrett (drums), Junior Marvin (lead guitar), Al Anderson (lead guitar), Tyrone Downie (keyboards), Earl "Wya" Lindo (keyboards), and Alvin "Seeco" Patterson on percussion. Additionally, the I-Threes provided female backing vocals. The three I-Three members were Marley's wife Rita Marley, Judy Mowatt and Marcia Griffiths. [12] Their name is a spin on the Rastafarian "I and I" concept of the Godhead within each person.

The album Natty Dread was released in 1974, the first without Tosh and Livingston and with the I-Threes.

Perry released two compilation albums for Trojan Records in 1974, Rasta Revolution and African Herbsman , which contained songs from Soul Rebels and Soul Revolution Part II , respectively, and he was the copyright holder of several songs from these albums. [13] These changes caused a major dispute between Marley and Perry, when the former saw the albums, six months after their publication, in the Half Way Road in England. [14]

One of the last performances that included Marley was in 1980 at Madison Square Garden. His final live show was performed at the Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh. Marley died in a Miami hospital in 1981.

Later years

The music of Marley, Tosh and Wailer enjoyed considerable success as reggae music continued to gain popularity during 1980s.

Carlton Barrett and Tosh died (both murdered) in 1987. [15] [16]

The Wailers Band was formed by Aston Barrett in 1989.

Braithwaite was murdered in 1999. [17]

The Original Wailers was formed by Anderson and Marvin in 2008, Cherry Smith died in 2008. [18] [19]

Earl Lindo died in 2017. [20]

Alvin "Seeco" Patterson died in 2021. [21]

Bunny Wailer (Livingston) died in 2021. [22]

Keyboardist Tyrone Downie died in 2022. [23]

Aston Barrett died in February 2024. [24]

Donald Kinsey died in February 2024, on Bob Marley's birthday, February 6, three days after the loss of Aston Barrett. [25]

Beverley Kelso and Constantine Walker are the last surviving members of the group's line-ups.

Legacy

In 2001, Catch a Fire was reissued as a double album, with the first part being the previously unreleased 'Jamaican' versions of the song without Blackwell's overdubs and the second part being the album as it was released in 1972. [10]

In March 2013, an overview of most of the music made by The Wailers prior to their signing to Island Records was published by the Roots Reggae Library. [26]

Band members

Discography

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"Simmer Down"
A sample of the band's 1964 single "Simmer Down".
Problems playing this file? See media help.

Tours

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Exodus</i> (Bob Marley and the Wailers album) 1977 studio album by Bob Marley and the Wailers

Exodus is the ninth studio album by Jamaican reggae band Bob Marley and the Wailers, first released in June 1977 through Island Records, following Rastaman Vibration (1976). The album's production has been characterized as laid-back with pulsating bass beats and an emphasis on piano, trumpet and guitar. Unlike previous albums from the band, Exodus thematically moves away from cryptic story-telling; instead it revolves around themes of change, religious politics, and sexuality. The album is split into two halves: the first half revolves around religious politics, while the second half is focused on themes of making love and keeping faith.

<i>Burnin</i> (Bob Marley and the Wailers album) 1973 studio album by the Wailers

Burnin' is the sixth album by Jamaican reggae group the Wailers, released in October 1973. It was written by all three members and recorded and produced by the Wailers in Jamaica, contemporaneously with tracks from the Catch a Fire album with further recording, mixing and completion while on the Catch a Fire tour in London. It contains the song "I Shot the Sheriff". It was the last album before Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer decided to pursue solo careers, while continuing their local releases through their company Tuff Gong Records. A commercial and critical success in the United States, Burnin' was certified Gold and later added to the National Recording Registry, with the Library of Congress deeming it historically and culturally significant.

<i>Catch a Fire</i> 1973 studio album by Bob Marley & The Wailers

Catch a Fire is the fifth studio album by the reggae band The Wailers, released in April 1973. It was their first album released by Island Records. After finishing a UK tour with Johnny Nash, they had started laying down tracks for JAD Records when a disputed CBS contract with Danny Sims created tensions. The band did not have enough money to return to Jamaica, so their road manager Brent Clarke approached producer Chris Blackwell, who agreed to advance The Wailers money for an album. They instead used this money to pay their fares back home, where they completed the recordings that constitute Catch a Fire. The album has nine songs, two of which were written and composed by Peter Tosh; the remaining seven were by Bob Marley. While Bunny Wailer is not credited as a writer, the group's writing style was a collective process. For the immediate follow-up album, Burnin', also released in 1973, he contributed four songs. After Marley returned with the tapes to London, Blackwell reworked the tracks at Island Studios, with contributions by Muscle Shoals session musician Wayne Perkins, who played guitar on three overdubbed tracks. The album had a limited original release under the name The Wailers in a sleeve depicting a Zippo lighter, designed by graphic artists Rod Dyer and Bob Weiner; subsequent releases had an alternative cover designed by John Bonis, featuring an Esther Anderson portrait of Marley smoking a "spliff", and crediting the band as Bob Marley and the Wailers.

<i>Kaya</i> (album) 1978 studio album by Bob Marley and the Wailers

Kaya is the tenth studio album by the Jamaican band Bob Marley and the Wailers, released in 1978. The album consists of tracks recorded alongside those released on the Exodus album. It was produced by the band.

"Simmer Down" was the first single released by The Wailers, accompanied by the ska supergroup, The Skatalites, and produced by Clement "Coxsone" Dodd in 1963. It was the number one hit in Jamaica in February, 1964.

<i>The Wailing Wailers</i> 1965 debut album of Jamaican band The Wailers who later became Bob Marley and The Wailers

The Wailing Wailers is the 1965 eponymous debut studio album by the Wailers, later known as Bob Marley and the Wailers. Released on the Studio One label, the album is a compilation of various recordings made between 1964 and 1965 by Neville “Bunny” Livingston, Robert Nesta Marley and Peter McIntosh. It compiles what Clement Coxsone Dodd considered the best Wailers recordings from this period. They were accompanied by the Studio One backing band, The Soul Brothers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aston "Family Man" Barrett</span> Jamaican musician (1946–2024)

Aston Francis Barrett, CD, often called "Family Man" or "Fams" for short, was a Jamaican musician and Rastafarian. He was best known as the bandleader of Bob Marley's backing band, as well as co-producer of the albums, and the man in charge of the overall song arrangements.

The Wailers Band is a reggae band formed by former members of Bob Marley and the Wailers after his death in 1981, one of several spinoffs from Marley's original group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seeco Patterson</span> Jamaican percussionist (1930–2021)

Alvin "Seeco" Patterson was a Cuban-born Jamaican percussionist. He was a member of The Wailers Band.

Franklin Delano Alexander "Junior" Braithwaite was a reggae musician from Kingston, Jamaica and the youngest member of the vocal group, The Wailing Wailers.

<i>Blackheart Man</i> 1976 studio album by Bunny Wailer

Blackheart Man is the debut album by Bunny Wailer, originally released on 8 September 1976, in Jamaica on Solomonic Records and internationally on Island Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Marley</span> Jamaican reggae musician (1945–1981)

Robert Nesta Marley was a Jamaican reggae singer, guitarist, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of the genre, Marley fused elements of reggae, ska, and rocksteady in his music and was renowned for his distinctive vocal and songwriting style. Marley's contribution to music increased the visibility of Jamaican music worldwide and made him a global figure in popular culture. Over the course of his career, Marley became known as a Rastafarian icon, and he infused his music with a sense of spirituality. He is also considered a global symbol of Jamaican music and culture and identity, and was controversial in his outspoken support for democratic social reforms. He also supported legalisation of cannabis, and advocated for Pan-Africanism. In 1976, Marley survived an assassination attempt in his home, which was thought to be politically motivated.

John Masouri is a journalist, author, reviewer and historian for Jamaican music and several of its musical offshoots including dub, roots and dancehall. He is one of the world's foremost reggae music journalist and has worked extensively over it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Kinsey</span> American guitarist and singer (1953–2024)

Donald Kinsey was an American guitarist and singer, best known as a member of the Word Sound and Power Band, the reggae backing group for Peter Tosh.

<i>Midnight Raver</i> Music website

Midnight Raver was a website dedicated solely to the promotion and preservation of roots reggae, culture and dub. Contributors include authors and journalists, historians, record producers, broadcasters, lecturers, archivists, collectors and publishers.

Nathaniel Ian Wynter, also known as Natty Wailer, was a Jamaican-born musician and Rastafarian, best known for his work with Bob Marley and the Wailers, Aston Barrett and King Tubby. He is credited on recordings as Natty Wailer, Ian Winter, Ian Wynter, or Brother Ian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bunny Wailer</span> Jamaican musician (1947–2021)

Neville O'Riley Livingston, known professionally as Bunny Wailer, was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and percussionist. He was an original member of reggae group The Wailers along with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he is considered one of the longtime standard-bearers of reggae music. He was also known as Jah B, Bunny O'Riley, and Bunny Livingston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peter Tosh</span> Jamaican reggae musician (1944–1987)

Winston Hubert McIntosh, OM, professionally known as Peter Tosh, was a Jamaican reggae musician. Along with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, he was one of the core members of the band the Wailers (1963–1976), after which he established himself as a successful solo artist and a promoter of Rastafari. He was murdered in 1987 during a home invasion.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Bob Marley:

References

  1. ↑ "Bob Marley | Biography, Songs, Albums, Death, & Facts | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  2. ↑ Moskowitz, David V. (2007). "Rebel Music, 1970–1975." The Words and Music of Bob Marley. Westport, Connecticut, United States: Praeger. p. 23. ISBN   9780275989354.
  3. ↑ Bob Marley and the Wailers – From ‘Scratch’ to Coxsone to Island
  4. 1 2 Vibes, Mr T. at Reggae (27 May 2016). "The Wailers - The Wailing Wailers". Reggae Vibes. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  5. ↑ "Wail'n Soul'm". Rate Your Music . Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  6. ↑ Lee Scratch Perry Interview, New Musical Express, 17 November 1984
  7. ↑ Campbell, Howard (22 March 2011). "Bunny Wailer sets the record straight". The Gleaner. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2013.
  8. 1 2 Morley, Chris Blackwell and Paul (29 May 2022). "'Fuck, This Is the Real Thing': Chris Blackwell Remembers Making Bob Marley's 'Catch a Fire'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Hagerman, Brent (February 2005). "Chris Blackwell: Savvy Svengali". Exclaim.ca. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
  10. 1 2 3 "Bob Marley and the Wailers: Catch a Fire / Burnin', PopMatters". PopMatters. 11 June 2001. Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  11. ↑ Williams, Richard. Catch a Fire. Catch a Fire (Liner notes) (2001 reissue ed.).
  12. ↑ Harris, Craig. "Biography: I-Threes". Allmusic . Retrieved 24 July 2010.
  13. ↑ Timothy White (2 May 2006). Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley. Henry Holt. pp. 222–223. ISBN   9780805080865 . Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  14. ↑ Timothy White (2 May 2006). Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley. Henry Holt. p. 224. ISBN   9780805080865 . Retrieved 17 May 2012.
  15. ↑ "The Tragic Case of Carlton Barrett". LEGENDARY REGGAE. 8 September 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Remembering Peter Tosh on 9/11". jamaica-gleaner.com. 11 September 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  17. ↑ Katz, David (23 June 1999). "Junior Braithwaite". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  18. ↑ Isger, Sonja (12 October 2008). "Ermine Cherry Dempsey-Barker, former member of the Wailers, dies". The Palm Beach Post . Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  19. ↑ "Local News: West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, Martin & St. Lucie Counties | the Palm Beach Post". Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2008.
  20. ↑ "Earl "Wyaa" Lindo dies at 64". IrieFm.net. 5 September 2017. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  21. ↑ "Wailer Seeco Patterson dead at 90". 3 November 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  22. ↑ "Bunny Wailer, reggae luminary and founder of The Wailers, has died at 73". www.cbsnews.com. 3 March 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  23. ↑ "Tyrone Downie dies in Jamaica". The Gleaner. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
  24. ↑ "Aston 'Family Man' Barrett, Bassist and Rhythmic Backbone of Bob Marley & The Wailers, Dead at 77". Rolling Stone. 3 February 2024. Archived from the original on 3 February 2024. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  25. ↑ Piner, Chros. "Bob Marley and The Wailers Guitarist Donald Kinsey Passes Away 3 Days After Fellow Band Member's Death". American Songwriter. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  26. ↑ de Vries, Anton E. (2013). "The Wailers". roots-reggae-library.com. Retrieved 8 January 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

Further reading

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