Bob Marley

Bob Marley is the greatest singer that reggae brought forth and the compilation Legend is by far the best-selling album in the genre.

Bob Marley was born on February 6, 1945, in Jamaica and became musically active in the early 1960s, particularly within the then-flourishing ska—an uptempo musical style that would later give rise to reggae. One of his first milestones was the album "The Wailing Wailers," which he released in 1965 as a member of the trio The Wailers, which also included Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. The singers, like Bob Marley, would later achieve success under their own name.

In the late 1960s, The Wailers played a significant role in the development of reggae as a quintessential Jamaican music genre, and Bob Marley's defining role in it began to be noticed. This led to The Wailers signing with the leading label Island in the early 1970s, where they released the albums Catch a Fire and Burnin' in 1973. The latter included the song "I Shot the Sheriff," which was covered by Eric Clapton a year later on 461 Ocean Boulevard. His hit version further increased Bob Marley's fame, even beyond reggae circles.

The 1975 album Live! demonstrated the thrilling performances of Bob Marley and the Wailers at the time. After narrowly surviving an assassination attempt in Jamaica in late 1976, Marley released new successful albums from England with Exodus and Kaya. His music, lyrics, and charisma made him considered the most important singer to have originated reggae, transcending the genre he had helped make famous.

The politically charged "Survival" and the religiously charged "Uprising" were the last albums released during his lifetime. At the end of 1980, a previously diagnosed cancer had metastasized. On May 11, 1981, the singer died from complications. His untimely death was deeply mourned, but his legacy is kept alive in various ways. Sons like Ziggy, Julian, and Damian Marley followed in his footsteps. That his own music is far from forgotten is evident from the fact that, with over 30 million copies sold, the compilation "Legend" is by far the best-selling reggae album of all time.

At Platenzaak.nl we have many Bob Marley CDs and LPs, including exclusive versions.

Photo credits banner: Adrian Boot