Thoughts on Bob?

[abey]

And by the way, after saying all this I must say that I rarely listened to his music in the late years

[blessup]

I'd rather listen to his teacher, the great Joe Higgs! His works as a songsmith and singer are beyond so many so called greats in JA music! Joe's music is so deep and sometimes subtle to where it seems to go over many people's heads!

[flashman]

I agree about Higgs. I think not even that long ago I called Life of Contradiction overrated, but the more I listened the more it grew on me. It is quite good and indeed a bit subtle, rather than immediate.

[Funky Punk]

He is the best and more prolific songwriter ever IMO. If you go for the soundsystem stuff, obviously he is not for you when he went with island the sound changed. If you dont care if he had a jamaican or european oriented sound, you can appreciate the music. He made songs like "is this love" to reach to the people out of the reggae circles. So he was counsciously a sold out. But, hey, every artist in JA wanted to be succesful like him and the most average tried to reach the international markets. Bob did an excellent job IMO. Great music by great musicians. Amazing stuff you can find like the late rehearsals posted on youtube are mindblowing IMHO.

I doubt that any Jamaican artist at the time wouldn't have taken a major label record deal, if one was offered to them. I mean, most of these guys struggled to earn enough money to eat at times (Jacob Miller excepted)...

Yeah, I can't see many people who actually live in the ghetto and all the realities that it entails wishing to stay there out of some sense of 'authenticity' and desire not to be seen as selling out.

Thought it seems that most of those that did ended up getting screwed over.

[Peace Pipe]

I agree about Higgs. I think not even that long ago I called Life of Contradiction overrated, but the more I listened the more it grew on me. It is quite good and indeed a bit subtle, rather than immediate.

Totally agree. Higgs is the man! The mentor of Bob, Peter and Bunny. I prefer his album 'Unity Is Power' over 'Life Of Contradiction' though.

About Bob Marley, he was also my introduction to reggae music, won't deny that. He was a very talented artist and had charisma. And yes, that new Marley movie is great. But I just won't play his music that often when there are so many other good artists and albums out there. It does sound lightweight once you've listended to a King Tubby mix...

[blessup]

Can't go wrong with any Joe Higgs' recordings! "Triumph" is also a wicked record as are many of his singles!

[Congo Bunny]

(Jacob Miller excepted).../quote]

Classic!

[Mystikal Gong]

Bob has been a great influencial figure in spreading reggae music the world over. Though there were best/better or very strong artists musically by then, he stood out as the best. That can be attested by that each time someone comes up with a new documentary or film about him, people are very much curious & want to see or read about.

I was baptized into reggae through "Rastaman chant" track.

But i am still a teenager when it comes to reggae as i've found a knowlegdeable family in this forum that helps me and opens up my eyes each day with something new.

[Mick Sleeper]

To me, Marley is almost like a genre unto himself. Once he signed with Island Records, he had the money and resources of a major label behind him and crafted some of best music ever recorded. Unlike most reggae artists in the 70s, Marley produced his own music and really took control of it. As a result, he's really removed from what most of us think about when it comes to 70s reggae - there are no King Tubby dub versions of Marley tracks, no Dillinger toasts over Marley rhythms, no one off LPs for Bunny Lee, etc. While I don't listen to Marley as much as other artists, every time I do I'm struck by the incredible craftsmanship that went into his music. It doesn't hit me the same way Lee Perry's Black Ark material or Yabby You's deep roots music does, but it certainly leaves an impression.

[jumbo]

there are a couple of DJ versions of his self produced material:
I Roy - Talking Blues Version
Big youth - Craven version
U roy - Kingston 12

and quite a few Bunny Lee do-overs