The Wailers

Rip It Up, Issue 98, 1 September 1985, Page 10

The Wailers

The definitive Bob Marley compilation has yet to be assembled, but this LP is a pretty fair portrayal of the Wailers in the days when they still included Peter Tosh and Bunny Livingstone.

The material is drawn from the Catch A Fire and Bumin' albums, which were the turning points for reggae on the international scene. The Rude Boy image was replaced by the spliff-smoking Rastaman, epitomised in the back-cover shot of Marley on Bumin’. The righteous anger and Biblical connotations of the music initially confused and then astounded white audiences. Catch A Fire, recorded in London in 1972, was the Wailers’ Island debut. American session guitarist Wayne Perkins and British keyboards player Rabbit Bundrick helped out, as did Robbie Shakespeare, who plays bass on ‘Concrete Jungle'. The album has a slightly muted, disorientated feel to it, largely because the group was recording in unfamiliar surroundings, with Chris Blackwell producing for the first time.

Bumin', recorded the following year in Jamaica, showed a greater unity and sense of purpose, along with a more overt Rasta message. There was nothing subtle about 'I Shot The Sheriff (originally called 'I Shot the Police’) or 'Burnin' and Lootin’’. The album grabbed instant attention from the music media and the Wailers were celebrities.

As a touring band, this particular unit never fulfilled the promise of its records. Livingstone didn't like touring much and Tosh was beginning

to resent the way Marley was beginning to dominate the group. Their departure left Marley to pursue his own directions as a songwriter and performer, and to put together the best reggae band ever. As I said, the definitive Marley compilation has still to be made. But this collection serves as a fine companion to Legend, showing the burgeoning talent of a man with fire in his belly. We will remember him.