Musical Study: Bob Marley

I just recently saw a documentary on the life of Bob Marley directed by Kevin MacDonald and just had to make a post on his extremely interesting life. Before I even knew about Bob Marley, I always felt a warm feeling whenever I heard reggae music. It was perhaps the tropical sounds and playful rhythm I heard in songs as a kid such as "Don't Worry Be Happy" or hits from UB40s such as "Red Red Wine" or "Cant' Help Falling in Love".

I believe the first time I really began to hear and identify the music of Bob Marley was in High School through my older friend, Todd Kearney. And it wasn't until I got into college that I began to understand his impact on both music and perspective. Bob Marley can be considered the father of reggae music, as well as a spiritual prophet of the Rastafarian Movement. He lived a brief yet very interesting life of which I would like to study in this post.

Reggae Music

So it's my understanding that Reggae music grew in the late 1960s as an evolution from ska and rock-steady. The music of ska was popular in the 1950s, with a mixture of Caribbean drums, jazz, rhythm, and blues. In the 1960s Bob Marley and the Wailers, infused all the elements of ska and rocksteady to create a new form of popular music known as reggae. To this day there is no one that quite defines the musical genre of Reggae than Bob Marley.

Musical Career: Bob Marley and the Wailers

Much of the original inspiration and style of Bob Marley's music came from his Rastafarian beliefs. He grew up in Kingston, Jamaica where he met other musicians such as Joe Higgs and Peter Tosh. In 1963 he teamed up with Bunny Mailer, Peter Tosh, Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith to form Bob Marley and the Wailers. Marley was the lead-singer and writer, however backed up by a good team of reggae musicians and vocalists. The band became very popular in Jamaica, however did not gain world attention until the 1970s until the release of their major album, Catch a Fire. After that it was straight to the top, until his demise in 1981, due to cancer.\

By 1975 Bob Marley was one of the most famous Jamaicans in the world. He broke up with the Wailers, yet continued to release major albums and hits. In 1976 before he was about to give a free concert to ease political tensions, in Jamiaca he was wounded in an assassination attempt. He still however went on to perform in front of 80,000 people claiming that he could not take a day off in the fight for peace. In 1978 he performed in another major political concert known as the One Love Peace Concert. This time in front of 32,000 people, Bob Marley gave a passionate performance and united the two hands of the opposing political parties. He gave one final political concert in 1980 in Zimbabwe, calling for Africans to unite and rejecting the apartheid in South Africa.   


Marley's music is defined by his extremely soulful voice. He sings from his heart with such passion and belief in what he is singing about. He has the ability to yell and still make it sound so soothing. His music is relaxing yet energetic at the same time. It is music you can dance to or just nod your head to. It is poetic, political, and spiritual with a greater meaning and purpose. He is no doubt one of my top 10 favorite musicians of all time. Here are some of my all time favorite Marley songs;

• Redemption Song
• No Woman No Cry
• One Love
• Jamaican Rum
• Jamming
• Slave Driver
• Kinky Reggae
• Stir it Up

Rastafarian Movement and Pan-Africanism

Bob Marley was inspired as a young teenager by two influential leaders; Marcus Garvey and Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. Marcus Garvey was a Jamaican writer who promoted a philosophy of Pan-Africanism, for all black people to unite. The idea being that African nations and people would unite to improve their social, economic, and political status. This philosophy eventually merged with the practice of the Nation of Islam and most notably the Rastafrian Movement.

Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, became the central figure in the Rastafarian Movement for a variety of reasons. He was considered the strongest and most prominent of African monarchs and made a powerful appeal to the League of Nations in 1936. He ruled the country of Ethiopia from 1936 to 1974. Early Rastas considered Haile Selassie the reincarnation of Jesus Christ with a purpose to create a paradise known as Zion. Although he himself was more of a political leader, Rastas considered him a spiritual prophet and referred to him as "Jah".


The Movement took hold in Jamaica during the 1950s and 1960s and began to spread globally much thanks to Bob Marley's influential music. It was not so much a religion as it was a way of life, that embraced spiritual peace with oneself and one's brothers and sisters. They encouraged the use of cannabis, a healthy diet, and the rejection of western culture. Much of their beliefs were an off-shoot of the bible, with some new added elements of Pan-Africanism, political equality, and spirituality. To this day there are about a million practicing Rastafarian.