The Life of a Legend: Bob Marley

Robert Nesta Marley was born on February 6, 1945, in Nine Miles, St. Ann Parish, Jamaica to Norval Sinclair Marley, a white naval officer, and Cedella Malcolm.

Marley was kidnapped and abandoned by his father when he was a child, and taken to Kingston to live with an elderly woman. A friend of his family found Marley and took him back to Nine Miles. As a child, Marley was known for being able to read palms.

He spent his teenage years living in an impoverished tenement in Trench Town which lies in West Kingston. He gained the nickname “Tuff Gong” due to his skills as a street fighter.

In the early 60s, he started learning welding in an apprenticeship but also started fostering his passion for music. He was heavily influenced by jazz, calypso, and R&B. He was a fan of Fats Domino and Ray Charles. In 1961 he recorded with producer Leslie Kong for the song “Judge Not.”

Trench Town is where he created the group the Wailers, which included members Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh. Junior Braithwaite also joined the Wailers as well as Cherry Green and Beverly Kelso, though they only stood in the group for a limited time.

The trio was coached/tutored by famed reggae singer Joe Higgs.

In 1963, The Wailers recorded “Simmer Down” at Coxsone Dodd’s Studio One and it became an overnight hit in Kingston. The song urged people to relax and stop the violence.

In 1966, Marley moved to Delaware to follow his mother who opened a Jamaican music shop called Roots. He worked several temporary jobs including working at Du Pont as a lab assistant.

When Marley moved back to Jamaica he became interested in the Rastafarian movement. The Rastafarian movement began in Jamaica in the 1930s and combines ideologies and practices from pan-African politics, Protestant Christianity, and mysticism.

During the 60s, Marley worked with Johnny Nash singer of the 1972 hit, “I Can See Clearly Now.” In 1971, he recorded a soundtrack for the Swedish film “Want So Much to Believe” with Nash. In 1972, they recorded the song “Stir It Up,” which was well received.

Marley married Alfarita “Rita” Anderson on February 10, 1966. Rita was also a musician, performing in a girl group called I-Threes, who toured with The Wailers. The couple had several extra-marital affairs throughout their marriage.

In 1972, The Wailers came back together and were signed to Island Records. They released the album “Catch a Fire” in 1973. The Wailers opened for Bruce Springsteen and Sly & the Stone, touring throughout the United States and Britain.

Around 1974, The Wailers officially split up to pursue solo careers, but Marley kept “The Wailers” in his title when performing. Marley released his first solo album “Natty Dread.” That same year Eric Clapton’s version of Marley’s “I Shot the Sherriff” launched Marley into international fame along with his hit song “No Woman No Cry.”

The 1976 album “Rastaman Vibration” was a hit in the United States. However, 1976 is also the year that Marley survived a politically driven attempted assassination at his home in Jamaica. Two days before a free concert called “Smile Jamaica,” Marley, Rita, and their manager Don Taylor were all shot, but made full recoveries. The concert still went on, however the attempt led Marley to flee the country and permanently move to London.

In 1977 the album “Exodus” was released, one of his most chart-successful albums, staying on the British charts for over a year. The following year he returned to Jamaica for a concert to call for peace as the country was close to a civil war. The “One Love Peace Concert” ended with Edward Seaga of the JLP and Prime Minister Michael Manley of the PNP shaking hands.

In 1978, Marley made his first trip to Kenya and Ethiopia, a significant trip due to his Rastafarian beliefs. He released the album “Survival” the following year, calling for the end of oppression and apartheid in Africa. In 1980, he was invited to perform in Zimbabwe for the country’s independence ceremony. The United Nations awarded him with the Medal of Peace that same year.

Bob Marley & The Wailers released the final album “Uprising” in 1980 and went on tour throughout Europe and the United States, but it ended early due to Marley’s cancer diagnosis, which he originally received in 1977, worsening.

A month after being awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit, he passed away in Miami on May 11, 1981. He left behind his wife and 11 children. The album “Legend” was released in 1984, a compilation of his greatest hit, and became one of the best-selling reggae albums ever.