Bob Marley would be 66 years old today and even if he ‘s not physically alive anymore, his musical dominance over any other contemporary artist in the scene is legendary.
Bob Marley was born Robert Nesta Marley on Feruary. 6, 1945 in Saint Ann, Jamaica. His father, Norval Sinclair Marley, was a white Englishman and his mother, Cedelia Booker, was a black Jamaican.
Bob Marley died of cancer in Miami, FL on May 11, 1981. Marley had 12 children, four by his wife Rita, and was a devout Rastafarian. He’s the most famous Reggae artist, still, after almost 30 years from his death and based on google analytics he’ s much more famous than Shaggy or any other artist currently in charts and billboards.
Bob Marley albums are still topping the charts in 19 countries based on checks on iTunes Reggae Albums charts including US, UK, France Australia, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
Some of these Charts have more than just one of his album listed and his album “Legend” is still one of the most sold albums ever, second only to Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side Of The Moon”.
Bob Marley’s influence anyway transcends Charts and record sales, he’s also a top popular icon worldwide and nobody on earth symbolizes more than Bob Reggae and Rastafari, still inspiring millions of human beings all over the world. His super power is still absolute.
Bob Marley spent much of the late 1970s trying to promote peace and cultural understanding within Jamaica, despite being shot (along with his wife and manager, who also survived) before a peace concert. He also acted as a willing cultural ambassador for the Jamaican people and the Rastafarian religion.
He holds nearly godlike status among many Jamaicans and Rastafarian worldwide. He was also able to bring together political factions at war against each others as well shown in the recordings of One Love Peace Concert, one of the largest ever concert held on April 22, 1978 at The National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica.
This concert was held during a political civil war in Jamrock between opposing parties Jamaican Labour Party and the People’s National Party. The concert came to its peak during Bob Marley & The Wailers’ performance of “Jammin'”, when Marley joined the hands of political rivals Michael Manley (PNP) and Edward Seaga (JLP). That wasn’t the only not ordinary thing of that concert, pay attention to the thunders and his interpretation!
Everybody has a memory or a story connected to some of his songs and for many he’s not just another legendary singer, some how he touched personally each of us with his music delivering hope, love, advise and strength Jah Live – Bob Marley, One Love Peace Concert
Having the original cd of Legend for many years, and seeing it remastered, then reissued as a 2-disc cd, it has been released again this time with a dvd inside a nice, book-sized box. If you’ve owned it and played it to death, this would be a fine time to lay down the cash for it again. What’s especially intriguing is that many of the songs sound like extended, full-length versions of the same tracks featured on the original “Legend”, leading me to believe that the original issue was mostly 7″ edits.
Having the original cd of Legend for many years, and seeing it remastered, then reissued as a 2-disc cd, it has been released again this time with a dvd inside a nice, book-sized box. If you’ve owned it and played it to death, this would be a fine time to lay down the cash for it again. What’s especially intriguing is that many of the songs sound like extended, full-length versions of the same tracks featured on the original “Legend”, leading me to believe that the original issue was mostly 7″ edits.