Let’s face it, there have been quite a few books written
about Bob Marley over the years, but this outstanding read is an essential for
all real fans, a unique collection of recollections from the people who
actually knew him, reconstructing a multi-dimensional view of the sanctified
singer. Professor of reggae history, Roger Steffens, has meticulously pieced
together interviews from his own personal archive and contemporary publications,
weaving them into chronological order, covering the whole of Bob’s life. You
get an amazing insight into Kingston circa 1962, as the young Wailers got
together during a time when the first steps of independence were an irrepressible,
energetic dance to the new ska beat sweeping the island. This period may be
easy to romanticise (see To Jamaica with Love) but any fuzzy nostalgia is contrasted with reminiscences of the reality
of day to day poverty and violence, including being bottled off stage in one
incident. The voices of almost-forgotten members of the early incarnations of
the loosely affiliated group are tracked down and restored, including Beverly
Kelso, Cherry Green, Junior Braithwaite and Dream ‘Vision’ Walker, which makes
you want to go back to your Studio One collections and listen out for their
contributions. The sheer volume of work produced in this early period makes you
realise no matter how many reissued CDs you have, you still don’t have the
complete Wailers recordings. As the Wailers become a distinct trio, and a force
to be reckoned with, their path to international success is long and rocky, as
the vivid memories of Bunny Wailer and Rita Marley testify. The Jamaican music
scene of the era is brought to life with contributions from Alton Ellis, Bob
Andy, Marcia Griffiths and many more, at once fiercely competitive and mutually
supportive, in some ways chaotic but also a hugely productive industry. It
makes you appreciate the ten years that the Wailers were together defined them,
and in Bob’s case, lasted longer than his solo career. It left them with such a
rich back catalogue of songs they all continued to draw on them throughout
their subsequent individual journeys. Claims, counter-claims, love affairs, financial
mis-dealings and disputed song-writing credits compete for attention as Bob’s
life gets more complicated and his star begins to rise. The rival revelations
and building pressures on the group are recanted in some cases as still bitter
and raw, making it seem inevitable that they had to go their separate ways. At
times you feel like you are in the middle of a conversation featuring the living
and dead, as Peter Tosh, Cindy Breakspeare, Coxsone Dodd and Chris Blackwell
exchange views on the man behind the legend. Even though we all know how it is
going to end, the detailed deconstruction of each Bob Marley album and tour by
the musicians involved is compulsive reading, juxtaposed with memories from
those closest to him of his increasingly painful personal life. The attempt on
his life is explored from every angle, suspicion and conspiracy theory. The
cancer diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, or lack of it, is recalled in layers of
confusion and regret. Bob’s Rastafari faith as his driving force and his future
plans for working in Africa are revealed, making us realise his work was far
from over. You’re left feeling closer to Bob than ever, and wanting to listen
to his music all over again, but no closer to knowing how much of his gift was
down to his own individual, magical genius, or the collective product of a
wellspring of creativity in a unique culture, time and place. Thanks to Roger
Steffens’ ‘So Much Things To Say’, we’ll never forget, no way, the people who
made his story history. One love.
https://bookmarksbookshop.co.uk/view/45377/So+Much+Things+to+Say%253A+The+Oral+History+of+Bob+Marley
No comments:
Post a Comment