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Musical collection traces Marley’s history
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Bob Marley
“Songs of Freedom” boxed set
Tuff Gong Records
“Ole pirates yes they rob I, sold I to
the merchant ships, minutes after they
took I from the bottomless pil/But my
hand was made strong by the hand of
the Almighty.
“We flowered in this generation,
triumphantly/Won’t you help to sing
another song of freedom. .. it’s all I .
ever had. . . redemption songs —
these songs of freedom.”
Robert Nesta Marley never knew
happiness. He was bom into a world
in which he took part in a battle be
tween right and wrong, good and evil
— a struggle that he fought to his
dying day4
Marley was more than a man, he
was a modem prophet. He was a
prophet who rose from one of the most
unlikely and impoverished parts of
the world to sow the seeds of aware
ness that he could only hope would
one day grow and flower into his
vision of world peace.
“Songs of Freedom” is a glimpse
of the life and musical power of
Marley. The four compact disc set
traces the history of the Jamaican
legend from his first recording in 1962
to his last concert in 1980.
The four discs of the set each high
light a distinct period in the career of
Marley. The first disc contains tracks
from 1962-1970, a period in which
Bob matured from a K ingstonian “rude
boy” nicknamed “Tuff Gong” to a
young convert to Rastafarianism —
ihe following of the teachings of Ja
maican scholar Marcus Garvey and
the worship of former Ethiopian Em
peror Haile Selassie as God.
The period was marked by the
raging popularity of Jamaican ska
Courtesy of Tuff Gong Int i Records
“Songs of Freedom,” a retrospective Bob Marley collection,
features both classics and rarities.
throughout the dance halls of the Car
ibbean and England. The young
Wailers, composed of Marley, Peter
McIntosh and Bunny Livingston, re
corded some of the era’s most endur
ing hits including “Simmer Down,”
“Bus Dem Shut”and “Mellow Mood.”
By 1970, Marley’smusic had taken
the spiritual and social lone found in
enduring tracks like “Small Axe,”
“Duppy Conqueror” and “Soul
Rebel.” These tracks signaled an
ominous warning of things to come
for any who dared oppose the forces
of Jah Rastafari.
The years between 1971 and 1975
marked the most deeply spiritual and
revolutionary period of Marlcy’s ca
reer. Reggae music’s “one-drop”
rhythms and Rasta radicalism were
taking the world by storm.
Tracks like “Slave Driver,” “Get
Up, Stand Up” and “Burnin’ and
Lootin’” became, and have remained,
anthems of the downtrodden.
In addition to the standouts just
mentioned, disc two of “Songs Of
Freedom” contains two additional
treasures previously unreleased.'
The first is a 12-minute acoustic
medley that Marlcy recorded for
Johnny Nash in 1971 that includes
passionate versions of “Guava Jelly,”
“This Train,” “Cornerstone,”
“Comma Comma,” “Dew Drops,”
“Stir It Up” and “I’m Hurting Inside.”
The track shows a solo side of Marley
rarely seen before and makes the whole
set worth obtaining.
The second gem of disc two is a
bouncy rock-steady anthem called
“Iron Lion Zion” that Marley’s widow
Rita Marlcy recently “discovered” in
her vaults. The fact that the existence
of such an excellent song could be
forgotten for 20 years is a testament to
the massive size and quality of the
Marley catalog.
The third disc of the set contains
tracks from 1976 to 1978, another
transitional period in Marlcy’s life.
Part three leads off with a previ
ously unreleased live version of “No
Woman, No Cry” recorded at The
Roxy in Los Angeles on May 26,
1976. The ballad recounts Bob and
Rita’s hope amidst the impoverished
agony of living in Trcnchlown’s gov
ernment yard in the 1960s.
Two of the most fundamental songs
of the period involve Rastafarianism.
The tunc “War” from the “Rastaman
Vibration” album is a moving musi
cal adaptation of a 1968 speech by His
Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie in
which Jah told his audience that there
would be war until “the color of a
man’s skin is of no more significance
than the color of his eyes.
“Jah Live” is undoubtedly the most
important song Marley ever recorded
for his Rastafarian brethren. In the
spring of 1976, Emperor Selassie died
and Marley immediately went into
the studio to cut this track to console
the Rastas that “yuh cyant kill God.”
Also included on this disc arc more
obscure alternate versions and dance
mixesof Marley standouts like “Wait
ing In Vain,” “Jammin\" “Keep On
Movin’” and a previously unreleased
version of “Three Little Birds.”
The final disc rounds out the an
thology with some of Marley’s great
est work. During this period of his
life, the ravages of the cancer that
consumed his body were beginning to
take their toll.
Most of the “Survival” album from
1978 is included here. Songs like “Sur
vival,’’“One Drop,’’“Zimbabwe” and
“Babylon System” combined to make
what is considered one of the greatest
reggae albums of all times.
The monumental “Zimbabwe” was
so widely cherished in Africa in the
late 1970s that it not only became the
anthem of the freedom fighters in
Zimbabwe, but it intensified fighting
in Angola and Mozambique as well.
Marley had truly become a world
political force.
The most moving track of the en
tire set is the last song on disc four, a
momentous live version of “Redemp
tion Song” recorded at Marley’s last
concert in Pittsburgh, Penn., on Sept.
23, 1980.
At that point of “Uprising” tour,
the Tuff Gong was barely strong
enough to take the stage, yet his vo
cals rang through on this piece as
powerfully as at any lime in his ca
reer.
“Emancipate yourself from men
tal slavery, none but ourselves can
free our m inds/Have no fear for atom ic
energy for none of them can stop the
timc/How long shall they kill our
prophets while we stand aside and
look?”
— Carter Van Pelt
* * —Courtesy of High Street Records
Downy Mildew
‘Moldy9 band to perform at Duffy9s
By Stacey McKenzie
Senior Reporter___
Pop ihc beer tops tonight at Duffy ’ s
Tavern, 14120 St., and you will find
Downy Mildew.
No, the health department won’t
bust the place when this band from
Los Angeles takes the stage, because
Downy Mildew comprises a healthy
musical lot that’s appeared in Lincoln
before.
They can boast eight years of to
getherness; now that’s healthy.
They also can boast about their
latest release on High Street Records,
“An Oncoming Train.
The five-piece band has an upbeat
sound with slightly darker lyrics. One
great thing about this band is the give
and-take between female and male
vocals. It adds a dimension not often
heard.
They’ve opened for 10,(XX) Mani
acs, Concrete Blonde and were lauded
by R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, who di
rected a video for the band’s track,
“Offering.”
The line-up is: Nancy McCoy,bass
ist; Jenny Homer, vocalist/guitarist;
-
Charlie Baldonado, vocalist; Rob
Jacobs, drums; and Salvador Garza.
Downy Mildew has been strong on
the underground band scene for a long
time, and the signing on a major label
was a long time coming.
But Downy Mildew wasn’t dis
suaded. It kept up its local play,
toured nationally, and put out records
on a do-it-yourself level.
Thiscurtain from stardom kept out
the limelight, they say, and helped
them to develop as songwriters and
musicians.
By the way, Downy Mildew is a
type of cabbage fungus; no further
explanation was available as to how
cabbage fungus relates to music.
Jazz album puts listeners
in the mood for relaxation
Kfr/*eM/4
“Just Between Us”
Norman Brown
Motown Records
In the mood for some relaxation?
Then Norman Brown will serve you
up a dose with his jazz.
“Just Between Us” features
Norman Brown, a man with hisacous
tic guitar, who bring the listener some
jazz fusion that has a little bit of sass,
a little bit of funk and a little bit of
seduction.
“Stormin’,” the first tunc off “Just
Between Us,” is an up-tempo tune
featuring saxophonist Gerald Albright.
The interplay of these two, with
Albright on saxophone and Brown on
the guitar, mixed with a conga sound,
starts this LP on the right track.
“It’s a Feeling” also features
Albright.
The title track, “Just Between Us,”
is a smooth ballad that will let the
listener get a feel for Brown and the
style and grace with which he plays.
“East Meets West” is a funky track
on which Brown incorporates some
percussion into his sound. Brown is
able to use a variety of instrumenta
tion in his music, and this makes his
music go because he is able to work
well within this framework.
He also does a good job of not
overshadowing the guest performers.
“Love’s Holiday,” featuring Pcrri,
and “Sweet Taste,” featuring Tony
Warren and Della Miles, arc prime
examples where Brown features other
artists who complement his style.
“Too High” is by far the best song on
the album. With Boyz II Men provid
ing the background and Stevie Won
Courtesy of Motown Records
“Just Between Us”
dcr singing the lead, they bring it all
together and come up with a tunc that
will catch the listeners’ attention.
•s^
The blend of Boy/. II Men harmo
nizing and Wonder’s harmonica play
ing complement Brown and his guitar
playing.
This is a remarkably good LP. The
remaining four tracks on “Just Be
tween Us” have the same quality as
the others, with Brown bringing the
listener into his world of jazz and
turning them on with his fusion, funk,
sass and seduction.
~\
If listeners arc in a mood to relax,
Norman Brown — a man and his
guitar—will provide them with about
an hour’s worth of relaxation.
— Anthony D. Speights