News & Updates — Bob Marley

Here's a birthday shout-out to the Japan's Yamanaka Joe, actor, singer, activist & humanitarian. Born Akira Yamanaka to a Japanese prostitute mother and a Caribbean-American soldier father he never met, whom he believed to be either Cuban or Jamaican. He grew up in an orphanage and got TB as a kid. He started boxing at 16 and became a well-known "tough guy" actor in several Japanese flicks. After singing in blues band Mystic Morning he joined Flower Travellin' Band in 1970. FTB were one of the earliest (and best!) of the bands who were greatly influenced by Black Sabbath. They...

The unsung Jimmy Norman displayed his creativity in many different places during a long career largely underknown to the general public. He was perhaps most identifiable as a lyricist and songwriter, working with Bob Marley, Eddie Palmieri, Johnny Nash, Irma Thomas, Jimi Hendrix, Peter Tosh, Shorty Rogers and others. Born in Nashville, he grew up on the West Coast and started singing and recording with local doo-wop group The Chargers, including Jesse Belvin's "Dandilyon". (It was Belvin who spotted them and recommended them to RCA Victor. He did a bunch of touring as a musician in the '50s and wrote...

One of Jamaica's great drummers, Sticky Thompson played on many, many reggae sessions with The Wailers, Lee "Scratch" Perry, Jimmy Cliff, Dennis Brown, Junior Byles, Grace Jones, Culture, Gregory Isaacs, Black Uhuru, The Techniques, Mighty Diamonds, Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe, Ziggy Marley, John Holt, Soul Syndicate, Yabby You, Tommy McCook, Burning Spear, Tom Tom Club and many, many others. A few of his catalogue credits: "Beat Down Babylon", "Soul Rebel", "Duppy Conqueror", "I Need A Roof", "Pull Up To The Bumper" and other classics. He was a member of the Compass Point Studio band for Island Records. He was also...

Happy born day to reggae's most enduring superstar and the global face of "third world" music, Robert Nesta Marley! Bob and the gang at the Santa Barbara County Bowl, 1979: Positive Vibration 00:00:00 Wake Up and Live 00:06:31 I Shot the Sheriff 00:11:49 Ambush in the Night 00:16:22 Concrete Jungle 00:20:15 Running Away >  00:25:13 Crazy Baldhead 00:28:55 Them Belly Full (But We Hungry) 00:33:22 The Heathen 00:36:46 Ride Natty Ride 00:41:19 Africa Unite 00:45:30 One Drop 00:50:00 Exodus 00:54:04 So Much Things to Say  01:00:14 Zimbabwe 01:03:44 Jamming 01:07:47 Is This Love? 01:12:46 Kinky Reggae 01:16:05 Stir It Up...