Book Description

A journalist’s access to the music icon gives this account an “authenticity that sets the book apart from other biographies about the man and the legend” (Steve Richards, The Independent). The man who introduced reggae to a worldwide audience, Bob Marley was a hero figure in the classic, mythological sense. From humble beginnings, with talent and religious belief his only weapons, the Jamaican recording artist applied himself with unstinting perseverance to spreading his prophetic musical message across the globe. In 1980, on tour, Bob Marley and the Wailers played to the largest audiences a musical act had ever experienced in Europe. Less than a year later, Marley would die, only thirty-six years old. Sales of Marley’s albums before his death were spectacular; in the years since he died, they have been phenomenal. Chris Salewicz interviewed Bob Marley in Jamaica in 1979. Now, for the first time, in this thorough, detailed account of Marley’s life and the world in which he grew up and which he came to dominate, Salewicz brings to life not only the Rastafari religion and the musical scene in Jamaica, but also the spirit of the man himself. Interviews with dozens of people who knew Marley and have never spoken before are woven through the narrative as Salewicz seeks to explain why Marley has become such an enigmatic and heroic figure, loved by millions all over the world. “As gritty, entertaining, and starry-eyed as Marley himself.” —Publishers Weekly “The definitive account of the man and the myth.” —Steve Richards, The Independent “[Salewicz] invades and illuminates Marley’s privacy more effectively than previous biographers.” —Robert Sandall, The Sunday Times (London)