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Listen to Bob Marley
Once I get the Flux Capacitor on this time machine working, I’ll be setting the controls for May 26, 1976 and heading straight for the Roxy on Sunset. The night’s attraction: Bob Marley & the Wailers.
Dialing up the “Much Music” reggae channel courtesy of my local cable provider recently, I was recently stopped in my tracks by a wicked bass line groove that sounded like the Specials playing with Sly & Robbie. But when the vocals kicked in, it was obviously Marley.
The song was “Want More,” taken from Live at the Roxy, Hollywood, California, May 26, 1976 - The Complete Concert. The rendition seethes with intensity, passion and even a little menace, as Marley warns of the pitfalls of Babylon with lines like “They’ll stab you in the back/And claim that you’re not looking.” It’s a spellbinding performance that feels almost religious, as evidenced by the woman that keeps screaming “Amen!” during the instrumental passages (at their best, the Wailers live could put the Roots through their paces).
According to eyewitness accounts, the audience was as star-studded as they come, with Lennon and Dylan among the many luminaries in the house. But it was all about Bob (Marley), as he and his crack band melted the brains of everyone in the audience with an incendiary show that's a must-hear for anyone that’s ever gotten into this musical maverick’s sonic genius. The 20+ minute encore version of “Get Up Stand Up” is a show in itself.
Now about that Flux Capacitor...
Celebrate the enduring legacy of Bob Marley when one of his many talented sons, Ziggy, performs at the West Beach Music & Arts Festival in Santa Barbara this weekend alongside Jason Mraz, Kate Voegele and Natasha Bedingfield. You deserve it.
—Scott T. Sterling
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