Evolution of Bob Marley

Im Still Waiting - Bob Marley & The Wailers

Simmer Down - Bob Marley & The Wailers



The picture and two songs that I've posted above are from Marley's first albumThe Wailing Wailers, when he was part of group called The Wailers. The people playing in this group with him change through out his career. The Wailing Wailers was released in 1965. Marley would have been 20. From what I've read it sounds like Marley first close experience with Rastafari came when he left school to focused on music and befriended a famous rastafari Jamiacan singere Joe Higgs. However it should be noted that also on Marley's first album is a version of the song "One Love". His next albums comes 6 and 8 years later. You can hear some that some of his ideas are starting to fall into place, but he still isn't the Bob Marley that everyone knows. An example of this is the song 400 Years that is posted below.

400 Years - Bob Marley & The Wailers

In 1974 on the album Natty Dread we see the Bob Marley we are more familiar with, with songs like "No Woman No Cry", "Natty Dread", "So Jah Seh", etc. I still think his sound is a little different that what come later but ... I also think his lyric writing skills got better over time. I just thought it was interesting to see how his music changed over the years.