Live! [Bonus Track] [Remaster]

Performer: Bob Marley/Bob Marley & the Wailers
Artist: Rita Marley; Judy Mowatt
Engineer: Steve Smith
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Bob Marley & The Wailers: Bob Marley (vocals, guitar); Al Anderson (guitar); Tyrone Downie (keyboards); Aston "Familyman" Barrett (bass); Crlton "Carly" Barrett (drums); Alvin "Seeco" Patterson (percussion). Additional personnel includes: Rita Marley, Judy Mowatt, Marcia Griffiths (background vocals). Reissue producer: Bill Levenson, Maxine Stowe. Recorded at The Lyceum, London, England on July 19, 1975. Originally released on Island (90032). All tracks have been digitally remastered. Personnel: Bob Marley (vocals, guitar); Al Yasha Anderson (guitar); Tyrone Downie (keyboards); Carlton "Carlie" Barrett (drums). Audio Mixer: David Harper. Recording information: Lyceum, London, England (07/19/1975). Photographers: Adrian Boot; Bob Ellis; Dennis Morris. Nobody who likes music could fail to be emotionally moved by this album, and not just because Marley is no longer with us. It was a special live treat before he died. The great thing about this record is the feeling that this is what it was like every night, unlike other live recordings which capture one or two gigs of a tour. Marley was extra special and a giant of popular music. Wallow in this vital record and listen to a man who had something to say and yet had fun while he said it. Most of the tracks you would want to be on the record are here, including the definitive version of 'No Woman No Cry' and a funky 'Lively Up Yourself'. As the title implies, this is indeed Bob Marley & the Wailers captured in performance at the Lyceum Ballroom in London during the final U.K. leg of the Natty Dread tour. Passionate and symbiotic energies constantly cycle between the band and audience, the net result of which is one of the most memorable concert recordings of the pop music era. With the addition of lead guitarist Al Anderson during the recording sessions for their previous long-player, Natty Dread, the Wailers took increasing strides toward a seamless transition into the consciousness of the rock music audience. Anderson's bluesy guitar runs liberate "Burnin' and Lootin'" as well as "Trenchtown Rock," the only new composition on Live!. Anderson bobs and weaves his supple-toned fretwork among the somewhat staid rhythms common to reggae. The mutual affinity that binds Marley with his audience is evident in the roars of approval that greet the opening notes of "Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)," "I Shot the Sheriff," and "Kinky Reggae." Likewise, "No Woman, No Cry" elicits a group singalong as the sheer volume of the audience challenges that of the amplified musicians. With this evidence, there is no denying that Bob Marley & the Wailers were becoming the unlikeliest of pop music icons. Additionally, Live! underscores the underrated talents of the Wailers as musicians. Older works such as "Burnin' and Lootin'" and "I Shot the Sheriff" benefit greatly from Tyrone Downie's keyboard punctuation and the soulful backing vocals of the I-Threes. The 2001 Definitive Remasters issue of Live! is appended with "Kinky Reggae," which was originally released as the B-side to "No Woman, No Cry." The track was taken from the same Lyceum performance in July of 1975. Likewise, Live! is the title that seems to have sonically benefited the most from the remastering work done by Ted Jensen. ~ Lindsay Planer

Q (9/01, p.135) - 5 stars out of 5 - "...Perhaps uniquely, brilliant and live..." Uncut (11/01, p.130) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...One of the key concert recordings in popular music's last 40 years..." Down Beat (12/01, p.88) - 4.5 stars out of 5 - "...Reggae at its most elemental..." Mojo (Publisher) (7/01, p.120) - "...It has everything to do with what Marley was about....it remains an important piece of 20th century cultural history..."

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