How Did Bob Marley Influence Society

Bob Marley was born Robert Nesta Marley in a small rural village in Jamaica and rose to become the most popular and beloved reggae artist in history. Standing a mere 5' 4" Marley was a charismatic sensitive soul who had a gift for translating the pain and politics of suppressed people into uplifting songs. He delivered messages of love and unity and pushed the underground sounds of reggae music onto the world stage. Bob Marley was born of mixed heritage - his father a Jamaican born white man of British nationality and his mother a black Jamaican - Marley was ostracized as a child and struggled to come to terms with the duality of his racial identity. His conversion to the Rastafarian religion, which comes from the original forms of Christianity and Judaism from Egypt and Ethiopia, and includes an "Ital" diet prohibiting the consumption of pork, alcohol, coffee, medicines and all foods containing preservatives and additives, helped him find truth in a world filled with injustice and racism. Influenced by popular African American groups like Curtis Mayfield's "The Impressions," Bob Marley joined with childhood friends to form The Wailers. The group dressed in matching suits and maintained the clean-cut look reminiscent of Motown groups of that era. After becoming a Rastafarian and reforming the group years later as "Bob
Marley and The Wailers" Marley began to emerge as a prophetic musician promoting peace and higher consciousness. At 32 years old, Marley was diagnosed with skin cancer on his toe and refused amputation because of his religious beliefs. In just four short years, cancer had consumed him, spreading to his brain, liver, lungs, and stomach - killing him at the very young age of thirty-six. Bob Marley is one of the most successful artists to come from the Caribbean and is revered as a legend of reggae music and the Rastafarian faith. Two of my favorite and most well known Bob Marley songs are called "Three Little Birds" and "No Women, No Cry." His best-known hits also include "I Shot the Sheriff", "Could You Be Loved", "Stir It Up", "Jamming", "Redemption Song", "One Love" and, together with The Wailers, as well as the posthumous releases "Buffalo Soldier" and "Iron Lion Zion". The compilation album Legend (1984), released three years after his death, is reggae's best-selling album, going ten times Platinum (Diamond) in the U.S., and selling 25 million copies worldwide. Although I like most of his songs, the two that I have picked stick out to me a bit more than the others. The song "Three Little Birds" represents Bob Marley better than any other.
It is about peace, love and happiness. The source of Marley's inspiration for the lyrics of "Three Little Birds" remains disputed. It is said to be inspired by birds that Marley was fond of, that used to fly and sit next to his home. Tony Gilbert, a long time friend of Marley, was present at the time he was writing the song and elaborated, "Bob got inspired by a lot of things around him, he observed life. I remember the three little birds. They were pretty birds, canaries, who would come by the windowsill at Hope Road."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIjkW6iyXNo In the song "No Women, No Cry", Bob Marley is reminiscing about the past and telling a women not to cry for him as he moves on to bigger and better things, sadly without her. The song details the sentiment of hopelessness and despair shared by residents, which Marley and others defied, finding hope and solace in music. The original line of the song is "No, Woman, Nuh cry." Nuh is Jamacian for "don't," so what is meant by the lyric is No, Woman, Don't cry... He's leaving and reassuring her that the slum they live in known as Trench town won't get her down, that everything will be alright and "don't shed no tear." Marley is basically telling his loved ones do not worry about him, although he is moving on to greater things he will not forget the past and he will always be there and they will be alright. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGqrvn3q1oo&feature=related There are a wide variety of instruments used in these songs. The most well known instruments are the guitar, bass, keyboard, and drums. In the song "Three Little Birds," a little less known instrument being used is the tambourine. The tambourine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". In the song "No Women, No Cry" a relatively unknown instrument being used is the cabassa. The cabassa is a percussion instrument that is constructed with loops of steel ball chain wrapped around a wide cylinder. The cylinder is fixed to a long, narrow wooden or plastic handle. Bob Marley has made many songs in his short lifetime that will outlive most of us. They way he inspired people is still yet to be matched by an artist till this day. He was and still is a hero to many people, not only in the carribean, but to all over the world. His views of peace, love and happiness are still seen through other artists and their music today. He is an inspirational figure and a living legend that had his life taken away from him because of religious beliefs. Hopefully his music will never be forgotten.