Bob Marley & the Wailers released Catch a Fire

Catch a Fire Bob Marley & the Wailers

Released: April 13, 1973 Peak: 171 US, 51 RB Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.1 UK, 1.5 world (includes US and UK) Genre: reggae

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Concrete Jungle (6/73, --) Slave Driver 400 Years Stop the Train (1971, --) Baby We’ve Got a Date (1/73, --) Stir It Up (10/68, --) Kinky Reggae No More Trouble Midnight Ravers Total Running Time: 37:51 The Players: Bob Marley (vocals, guitar) Peter Tosh (organ, guitar, piano, vocals) Bunny Wailer (bongos, conga, vocals) Aston “Family Man” Barrett (bass) Carlton “Carlie” Barrett (drums) Rita Marley (backing vocals) Marcia Griffiths (backing vocals)

Rating: 4.098 out of 5.00 (average of 23 ratings) Quotable: “One of the finest reggae albums ever” – Vik Iyengar, All Music Guide Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “Catch a Fire was the major label debut for Bob Marley and the Wailers, and it was an international success upon its release in 1973. Although Bob Marley may have been the main voice, every member of the Wailers made valuable contributions and they were never more united in their vision and sound. All the songs were originals, and the instrumentation was minimalistic in order to bring out the passionate, often politically charged lyrics.” AMG “Much of the appeal of the album lies in its sincerity and sense of purpose — these are streetwise yet disarmingly idealistic young men who look around themselves and believe they might help change the world through music. Marley sings about the current state of urban poverty (Concrete Jungle) and connects the present to past injustices (Slave Driver), but he is a not a one-trick pony. He is a versatile songwriter who also excels at singing love songs such as his classic Stir It Up. Peter Tosh sings the lead vocal on two of his own compositions — his powerful presence and immense talent hint that he would eventually leave for his own successful solo career. More than anything else, however, this marks the emergence of Bob Marley and the international debut of reggae music. Marley would continue to achieve great critical and commercial success during the 1970s, but Catch a Fire is one of the finest reggae albums ever. This album is essential for any music collection.” AMG Notes: “400 Years” previously appeared on Soul Rebels and African Herbsman. The 2001 remastered version adds bonus tracks "High Tide or Low Tide" and "All Day All Night." There’s also the two-disc deluxe edition which adds an album’s worth of dubs. A Deluxe Edition of the album adds a second disc which consists of the original Jamaican version of the album before it was remixed with extra guitar and keyboard parts.

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Bob Marley AMG All Music Guide review by Vik Iyengar First posted 3/26/2008; last updated 5/10/2021.