Tag Archives: Bob Marley

Bob Marley Movie Review by M Peggy Quattro
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Bob Marley: One Love – The Movie. The Man. The Music. The Message.

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From 1976 – 1978 * Almost Killed to Life in Exile to Movement of Jah People

By M. Peggy Quattro

Opinion

Like millions around the globe, I eagerly awaited the debut of the Bob Marley: One Love movie. Paramount Pictures took it on! A 70++ million-dollar budget! Wow! Reggae gone Hollywood! Yet, as intriguing and well-put-together as the movie trailers appeared, many fans were left wondering … Wait! What?

I’ve watched One Love four times. Four times! Each time noticing something new, something not true, a disjointed timeline, events that never happened. Judging by the barrage of questioning comments on social, I know I’m not alone. From 1976 to 1978, we’re immersed in Bob’s Hollywood story world. Locations with stories created by screenwriters and coached by the Family.

Bob Marley

Understood, it is not a documentary. On the flip side, it’s a biopic. Claimed to be “based on a true story,” the biopic offers a creative version of a person’s life. An emotional and entertaining portrayal to hopefully engage audiences. Here, there are soppy scenes with mother, father, teen Bob, and Rita, of course.

So Bob Seh: “You should know and not believe”

This movie left me feeling Bob never got the profound radical story he deserved. Perhaps when interpreting a deceased icon’s life, the storyteller should not fabricate stories because they don’t like or don’t accept the truth of that life. Truths should not switch to untruths when it suits the situation.

I get a bit ruffled when I see One Love tagged as a “biography.” It isn’t. A decent biography will contain only facts and tell how the person really was. This story does not do that. Bob Marley fans do not want to see their musical messenger, their Rasta rebel, be made lesser than or greater than he truthfully was. I don’t feel Bob would either. Bob’s life is the story. Sometimes truth is better than fiction. His fans deserve to know what’s fiction and be made aware of it outside the theater.

I’ve seen on social that folks look forward to this review. Jah know, some will like it, some will not. Nuh mattah. I’m a long-time insider and a major Bob disciple.

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MPQ - HerStory / HerWords, ReggaeReport.com Exclusives!

My David Crosby Diary: Leaping from Rock to Reggae

Five Days in Mill Valley with Croz & Jan

By M. Peggy Quattro

David Crosby – Circa 1970s

With the sad news of David Crosby’s passing on Jan. 18, 2023, I was drawn to discover more about his intriguing life. I remembered when I first met David, aka Croz. I recalled the captivating love story with his wife, Jan Dance, a dear friend from our Miami days. I flashed back on why I chose to leave my life in Germany, my business, and my friends to move to California. David was indeed the impetus for that drastic decision.

Was it naïve? Yes. Rash? Definitely. Life-changing? Absolutely.

It was at the close of 1978 when Jan invited me to stay with her during my first visit to San Francisco. Five days in Mill Valley with Jan and Croz ended with an unexpected opportunity.

Almost everyone has a Croz story. I enjoyed reading a plethora of impressive ones. His interviews and astute opinions are insightful, entertaining and enlightening. Check the links at the end of this story for his comprehensive books and in-depth documentary.

Even so, my story ties directly to the Crosbys, to a radical life change and the resulting outcome.

For context, let me say I’ve been asked a bazillion times how I got into Reggae; the the music and industry I pioneered and participated in for more than 40 years. The odyssey began in early-70s Coconut Grove, the music-hippie-artsy area of Miami. Jan Dance and her sister “Peppermint Pati” Dance were good fun Grove pals. Side note for astrology buffs: Jan is a Virgo (like me), born same year. If my memory serves me correctly, we may share the same chart … except for our rising sign, maybe. OK, moving on…

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MPeggyQ – 40 Years inna Reggae – Since 1981

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From “Reggae Report Runnings” 1984 – Meet:  M. Peggy Quattro

“When one door is closed, don’t you know many more is open.”

May 11, 1981, holds a special meaning for me in two ways. Firstly, it was the day that Bob “Nesta’ Marley left this physical plane to go on to higher heights, and secondly, it was the day that first marked my entrance into the Reggae music business, working with Don Taylor, Bob’s long-time friend, associate, and manager.

The immediate hustle and bustle and activity at the office surrounding such an international event convinced me that this was no “joke business.” Bob had a lot of work left to do, and out there would be certain people “picking up” where he physically left off. I am one of those persons.

Don Taylor and M Peggy Quattro, Montego Bay

Bob was the key to the spiritual door… and he opened it so now everyone can go through. I find I-dren everywhere I go that know, as Jah children, this is serious (yet happy) work we carry on in the name of our father – Jah! Like so many others, I could relate to the philosophies and wisdom Bob left for us in his songs. These same truths hold true today for those of US familiar with his life and times, as it will hold true for future generations who will know him through our records, tapes, films, and books.

Bob will never age past being vibrant, energetic, and 36 – beautifully endowed with dreadlocks from his soul, love from his heart, and truth from his lips.

In 1982, my first labor of love was the Caribbean Sunburst Festival, where, as Director-in-Chief, I made my own solemn tribute to Bob. This 4-day history-making event was soon followed by our presentations of Marcia Griffiths at the Gusman (still keeping it in the family) in ’82, and then various promotional endeavors that eventually led to the creation of Reggae Report.

So ‘wake up and live” y’all…the Reggae Report is here… as a voice, as a rhythm… we shall, ‘till the last syllable of recorded time, honor and hold in reverence our beloved leader, brother, and friend.

“You think it’s the end, but it’s just the beginning…”

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Reggae Artists Remember Bob Marley from 1984

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In 1984, we asked performers & personalities this same question:

What Was the One Thing That Impressed You the Most About Bob Marley?

Here’s what they said, as seen in V2#5 1984:

“…Bob’s very great…his music is different from all the rest of Reggae musicians…and well put together.” ~Ansell Collins

“…it’s just him…just the man, really… you know, the man.”  ~Beres Hammond

“…a hard-workin’ man, him work for what him have in life, really…and he’s a good singer and good writer, and I respect everything him done…him pave the way for every other artist in Jamaica.”  ~Gregory Isaacs

“…his talent… for me, it was his talent.” ~Jimmy Cliff

“..Bob was a great man…he appreciated people and they related to him…he was a champion of the people…a selfless person…he cared on an international scale for the poor, black and suffering…this was the essence of Bob.”  ~Cindy Breakspeare, Miss World 1976

“… a cool runnings man… just cool…that was one of the things I admired.”  ~Lloyd Parkes, bandleader

“…it’s his range…on one hand it was religion, on the other hand, he was a lover… you know, one has a heavy message, the other you could dance to…” ~Perry Henzell, writer/director The Harder They Come

“…he showed people how to move from poverty to riches… (as in) how to move from Babylon to the Promised Land…”   ~Tony King, Jamaica Tourist Board, Kingston

“…it’s how he was a leader…he had a platform and he stood strong…(and) he allowed me to be creative.”  ~Donald Kinsey, guitarist

“…his song “Smile Jamaica” for personal inspiration…(because) I smile a lot!”  ~Andrew Henry, Kingston Publishers

What impressed you the most? Tell us in the comments below!

 

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Inside the Vaults of Marley – 1990

(As published in Reggae Report V08#04 1990 – this article has not been updated since its original publication. Any updated information is welcome.) 

By Roger Steffens

Reggae historian & Marley archivist Roger Steffens

Bob Marley, Reggae’s prolific king, has been gone for nine years now and for the first time in that period, there exists a growing hope that the protracted legal battles for control of his life’s work are finally drawing to a close. At stake are millions of dollars in royalties, unreleased material, and properties. Nineteen lawyers are currently representing all the different claimants to the estate, including Bob’s children, the estates of the late Peter Tosh and drummer Carlton Barrett, the Wailers band, Bob’s mother Cedella Booker, Bunny Wailer, and various publishers and accountants.

As of the end of April, it appears as if an out-of-court scheme developed by Island Records president Chris Blackwell has met with qualified approval by most of the involved parties, and the way seems much clearer than ever for the eventual release of a treasure trove of unreleased and uncollected Marley and Wailers material going back to the dawn of his career in the early Sixties.

Chronologically, this is my breakdown of what remains to be heard, based on nearly twenty years of following every lead I could. And there is still a great deal of material, some of it stolen from Mrs. Booker’s home after Bob’s death that could yield even more surprises. Continue reading →

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Bob Marley Interview – After the Boston Show 1980

By Lee O’Neill    *Updated 2020
V11#3 1993

As Bob Marley and the Wailers took their positions on stage for a 1980 Boston concert [at Hynes Auditorium,] they resembled a tribe of Biblical prophets carrying electric guitars. Red, gold, and green spotlights shined on the different members of the band, from the patriarchal percussionist Seeco Patterson to guitarist Al Anderson dressed in military fatigues.

The leader of the tribe walked to the center microphone in complete darkness and slowly began the song “Natural Mystic.” A spotlight finally landed on Bob Marley, whose long dreadlocks suggested a lion’s mane, and the mood for the show was fixed. Whether they knew it or not and whether they liked it or not, the Boston audience was being drawn into a spiritual experience.

Bob Marley with the Commodores, Madison Square Garden, 1980

I had the opportunity to interview Marley several hours after that September 1980 concert. It was to be one of his last. The Wailers [then] traveled to Providence, Rhode Island, for a show at Brown University and went from there to New York. *Following two extraordinary shows at Madison Square Gardens, where the Wailers finally performed before a predominantly African-American audience while outshining the Commodores, Marley collapsed while jogging in Central Park. The extent of his illness became apparent. The Wailers made their final appearance in Pittsburgh a few days later. Continue reading →