The Heir
08 Mar 2006 10:33 PM / Filed in: Music
Bob Marley is a very special artist for me. I was introduced to his music approximately two decades ago when I was still a kid by my dear brother Aziz. I still have vivid memories of how Aziz and I used to listen to Bob's tapes on the Sharp player we had in our room. I kind of enjoyed the music but I was not totally in love with it. Remember, I was a kid.
Fast-forward to 1991. Aziz who left for the U.S. in 1985 came back to Morocco during the summer and he brought with him many of his CDs and of course, he had many Marley albums. As a gift he brought me a Sony portable CD player (my first one!). I ended up listening to these albums in an almost infinite loop, broken now and then with Michael Franks's Blue Pacific and Skin Dive.
Survival, Kaya, Uprising and so many others. I was totally hooked. Addicted would be a better word since his music totally took residence in my heart and my soul. His words are so wonderful! Looking at my CD shelf I can count 17 albums of Bob Marley plus the Songs of Freedom CD set.
Last year, I was reading a Vibrations issue when I stumbled upon a review of Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley's latest album. Damian is the youngest son of Bob. I knew of course that Bob had many children. And while I heard of Ziggy and Julian, I had never heard of Damian.
The review made by Vibrations convinced me that this was an album that I should listen to as soon as possible so I ordered it a few minutes after I was done reading my magazine. I received Welcome to Jamrock two days later and indeed it is a very very good album. Damian is very good at deejaying and while his voice sounds at times a lot like Bob's, he has his own musical world even if it is heavily based on Reggae. I loved the album so much that I featured one of the songs in Wonderful Songs, Jan'06.
Yesterday, I was at Damian's concert at Paris' Elysées Montmartre. The concert was excellent and Damian was impressive. I wasn't at the Lyceum back in 1975 to see his father (hey! I was three months old) but I think Damian has nothing to be ashamed of. During more than 90 minutes, he successfully entertained the public as far as I could see. I had been so enthralled that I didn't feel the minutes fly by even if I was standing all the time (there's no chairs at Elysées Montmartre).
By the end of the concert, Damian sang some Bob songs such as Africa Unite, Zimbabwe, Could You Be Loved, War and So Much Trouble In The World. The public knew the lyrics by heart and Damian often called to us to sing along. During these magical moments, he really created the illusion that it was not him who was singing but his father. He is truly the heir of one of the most influential artists of all times.
So I would like to thank Bob and Damian Marley for making such great music that makes me feel so good. And of course I would like to thank Aziz for all the things he has done, consciously or not, for my musical education.
To finish this post, I would like you to read and think carefully about the following part of War's lyrics:
Until the philosophy which hold one race superior
And another
Inferior
Is finally
And permanently
Discredited
And abandoned -
Everywhere is war -
Me say war.
That until there no longer
First class and second class citizens of any nation
Until the colour of a man’s skin
Is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes -
Me say war.
That until the basic human rights
Are equally guaranteed to all,
Without regard to race -
Dis a war.
That until that day
The dream of lasting peace,
World citizenship
Rule of international morality
Will remain in but a fleeting illusion to be pursued,
But never attained -
Now everywhere is war - war.
Fast-forward to 1991. Aziz who left for the U.S. in 1985 came back to Morocco during the summer and he brought with him many of his CDs and of course, he had many Marley albums. As a gift he brought me a Sony portable CD player (my first one!). I ended up listening to these albums in an almost infinite loop, broken now and then with Michael Franks's Blue Pacific and Skin Dive.
Survival, Kaya, Uprising and so many others. I was totally hooked. Addicted would be a better word since his music totally took residence in my heart and my soul. His words are so wonderful! Looking at my CD shelf I can count 17 albums of Bob Marley plus the Songs of Freedom CD set.
Last year, I was reading a Vibrations issue when I stumbled upon a review of Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley's latest album. Damian is the youngest son of Bob. I knew of course that Bob had many children. And while I heard of Ziggy and Julian, I had never heard of Damian.
The review made by Vibrations convinced me that this was an album that I should listen to as soon as possible so I ordered it a few minutes after I was done reading my magazine. I received Welcome to Jamrock two days later and indeed it is a very very good album. Damian is very good at deejaying and while his voice sounds at times a lot like Bob's, he has his own musical world even if it is heavily based on Reggae. I loved the album so much that I featured one of the songs in Wonderful Songs, Jan'06.
Yesterday, I was at Damian's concert at Paris' Elysées Montmartre. The concert was excellent and Damian was impressive. I wasn't at the Lyceum back in 1975 to see his father (hey! I was three months old) but I think Damian has nothing to be ashamed of. During more than 90 minutes, he successfully entertained the public as far as I could see. I had been so enthralled that I didn't feel the minutes fly by even if I was standing all the time (there's no chairs at Elysées Montmartre).
By the end of the concert, Damian sang some Bob songs such as Africa Unite, Zimbabwe, Could You Be Loved, War and So Much Trouble In The World. The public knew the lyrics by heart and Damian often called to us to sing along. During these magical moments, he really created the illusion that it was not him who was singing but his father. He is truly the heir of one of the most influential artists of all times.
So I would like to thank Bob and Damian Marley for making such great music that makes me feel so good. And of course I would like to thank Aziz for all the things he has done, consciously or not, for my musical education.
To finish this post, I would like you to read and think carefully about the following part of War's lyrics:
Until the philosophy which hold one race superior
And another
Inferior
Is finally
And permanently
Discredited
And abandoned -
Everywhere is war -
Me say war.
That until there no longer
First class and second class citizens of any nation
Until the colour of a man’s skin
Is of no more significance than the colour of his eyes -
Me say war.
That until the basic human rights
Are equally guaranteed to all,
Without regard to race -
Dis a war.
That until that day
The dream of lasting peace,
World citizenship
Rule of international morality
Will remain in but a fleeting illusion to be pursued,
But never attained -
Now everywhere is war - war.