More than three decades after Bob Marley’s death, Bob Marley and the Wailers remain among the most famous bands of all time. With over 75 million albums sold worldwide, an appeal that spans generations, and still influencing artists today, their legacy is something most other acts only dream of.
Their evolution from an early-60s Jamaican ska group to international superstars was not just improbable, but unprecedented for an act from a third-world nation.
Bob Marley and the Wailers: The Ultimate Illustrated History documents Marley’s and the Wailers’ role in spreading reggae music around the globe. Author Richie Unterberger examines all aspects of their career, from the early days, their recorded output, as well as the roles and careers of other Wailers, most notably Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer.
The resulting package is authoritative but also beautifully designed and illustrated, featuring 300 images of rare memorabilia, as well as fantastic performance and candid off-stage photography. Additionally, Unterberger delves into the influence of the Rastafari movement on the musicians’ lives and music, and on controversial incidents like the breakup of the original Wailers in the mid-1970s; the attempted assassination of Marley in 1976; and his premature death in 1981. This big, hardcover book illuminates Bob Marley and the Wailers’ life and times like no other history of the band.
Richie Unterberger is the author of numerous rock history books, and his most recent book is Fleetwood Mac: The Ultimate Illustrated History. Unterberger is also the author of The Rough Guide to Music USA, a guidebook to the evolution of regional popular music styles throughout America in the 20th century, and The Rough Guide to Jimi Hendrix.
He is a frequent contributor to MOJO and Record Collector, and has written hundreds of liner notes for CD reissues. He teaches courses on rock music history at the College of Marin, the University of San Francisco, and City College of San Francisco. He lives in San Francisco, California.
