BOB MARLEY BIRTHDAY BASH 2017

His music has inspired a generation so join us this night as we celebrate the 72nd birthday of Bob Marley with strictly 100% reggae music vibes in honor of the music’s greatest legend
Selections from: Gregwise, Matty Dread, Basmati and Ras George
$15 entry / 10pm til 3am
Shades / Lost Bar and Nightclub, 693 Ann Street, Fortitude Valley

One of his childhood friends in St Ann was Neville “Bunny” O’Riley Livingston. Attending the same school, the two shared a love of music. Bunny inspired Bob to learn to play the guitar

Arriving in Kingston in the late 1950s, Marley lived in Trench Town, one of the city’s poorest neighbourhoods. He struggled in poverty, but he found inspiration in the music around him. Trench Town had a number of successful local performers and was considered the Motown of Jamaica. Sounds from the United States also drifted in over the radio and through jukeboxes. Marley liked such artists as Ray Charles, Elvis Presley, Fats Domino, and the Drifters

Marley and Livingston devoted much of their time to music. Under the guidance of Joe Higgs, Marley worked on improving his singing abilities. He met another student of Higgs, Peter McIntosh (later Peter Tosh) who would play an important role in Marley’s career

A local record producer, Leslie Kong, liked Marley’s vocals and had him record a few singles, the first of which was “Judge Not” released in 1962. While he did not fare well as a solo artist, Marley found some success joining forces with his friends. In 1963, Marley, Livingston, and McIntosh formed the Wailing Wailers. Their first single, “Simmer Down,” went to the top of the Jamaican charts in January 1964. By this time, the group also included Junior Braithwaite, Beverly Kelso, and Cherry Smith

The group became quite popular in Jamaica, but they had difficulty making it financially. Braithewaite, Kelso, and Smith left the group. The remaining members drifted a part for a time. Marley went to the United States where his mother was now living. However, before he left, he married Rita Anderson on February 10, 1966

After eight months, Marley returned to Jamaica. He reunited with Livingston and McIntosh to form the Wailers. Around this time, Marley was exploring his spiritual side and developing a growing interest in the Rastafarian movement. Both religious and political, the Rastafarian movement started in Jamaica in 1930s and drew its beliefs from many sources, including Jamaican-born black nationalist Marcus Garvey, the Old Testament, and their African heritage and culture

For a time in the late 1960s, Marley worked with pop singer Johnny Nash. Nash scored a hit with Marley’s song, “Stir It Up,” around the world. The Wailers also worked with producer Lee Perry during this era and some of their successful songs together included “Trench Town Rock,” “Soul Rebel,” and “Four Hundred Years