"Reggae: The soundtrack to my life......" Personal Page by Odinnthor

"One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain"

Robert Nesta Marley, is and was an inspiration to me on my trek through life. The time I spent in Jamaica during the birth of reggae music, I was exposed to the amazing number of extraordinary talent that florished in Jamaica for that decade. I met some of them, like the timeless producer Lee "Scratch" Perry, Burning Spear, and Jimmy Cliff.

"In this great future, you can't forget your past"

My interest in Caribbean music was ignited however by Harry Belafonte, and it grew from there as the music changed and fused other music forms like ska, rock steady, soca and punta. But Marley was always at the top. Unfortunately, he passed away on May 11, 1981 at the age of 36, from a cancer, that developed in his foot, from a football injury. Bob was an avid fan of football/soccer, and played in pick-up games any time his busy schedule allowed.

Marley loved to play football

"How long shall they kill our prophets, while we stand aside and look"

In 1979, I was fortunate enough to meet Bob Marley during his visit to Maui, when I lived there. We talked about football, music, ganja, and living in England. It continues to be a highlite in my life.

"I mustn't fight for my rights, my rights must come to me"

Bob Marley was born in the small village of Nine Mile in Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica as Nesta Robert Marley. A Jamaican passport official would later swap his first and middle names. His father, Norval Sinclair Marley, was a White-Jamaican of English descent, whose family came from Essex, England. Norval was a captain in the Royal Marines, as well as a plantation overseer, when he married Cedella Booker, an Afro-Jamaican then 18 years old. In 1955, when Marley was 10 years old, his father died of a heart attack.

Freedom fighter

Don't let them change you, or even rearrange you"

In December 1976, two days before "Smile Jamaica", a free concert organized by the Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley in an attempt to ease tension between two warring political groups, Marley, his wife, and manager Don Taylor were wounded in an assault by unknown gunmen inside Marley's home. Taylor and Marley's wife sustained serious injuries, but later made full recoveries. Bob Marley received minor wounds in the chest and arm. The shooting was thought to have been politically motivated, as many felt the concert was really a support rally for Manley. Nonetheless, the concert proceeded, and an injured Marley performed as scheduled, two days after the attempt. When asked why, Marley responded, "The people who are trying to make this world worse aren’t taking a day off. How can I?"

Robert Nesta Marley's music will live forever ann ever and ever. He was often imitated, but he was never dublicated.....One Love. One heart.

A proud son of South Africa

While successful reggae artists have traditionally hailed from the Island of Jamaica, over the past decade South African native Lucky Dube has delivered some of the most conscious and substantive roots reggae songs to hit the airwaves. The spirit of Lucky Dube's music and dance epitomizes the spirit of Black liberation" and has kept the struggles of the people of South Africa in the thoughts of audiences the world over.

Lucky Dube became the best-selling artist in all of Africa during the 1980s and '90s, and gained popularity in North America, the Caribbean and Europe. Few global superstars who have racked up close to 20 years in the music business are still able to lay a claim to real inventiveness - and one can certainly count Lucky Dube amongst them. Having sold in excess of 3 million albums worldwide over a two decade career. His Musical career began when he was 18. Joining his cousins band "The Love Brothers". He attended school in South Africa, and in the summer recorded material with the band (Zulu mbaqanga).

His obituary photo

Lucky began to learn English after the release of his second album (previously singing in Zulu), and was recording in English by his 7th album release. Lucky was inspired by the socio-political messages from reggae artists such as Jimmy Cliff and Peter Tosh. He brought them into the apartheid of South Africa. His first reggae album "Rastas Never Die" was banned by the government as it was speaking out against apartheid.
His second album "Think about the children" went platinum and he became the most well known reggae artist in the country as a result.

A man of peace

On October 18, 2007, Lucky Dube was slain in an attempted hijacking in Rosettenville in Johannesburg in the early evening, whilst dropping off his children at a family members house.

Although Lucky attempted to escape the scene, he had been fatally wounded from the hijacker’s attempt to steal his motor vehicle, and he died almost instantly. Senseless and random, the death of Lucky Dube leaves a great void in the music industry, as 25 years of music suddenly ends in tragedy