(Bob Marley, Part I)
One year after the assassination attempt of Bob Nesta Marley, Exodus, a defining work of Bob Marley & The Wailers’ career, was released. Though popular worldwide for mainstream tracks such as “Three Little Birds” and “One Love,” among reggae fans, Exodus is known for its artistry and musical choices. The regular version of Exodus has ten tracks. In vinyl, the first five are on one side and the other five on the opposite. The first five songs are probably some of the serious and sterner tracks Marley had produced at this point in his career (Survival doesn’t come out until 1979). The other five, however, shift the entire tone of the album with light-hearted melodies and beats with serenading tracks like “Waiting In Vain.” To understand Marley’s musical choices in the creation of the legendary Exodus, it would be most useful to go track by track and explore the distinct choices that made Exodus one of the greatest reggae albums of all time.
“Natural Mystic”
The album opens with “Natural Mystic,” a song that almost sounds like its creeping up at you from the unknown. It begins with the classic reggae strum of the guitar as well as the steady, enveloping bass of Aston “Family man” Barret’s guitar. As it continues to get louder (for a full 25 seconds), the drums introduce Bob Marley’s voice, and he sings “there’s a natural mystic blowing through the air.” This bar sets the rather dark tone of the rest of the song and the first half of the whole album. Marley continues with this ominous tone with lyrics like “many more will have to suffer, many more will have to die,” as well as references to the trumpet of the end of days with “if you listen carefully you will hear, this could be the first trumpet, might as well be the last.”
As a revolutionary reggae artist, Bob Marley’s “Natural Mystic” could be reference to the coming revolution that could lead to the many more that would have to suffer and die. Marley could also be referring to the political violence that gripped Jamaica because of the 1976 elections, in which the Jamaican Labour Party (JLP), under Edward Seaga, and the People’s National Party (PNP), under Michael Manley, fought for dominion. This was the same political violence that led to the attempt at Bob Marley’s life in the confines of his home at 56 Hope Road. Bob Marley’s previous message of peace and love seemed a threat to those who wanted to control Jamaican politics. And “Natural Mystic” was, in part, a warning of the nature of violence.
“So Much Things To Say”
“So Much Things To Say” starts off with the classic upbeat reggae rhythm introduced by the drums. Though musically it may seem a shift from the stern tone established by “Natural Mystic,” the lyrics prove different. Marely repeats the line “they got so much things to say,” possibly in reference to the Rastafarian-based bi ases that began to follow him and his band mates around as they toured the world. As one of the first mainstream Rasta artists from Jamaica in the 1970s, Marley introduced Rastafarianism to the world through his music. Though some embraced it, there were a lot more who rejected, if not downright ridiculed, the Rastafarian faith. Most people understand Rastafarianism through surface-level analyses: believing Haile Selassie I to be God come again, the locking of one’s hair, and the spiritual usage of ganja (weed). Though this is not untrue, it would be doing the entire Rastafarian faith a disservice to solely understand it through this lens.
Rastafarians are a devout and disciplined people who take the healthy maintenance of their body, soul, and environment incredibly seriously. It takes discipline and devotion to the betterment of you and the world around you to be a true Rastafarian. Marley continues by mentioning Jamaican revolutionaries like Marcus Garvey, founder of the United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and Paul Bogle, executed for rebelling against the British govt. in Jamaica (1865) by singing “I’ll never forget, no way, the way they turned their back on Paul Bogle…the way they sold Marcus Garvey for rights.” Marley continues by urging listeners “don’t forget who you are and where you stand in the struggle.”
Among the confusion and miss education that is unleashed upon Africans by the venomous Babylon system, it is of utmost importance that Africans know who they are—know the difference between who truly fought for them and those who continue to plot our demise. Among this disarray, Marley reminds listeners to not expect liberation through the constructs of men: “I and I nah expect to be justified by the laws of men.” And that when the revolution comes, these constructs will not be there to protect anyone, despite the protections a certain caste or class might offer: “when the rain falls, it won’t fall on one man’s housetop.”
Overall, “So Much Things to Say” continues the tone established by “Natural Mystic” by warning and urging listeners of the forces that killed Africans like Paul Bogle and Marcus Garvey that were truly about the liberation of their people. Marley urges listeners to stay true to where they came from—their roots—because all the “things they have to say” is to the utmost detriment of Africans anywhere.
“Guiltiness”
“Guiltiness” begins with the same low, ominous tone first established by “Natural Mystic,” and grows even more so ominous with the lyrics. Marley begins with the line “Guiltiness, pressed on their conscience, they live a life of false pretense every day.” Upon first listen, one might surmise that Marley is speaking of the bourgeoisie, but this line of thought is solidified with the following line, “these are the big fish, who try to eat down the small fish;” and continues with “they would do anything to materialize their every wish.” The use of the word “material,”—if not the vivid picture painted by Marley—seems to refer to the capitalist system in which the bourgeoisie (the big fish) survive by feeding on the labor of the working class (the small fish).
The chorus of “Guiltiness,” however, is a proclamation—a threat, if you will— for Marley sings “woe to the downpressors” for “they eat the bread of sorrow.”
“Guiltiness” is one of the most militant songs of Bob Marley’s career for not only does he characterize the inherent vulture-like aspect of capitalism with the “big fish/small fish” analogy, but he also proclaims woe— “great sorrow and distress”—on the downpressers (oppressors).
“The Heathen”
“The Heathen” continues and amplifies the militant tone by starting the song off with vocals from Marley and the I-Three chanting “the heathen back dey ‘pon the wall.” This chanting style of singing further emphasizes the warning and militant tone that Marley is so clearly trying to create with the first half of the album. “The Heathen” is also the first track in which there is little to no musical variance in terms of chords and tone progression. It is the same beat over and over again with flares of the guitar here and there. Marley also adds a certain roughness to his voice by utilizing lower octaves when chanting. This, again, may be done to create a specific sound and aesthetic that Marley is going for.
This artistic choice is reinforced with the lyrics as most of the song is comprised by the chorus “the heathen back dey ‘pon the wall.” It is also important to note that “The Heathen” is the first track in Exodus that deviates from the reggae formula slightly and incorporates more rock elements. This may simply be an aesthetic choice, but it could also be done to emphasize the militant side of Marley best exemplified by the lines “rise up fallen fighters, rise and take your stance again!”
“Exodus”
“Exodus,” for which the album is named after, is the longest song with 7 minutes and 39 seconds long. It marks the halfway point before the album completely switches gears. I like to think of it as a really lengthy interlude but calling it an interlude would be doing it a disservice as its musical and political significance is evident.
“Exodus” starts with the classic reggae skanking by the lead guitar, which is met with the bass, the keyboards, and “one drop” drum rhythm to create the warm sound ready for Marley and I-Three’s “Exodus! Movement of Jah people!” This beat is sustained by the steady beat of the bass drums as well as the light hi-hats.
Marley’s proclamation of “we’re leaving Babylon, we’re goin’ to our father’s land,” coupled with shouts of “move!” here and there adds to the urgent tone Marley is creating. Much like “The Heathen” this is a militant and political song—calling for Africans to forsake and leave the vampire that is Babylon (the West). Marley also sings “we know where we’re going, we know where we’re from.” It is important to note that the PNP under Manley used the phrase “We Know Where We Are Going” for their campaign in ’76. Marley’s clever retort of “we know where we’re from” is in reference to Africa—the homeland.
“Exodus” can be interpreted in a number of ways. For some, it may symbolize the physical return to Africa. For others, it is more of a “return to Africa” mindset in the way one lives and thinks. Regardless, “Exodus” has the perfect musical choices that one can’t help but feel the need to get up and literally move—as Marley urges multiple times throughout the song.
Whether it is to get whoever is listening to actually get up and dance or, more likely, urge Africans worldwide to ‘leave’ Babylon in any capacity, “Exodus” is a quintessential roots reggae track that was a defining force in developing the militant side of reggae as a whole.
“Jamming”
The first lighthearted, feel-good song of the Exodus, “Jamming” marks the complete shift from the dark tone established between tracks 1-4. “Jamming” is almost meta in the sense that Marley is highlighting the beauty of, and defending the right to, jamming—as he puts it—to great music.
Though this track marks the shift to less-serious topics, Marley has lines that are possibly allusions to his assassination attempt: “no bullet can stop us now, we neither beg nor we won’t bow, neither can’t be bought nor sold.”
Overall, “Jamming” is significant in being the first song in the album that marks the deviation from existential and political questions posed in “Natural Mystic” through “Exodus.”
BY SOLEYANA BEKELE (Journalist from America)
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 28 JUNE 2024
