Rise

Format

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  5488932CD  £6.00

Label

Island / Island/Tuff Gong

Bob Marley and the Wailers

Catch a Fire

one of rough trade's island 50th anniversary selection 50 crucial titles specially selected by us to highlight the unique contribution this seminal label has made to british music since 1959 it is nearly impossible to imagine a time when reggae was not part of the cultural currency though bob marley and the wailers cannot be said to have invented the style they certainly brought it to the world stage and this album was the torch that lit the way 'catch a fire' hit with the force of a revelation when it was released in 1973 and though chris blackwell tailored its sound with a rock audience in mind the album was still unlike anything that had ever come down the pike ironically even given its relatively full production and electric guitar solos 'catch a fire' sounds more organic and rootsy than any of the wailers' subsequent releases while the percolating rhythms and burbling bass lines of the barrett brothers and the sweet impeccable harmonies of peter tosh and bunny wailer soothe and move 'catch a fire' also introduces the conscious politically minded themes that would remain at the center of marley's songwriting for the rest of his career 'concrete jungle' one of the towering standout tracks addresses the trap of inner cities while 'slave driver' and '400 years' take on racial historical issues yet marley's penchant for gorgeous love songs is evident here too on his alltime classic 'stir it up' even after everything that followed and the cult of idolatry that formed around marley this remains soulful messagedriven music that goes straight to the blood utterly essential