Tune in as we continue the countdown from 50 to Number 1, airing every Saturday night! This week, we’re spotlighting Bob Marley and the Wailers’ ‘Live!’ (1975), number 34 on the Rolling Stone Magazine’s Top 50 Live Albums of all time.
Bob Marley and the Wailers’ 1975 Natty Dread tour started in America, where around 15,000 fans witnessed their performance in Central Park. By the time they reached London, the acclaim was unanimous: following two sold-out shows at the Lyceum, Melody Maker declared Bob Marley “possibly the greatest superstar to visit these shores since Dylan conquered the concert halls of Britain.”
Though neither of these gigs was initially meant to be recorded, Island Records founder Chris Blackwell was so impressed by the first show that he had the Rolling Stones’ mobile studio set up outside the venue for the second performance. The result is a powerful collection of pointed lyrics, political chants, and funk grooves, enhanced by new guitarist Al Anderson.
The seven-minute rendition of “No Woman, No Cry” not only hit the U.K. Top 10 but remains the definitive version of the classic, later becoming track two on the 15-times-platinum Legend compilation. The emotional mic feedback that echoes over the first verse has become iconic.
Tonight, we’ll be airing the Deluxe Edition of this extraordinary live album. Don’t miss it!