Bob Marley Albums, Awards, Honors

Bob Marley Albums, Awards, Honors: Bob Marley, officially known as Robert Nesta Marley was born in Nine Mile, Jamaica to Norval Sinclair Marley and Cedella Malcolm on February 6, 1945,

He was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter who started his professional musical career in 1963 with the formation of the Teenagers with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer which after several name changes became known as the Wailers.

They released their debut studio album The Wailing Wailers in 1965, which contained their global hit single ‘One Love’. Following the disbandment, Bob Marley carried on under the band’s name and had his international breakthrough with the release of a live version of ‘No Woman, No Cry’.

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This was followed by his breakthrough album in the United States, Rastaman Vibration which reached the Top 50 of the Billboard Soul Charts. A few months after the album’s release, he survived an assassination attempt at his home in Jamaica, which prompted him to permanently relocate to London.

Bob Marley died at the age of 36 on May 11, 1981, at the Cedars Of Lebanon Hospital in Miami. He died from an acral lentiginous melanoma, a form of skin cancer. It was diagnosed in 1977 and spread from under one of his toenails.

He first discovered the melanoma while playing football in 1977 which he mistakenly took for a foot injury but it seemed worse than usual and got worse over time. After doctors discovered it was cancer, he was advised to have his toe amputated. However, he refused as his Rastafarian faith considers it a sin to have any part of the body ‘temple’ removed.

He was considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements of reggae, ska, and rocksteady, as well as his distinctive vocal and songwriting style.

His contributions to music increased the visibility of Jamaican music worldwide and made him a global figure in popular culture to this day. During his active years, he became known as a Rastafari icon, and he infused his music with a sense of spirituality.

Bob Marley is also considered a global symbol of Jamaican music and culture and identity and was controversial for his outspoken support for democratic social reforms. He also supported the legalization of marijuana and advocated for Pan-Africanism.

Bob Marley Studio albums

Bob Marley served the music community with 13 studio albums, they are;

• The Wailing Wailers (1965)
• Soul Rebels (1970)
• Soul Revolution Part II (1971)
• The Best of the Wailers (1971)
• Catch a Fire (1973)
• Burnin’ (1973)
• Natty Dread (1974)
• Rastaman Vibration (1976)
• Exodus (1977)
• Kaya (1978)
• Survival (1979)
• Uprising (1980)
• Confrontation (1983)

Bob Marley Live Albums

Bob Marley released 2 live recorded albums before he died. The albums are;

• Live! (1975)
• Babylon by Bus (1978)

Bob Marley Awards & Honours

Bob Marley received several awards and honors including;

• 1976: Rolling Stone Band of the Year
• June 1978: Awarded the Peace Medal of the Third World from the United Nations 
• February 1981: Awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit, the nation’s third highest honor.
• March 1994: Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
• 1999: Album of the Century for Exodus by Time magazine
• February 2001: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
• February 2001: Awarded Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2004: Rolling Stone ranked him No. 11 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time
• 2004: Among the first inductees into the UK Music Hall of Fame
• “One Love” was named the millennium song by the BBC.
• Voted as one of the greatest lyricists of all time by a BBC poll.
• 2006: A blue plaque was unveiled at his first UK residence in Ridgmount Gardens, London, dedicated to him by the Nubian Jak Community Trust and supported by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
• 2010: Catch a Fire inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame (Reggae Album)
• 2022: Inducted into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame.