Bob Marley: Live Forever

Bob Marley
Live Forever
Tuff Gong/UMGD
[Rating: 4.5 stars]

Basically, what we’re talking about here is a perfect snapshot of one of the most unique and iconic artists in the history of recorded music with one of the tightest live bands ever to take the stage. You can’t go wrong. But we might be a bit biased – this show has been bootlegged for years and was a staple on the stereos in the crazy-hippie dorm we lived in during college. Yes, we know, typical – hippies and college and reggae and what not, but, hey we were young.

Then again, while we might have handed in our hemp necklaces and hackey sacks before Dubya’s first term, we’ve never shaken our love for reggae music and it’s patron saint which makes the official release Marley’s last recorded show – devoid of fourth or fifth generation tape hiss – such a pleasure to listen to. The Wailers conquered the world on the strength of their live shows, taking over Babylon by bus so to speak, and this two-disc set recorded at the Stanley Theater in Pittsburgh, PA is proof positive that, had Marley lived, there would have been no stopping them. Classics like “Get Up Stand Up” and “No Woman No Cry” cozy up along side deeper cuts like “Crazy Baldhead” and “Them Belly Full” making this an essential purchase for any Marley fan.