‘Don’t worry about a thing ’cause every little thing gonna be alright…’
My dad passed away in November of 2018. I’ve been trying to think of a way to honour his memory that would have a bit of permeance – something that I could tangibly create that I could then return to in later years. I settled on For Pete’s Sake – a YouTube series in which I go through my dad’s record collection and review them one record at a time. To accompany those videos, I will also be writing a written review of each album. This will give me a bit more room to explore the records themselves in greater detail on a musical level. The videos will be more dad-centric, while these reviews will focus more on the music. This week, it was the turn of Bob Marley’s 1977 album, Exodus…
Along with his passion for red wine and horse racing, a love of Bob Marley and his music are pretty much the only things that my dad didn’t pass down to me. Marley was on constantly in our house, but to me (and my mum by all accounts), it all just sounded like one long song. I think when anyone is exposed to any genre of music that isn’t straightforward pop, whether it be jazz, hip-hop or, in this case, reggae, it takes a long time for our ears to become attuned to the nuances of the music. This has never happened for me and reggae, and so it pains me to say that it all sounds the same to my ears.
Still, I went into Exodus with an open heart and an open mind, and do you know what? I was very pleasantly surprised by the opening to this album. ‘Natural Mystic’ manages to be mournful, dark and haunting all at once, whilst still being melodic. Indeed, side A of this record finds Marley in defiant mode following an assassination attempt in his native Jamaica. Unfortunately, I didn’t find the rest of the record as arresting as this opening track. The rest of side A is pleasant enough, culminating in the title track – a sprawling, almost 8-minute jam session that showcases the stunning musicality of the Wailers.
Side B is much more upbeat, both in terms of lyrics and melody. This half of the album contains some of Marley’s most famous songs. ‘Jamming’ has, of course, been overplayed, but it’s still a great song. That intro. Great stuff. ‘Three Little Birds’ is the most straightforward pop song on the record, and it’s genuinely beautiful. The simplicity of the lyrics doesn’t dull the potency of the message. Sometimes you just need someone to tell you that everything will be alright. The album closes on ‘One Love/People Get Ready’ – another beautifully simple song and a fitting end to a record that helped to confirm Marley’s legacy as a musical legend.
While this run through of Exodus hasn’t really changed my mind about Marley or his music, it has ensured that I will go into his other albums (my dad had seven of his), with a renewed sense of curiosity.