Title : Bob Marley
Author : David Burnett
Publisher : Insight Editions, 2009
No. of Pages : 160
The moment I saw this book on the shelves of a unique bookstore in Ipoh,
I knew I had to buy it. Without a doubt. I’ve listened to his songs, but I
don’t know much about Bob Marley. I must admit that I felt a tinge of guilt for
previously thinking that he died due to drug overdose, when he actually died
due to the big C (Cancer).
This book was written by David Burnett, a photographer. If you could
recall an image of a naked Vietnamese girl, dubbed the Napalm Girl, which was
published in the early 70s, that photo was taken by Nick Ut, his friend. David
was with him when the photo was taken.
In fact, this book is like a collection of the photographs that David
Burnett took of Bob Marley during an interview with David DeVoss. David
(Burnett) was also invited to travel for a few days with Bob and the Wailers on
their Exodus tour around Europe.
So, the second part of this book is filled with the collection of
photographs taken while they were on the bus, training for the concert and
playing soccer during their break time. In that 1980 concert, they played to
the largest audience of 110,000. It turned out to be his last live show (Bob
died in 1981). Which I think, makes this book so special.
We’ll get to see Bob in his natural environment and in his element while
doing sound checks and singing at the concert. One thing that strikes me the
most about this book is the realisation that we truly cannot judge a person by
his appearance.
My favourite photograph is on Page 17 because it reminds me so much of someone I know.
The foreword was written by Chris Salewicz, who has written a book on
Bob Marley himself, entitled Bob Marley : The Untold Story in 2010. He has had
his own adventure with Bob Marley back
in 1979. The foreword set the pace into this book by introducing the background
of Bob Marley, born Robert Nesta Marley on February 6, 1945 and the Wailers.
Bob Marley has become a symbol of radicalism, rebel and fight for
freedom; other than being the Reggae King.
His songs are mostly inspired by his longing for a father figure which
he was denied as early as 5 years old.
The introduction was written by Chris Murray.
This is a photography book, with some background on Bob Marley and his principles. Considering that the photographs correspond with what was written, I give it a 4 🌞🌞🌞🌞 star.
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