Bob Marley and the Golden Age of Reggae

Book excerpt: "’Reggae got soul,’ Toots Hibbert sang in one of his best-known songs, and Kim Gottlieb-Walker's remarkable photographs coax that soul out of shadow and light. Her images from Jamaica capture the rough environment that shaped and challenged these artists, and the unquenchable joy that filled their music. They're the next-best thing to listening.” — Richard Cromelin During 1975 and 1976, renowned underground photo-journalist Kim Gottlieb, and her husband, Island publicity head Jeff Walker, documented what is now widely recognized as the Golden Age of reggae. Over two years of historic trips to Jamaica and exclusive meetings in Los Angeles, Kim took iconic photographs of the artists who would go on to define the genre and captivate a generation. Bob Marley and the Golden Age of Reggae features candid and intimate photographs of all of the musicians, artists and producers who brought the reggae sound to the international stage, including Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Toots Hibbert, Burning Spear, Jacob Miller, Third World, Lee “Scratch” Perry and, of course, Bob Marley. Kim’s photographs include never-before-seen performance shots, candid behind-the-scenes footage of Bob’s home in Jamaica, and exclusive records of key moments in reggae history, such as Bob’s first US television appearance, the historical Dream Concert with Stevie Wonder in Jamaica, and Bob meeting George Harrison backstage at the Roxy in 1975. Acclaimed rock journalist and director Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous) introduces this volume with a rousing foreword describing the time he accompanied Jeff and Kim to Jamaica to witness the burgeoning music scene there. Reggae historian Roger Steffens writes lucidly about the significance of those early years in reggae, and describes the pivotal moments documented in Kim’s photographs, many of which have not been seen in over 30 years, and many more of which have never been released to the public. Intimate and revealing, Bob Marley and the Golden Age of Reggae is a rare and beautiful record of one of the most exciting moments in music history, told through the photographs of a true artist.