From Publishers Weekly
In this dense but well-written work, veteran journalist Goldman examines the cultural, political and violent roots of Bob Marley's classic record Exodus. Goldman is undeniably as intrepid and insightful as music journalists come—and this effort clearly required every ounce of her talent. In setting the stage for what would become Marley's masterpiece, she reached beyond the Exodus sessions themselves into the early history of Marley and the Wailers, into the hornet's nest of Jamaican politics and the island's international history and African history, as well as the mystical, often contradictory, tenets of Rastafarianism. It is all necessary background for what made Marley both the searing performer he was and the iconic figure he would become—a fame that would nearly kill him. Just days before a planned free concert in 1976, Marley, his wife, Rita, and Don Taylor were wounded by gunmen, forcing Marley to flee to London, where Exodus was recorded. This is no pop music hagiography but a brimming, tightly constructed examination not just of Marley's life and music but of human nature itself and the struggle for freedom. The more casual fans of Marley may not follow; those who do will see deeper into the man and his music than ever before. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Goldman thoroughly examines what Time proclaimed album of the twentieth century, Bob Marley's Exodus, undertaken at a time when Marley had relocated to London, where he wrote and recorded Exodus, after becoming a gunshot victim during an invasion of his Kingston, Jamaica, home. Goldman navigates the myriad political, social, and religious complications in Marley's life then, all of which he dealt with in "The Heathen," "So Much Things to Say," and the album's title song, whose naming was no throwaway gesture. Marley felt especially spiritually attached to the second book of the Old Testament, and Goldman cites his frequent quotation of scripture within the context of him giving form to his most political album. Since Goldman accepts at face value Marley's belief in dream communication and prophecy, his fans will be rewarded by a satisfying heavy dose of the "Natural Mystic" philosophy of Rastafarianism, too. Excellent insight into the genesis of a transporting piece of music; as fellow reggae immortal Lee "Scratch" Perry would say, "Righteous oily." Mike Tribby
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
