He moved to Trench Town, Kingston, where he was affectionately dubbed
"The Gong" because of his ability to effectively ward off bullies
without getting into trouble. He soon joined forces with Bunny Wailer and
Peter Tosh and the group "The Wailers" was born. They recorded
their first hit "Simmer Down" in 1963, immediately becoming one
of Jamaica's foremost groups. In 1965 Bob Marley established his own recording/retail company - Tuff
Gong - then located at 56 Hope Road which is now the home of The
Bob Marley Museum. During the 70s the group gained international recognition
after being signed to Island Records in London.
On May 11, 1981 Robert Nesta Marley died at the age of 36. Later that
year the Government of Jamaica awarded him the Order of Merit (O.M.), and
in 1991 proclaimed his birthday be observed as "Bob Marley Day". He remains today the greatest legend of Reggae music, and was inducted in the Rock'N'Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. His album - Legend - sold over 10 million copies, and has remained on the Billboard Top Pop Catalogue Albums Chart since its release, where it was #1 for 44 consecutive weeks, and was the #1 album for 1995. |
There
they released their first Island album Catch A Fire which rose to critical
acclaim.
1973 saw Bob emerging as a solo artist
with a newly formed Wailers Band which included 