It’s understandable why Marley was The Man. His appeal was universal and his songs both meaningful and memorable. And even though there was some pretty cool stuff coming from Jamaica at the time, with bands like Black Uhuru and The Itals, as well as the ongoing work of Lee Perry and Toots & the Maytals, for most folks here in the US, reggae was restricted to all Marley all the time.
This is even more surprising if one considers the (at the time) subversive messages so prevalent in Marley’s music. Remember, in the 60’s reggae was in its infancy, still very much dominated by rocksteady style, and like rocksteady it tended to not be too political or controversial. In the 70’s that started to change, as roots supplanted the more innocent ska and rocksteady, bringing with it more awareness of political and social struggle fueled largely by the related growth of Rastafari and its surge of cultural and spiritual pride. And Marley, deeply involved in Rasta, expressed these themes in his music. His lyrics were flush with references to Zion and Babylon, pride in Natty and pity for Bald Heads, exuberance for the use of ganja, and always praise for both Jah and Haile Selassie.
Exodus was released at the height of Marley’s popularity, and next to Rastaman Vibrations, was his best-selling album in the US
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Side 2:
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As expected from both the title and subtitle of the album (Movement of Jah People), there’s considerable socio-religious content inside, much of which deals with many of the tenets of Rastafari (the belief in Zion as the destination promised the faithful by Jah; the evils of Babylon; etc). In fact, side one may be the most concentrated collection of overtly political songs on any Marley album up to that time.
The biblical nature of the album is evident even before the first note, as not only the title itself, but the font used for the title seems oddly biblical and redolent of semitic writing (Hebrew and Aramaic). That suspicion is confirmed by the songs on side one, which offer a modern parallel for the Rastafari to that of the tribe of Israel in the Old Testament. The album opens with Natural Mystic, which is essentially an announcement that The Time Has Come and that of the many called only a few will be chosen. The album progresses through an indictment of how the righteous, like Marcus Garvey or Jesus, have been oppressed - or downpressed as a Rasta would say - by the wicked (So Much Things To Say), followed by exhortations to fight the good fight (Gultiness and The Heathen). Side one ends with Exodus, one of the iconic anthems of music proclaiming the ultimate triumph of Jah People over the evils of Babylon as they reach Zion to live in the bosom of Jah.
Yeah, I'd say that was pretty biblical.
Side two, however, takes a very sharp and almost jarring turn. Where side one was about spiritual struggle, side two is about corporeal pleasure. The first three songs are all thinly veiled references to some hot lovin’ with Turn Your Lights Down Low sounding more like Motown R&B than Kingston Roots. In fact, many people have noted that of all the Marley albums, this one is probably the least reggae of them all.
And there may be a reason for that. For one thing, this album was made after Marley had moved to England (after an unsuccessful attempt on his life in Jamaica), and it’s hard to imagine that he wasn’t influenced by what was happening over there at the time. Also, he didn’t have the original Wailers to rely on for help, as Bunny and Peter had left a couple of years earlier.
But even with all of that, Exodus remains one of those compelling records that simply begs to be put on the platter. And believe me, it does get regular play.
Up next: More Canadian prog
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