Exodus

Marley, Bob and the Wailers

album cover

Movement of Jah People

As his international stature grew in the late 1970s, Bob Marley became an engine of idealism, using his music to talk about deplorable situations and daring to dream of societies where all are equal. His consciousness-raising works—particularly this album and the Africa-centered Survival, which is nearly as good—are never sanctimonious, but so rich with humanity and compassion that they stir those same qualities in listeners.

Exodus is Marley's best studio album—Time magazine once named it the "album of the century." It was recorded in London, where Marley relocated after being injured in a 1976 murder attempt at his home in Jamaica. The opening songs (for vinylheads, "side one") find Marley turning away from the day-to-day struggle, his customary subject, and instead addressing metaphysical concerns, mixing the lofty language of a spiritual seeker with the urgent tones of an insurrectionist. The second "half" comes back down to earth, via a collection of sweet and worshipful love songs ("Three Little Birds") and dance-party reggae (the springy "Jammin'"). The Wailers here are in rare form—streamlined, supertight beats are bolstered by rumbling, elastic funk, and the serenely steady rhythm guitar of Junior Marvin.

By the time this album appeared, lots of music people outside Jamaica revered reggae; it had moved beyond exotic novelty to become almost a social movement, a communal spiritual experience. You can detect that throughout Exodus, particularly on the closing medley, which finds Marley connecting his utopian original "One Love" to the classic Curtis Mayfield hymn "People Get Ready." This is one of those tracks all humanity should hear—a prayer for love and understanding from a voice of pure idealism, whose every utterance is an affirmation. Listen, and believe.

Genre: World, Jamaica
Released: 1977, Tuff Gong/Island
Key Tracks: "Jammin'," "So Much Things to Say," "Three Little Birds," "One Love/People Get Ready
Catalog Choice: Survival; Legend.
Next Stop: Steel Pulse: Earth Crisis
After That: The Heptones: Night Food.
Book Pages: 475–476