DON'T START ME TALKIN'

I never really liked BOB MARLEY. He never did anything for me. Sure, I like the odd track, like some EARLY 60s SOUL SINGLES, or some of the ORIGINAL SCRATCH-MIXED VERSIONS of what would become Catch a Fire, but that's just about it. In my mind, he was neither the best songwriter nor the best singer to come from this small island where it seems every other person is madly talented.
Plus, it's hard to like a guy who's worshipped by every braindead dreadlocks-sporting White-ass loser.
And then the other night, my friend MOGADISHOW played me this live album called TALKIN BLUES. Now I remember hearing that title a thousand times, back in high school where every kid was a Marley fan, and around the time it was originally released, but I never bothered to listen to it since I don't like Marley. But man I was in for a shock. This album is a live session recorded hastily for the radio. It seems that Marley's voice is close to being broken, and for my money he never sang better than here. THE WAILERS also play with a feeling of urgency that was never captured on a studio album. And now I have to admit it: I do like Bob Marley after all. I used to think I was original, I had to BURN ALL MY ILLUSIONS.