Bob Marley’s 1976 album Rastaman Vibration marks the moment when the Jamaican singer transformed from an emerging reggae star into an international pop icon, creating a world-conquering sound out of the three elements he namechecks on the album’s second song: “Roots, Rock, Reggae.” Marley’s mastery is untouchable on keening, lovestruck ballads like “Cry to Me” and gritty, urban tales like “Johnny Was”; he even finds a way to incorporate a Haile Selassie speech into a slinking, intense riddim on “War.”
Disc 1
Disc 2
Other Versions
- Burning Spear
- Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley
- Max Romeo & The Upsetters