Bob Marley and the Wailer’s “Lively Up Yourself” first appeared on their 1974 album, Natty Dread. The song was first recorded in 1973 and reflected the band’s political and spiritual growth as they got deeper into Rastafarianism. The religion refers to God as Jah and the followers call the customs livity hence the title “Lively Up Yourself.” The reggae ska beat and Al Anderson’s bluesy guitar lick kicked off the celebratory feeling of community, cannabis, and resisting colonial rule. Natty Dread did well in the UK before reaching other parts of the world and it was the first album Marley recorded without Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. “Lively Up Yourself” also appeared on their 1975 Live! album and many fans have argued that it is the best version. Natty Dread was remastered and re-released with a bonus track in 2001. The Reinaldo Marcus Green-directed biopic Bob Marley: One Love will be released in theaters on February 14, 2024. 

Bob Marley and the Wailer’s 10th studio album Kaya was recorded at the same time as the music for Exodus released the previous year. Both albums were created during Marley’s two-year exile in England after he, his wife and manager were shot at his Jamaican home.  The warmth and easier accessibility of “Is This Love” reflected the album’s mood which some fans believed was not political enough. Those songs about love and marijuana were not as fiery as some of their past work but the album was released at the same time as the One Love Peace Concert in Jamaica. Marley returned to perform at the concert that was held to bring calm in the midst of two political parties at war. “Is This Love” was a top ten hit in the UK and became a timeless song in Marley’s catalog. A seven-year-old Naomi Campbell appeared in the video that was filmed in London. A live version of “Is This Love” is on the 1978 Babylon By Bus album and the famous 1984 compilation Legend. Corinne Railey Bae won a Grammy for her cover of the song on her Love EP, Rihanna and Carly Simon also have performed and recorded the Marley classic. 

The Mystic Of A Queen  exhibit opened at the Bob Marley Museum in Jamaica this month on Marley’s 77th birthday. Rita Marley, his widow, is the subject of the installation that celebrates her life as a cultural leader, matriarch, philanthropist, businesswoman and artist.