Natty Dread

Template:Use Jamaican English Template:Use dmy dates {{safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst-infobox||$params=italic_title,name,type,longtype,artist,cover,border,alt,caption,released,recorded,venue,studio,genre,length,language,label,director,producer,compiler,chronology,prev_title,prev_year,year,next_title,next_year,misc|$extra=italic_title,longtype,border,caption,language,director,compiler,chronology,year,misc|$aliases=italic title>italic_title,Italic title>italic_title,Name>name,Type>type,image>cover,Cover>cover,Border>border,Alt>alt,Caption>caption,Longtype>longtype,Artist>artist,Released>released,Recorded>recorded,Venue>venue,Studio>studio,Genre>genre,Length>length,Language>language,Label>label,Director>director,Producer>producer,Compiler>compiler,Chronology>chronology,Misc>misc|$flags=override|$B={{#ifeq:{{#invoke:Is infobox in lead|main|[Ii]nfobox [Aa]lbum}}|true|{{#if:Template:Has short description | |Template:Short description|noreplace}}}}{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template otherTemplate:Category handlerTemplate:Main other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:Infobox album with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|italic_title |type |name |image |cover |border |alt |caption |longtype |artist |released |recorded |venue |studio |genre |length |language |label |director |producer |compiler |prev_title|prev_year|next_title|next_year|chronology|year|misc}}{{#if:{{#invoke:String|match|error_category=Music infoboxes with Module:String errors|A|1=Rasta Revolution1974Live!1975studioNatty DreadBobMarley&theWailersNattyDread.jpgBob Marley and the Wailers25 October 19741974Harry J. Studios, Kingston, Jamaica* Reggae<ref name=reggae/>

• reggae rock<ref name= "Reinhardt 2005">Template:Cite book</ref>38:59Island/Tuff GongChris Blackwell and the Wailersx|2=</?t[drh][ >]|nomatch=}}|Template:Main other}}Template:Main other}}

Natty Dread is the seventh album by Bob Marley and the Wailers, released in 1974. Previously Marley had recorded with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer as the Wailers, and this was his first record without them.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Natty Dread was most popularly received in the UK, where it peaked at No. 43 and sold in excess of 100,000 copies, making it a gold album. Over time it gained popularity in other parts of the world, and in 2003 it was ranked No. 181 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Content

{{ safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst||date=__DATE__ |$B= {{ safesubst:#invoke:Unsubst||date=__DATE__ |$B= Template:Ambox }} }}Template:Original research section Natty Dread is a spiritually charged political and social statement. It opens with a blues-influenced positive celebration of skanking, reggae and sex, "Lively Up Yourself". The original and still unreleased demo of the Island version of "Lively Up Yourself" was recorded in 1973.

"No Woman, No Cry", the second track, is probably the best known recording on the album. It is a nostalgic remembrance of growing up in the impoverished streets of Trenchtown, the ghetto of Kingston, Jamaica, and the happiness brought by the company of friends. The song has been performed by artists as diverse as Boney M. (sung by Liz Mitchell), The Fugees, Pearl Jam, Jimmy Buffett, Rancid and Gilberto Gil. Songwriting credit for "No Woman, No Cry" went to V. Ford. Vincent Ford, better known as "Tartar" to his friends and neighbors, had been a kind friend of Marley as a child in Trenchtown. Marley claimed he would have starved to death on several occasions as a child if not for the aid of Tartar. The original version of the song was in gospel style, featuring Peter Tosh and some unknown female backing vocals and was cut for Island in 1973.

"Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)" is a warning against allowing a nation's poor to go hungry, with the prophetic warning "a hungry mob is an angry mob", while "Talkin' Blues" and "Revolution" go deeper into controversial political commentary. "Rebel Music (3 O'Clock Roadblock)" is a reflection on the potential impact of reggae music on Jamaican society. The song was written after Marley had been stopped by a night-time police carcheck. The influence of Marley's increasing devotion to Rastafari can be heard in religious-themed songs like "So Jah S'eh", "Natty Dread" and "Lively Up Yourself", while Marley's reputation as a romantic is confirmed with smooth, seductive songs like "Bend Down Low". The title track of the album takes its title from an idealised personification of the Rastafari movement, Natty Dread.

Songwriting credits

Although the album's liner notes list multiple songwriters, including family, friends and band members, all songs were written by Marley. Marley was involved in a contractual dispute with his former publishing company, Cayman Music.

Vincent Ford, a childhood friend from Jamaica, was given writing credit for "No Woman, No Cry", as well as the songs "Crazy Baldheads" (with Marley's wife Rita), "Positive Vibration" and "Roots Rock Reggae" from the 1976 album Rastaman Vibration, along with "Inna De Red" and "Jah Bless" with Marley's son, Stephen.<ref name=IndependentObit>Leigh, Spencer. "Vincent Ford: Songwriter credited with composing 'No Woman, No CryTemplate:'", The Independent, 7 January 2009. Accessed 7 January 2009.</ref><ref name=NYTObit>Kenner, Rob. "Vincent Ford Dies at 68; Inspired Classic Bob Marley Songs", The New York Times, 3 January 2009. Accessed 5 January 2009.</ref>

Marley had not wanted his new songs to be associated with Cayman and it had been speculated, including in his obituary in The Independent, that he had put them in the names of his close friends and family members as a means of avoiding the contractual restrictions and as a way to "provide lasting help to family and close friends".<ref name=IndependentObit/>

Marley's former manager Danny Sims sued to obtain royalty and ownership rights to the songs, claiming that Marley had actually written the songs but had assigned the credit to Ford to avoid meeting commitments made in prior contracts. A 1987 court decision sided with the Marley estate, which assumed full control of the songs.<ref name=NYTObit/>

Release

Natty Dread was released 25 October 1974 by Island and Tuff Gong.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 1975, this album was mentioned in a few audio magazines as being ready to be released on Quadraphonic 8-track tape.Template:Citation needed This never happened. However, the Quadraphonic mixes of "Lively Up Yourself" and "No Woman No Cry" have been bootlegged from the master tapes and are available on the internet.Template:Citation needed

In 2001, a re-mastered edition of Natty Dread was released by Universal Records containing a bonus track.

Reception and legacy

Released in the US in May 1975, the album reached the top half of the Billboard 200 at No. 92. When it was released in the UK in October 1975, it did even better, reaching No. 43.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2003, the album was ranked No. 181 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,<ref name="web.archive" /> maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2025, the publication ranked "Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)" at number 12 on its list of "The 100 Best Protest Songs of All Time."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Personnel

Bob Marley and the Wailers

• Bob Marley – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
• Aston Barrett – bass guitar
• Carlton Barrett – drums, percussion
• Bernard "Touter" Harvey – piano, organ
• Jean Roussel – Hammond organ, keyboards, arranger on "No Woman No Cry", "Natty Dread" and "Lively Up Yourself"
• Al Anderson – lead guitar

with:

• The I–Threes (Rita Marley, Judy Mowatt, Marcia Griffiths) – backing vocals
• Lee Jaffe – harmonica

Technical

• Sylvan Morris – engineer
• Phil Ault – engineer
• Sid Bucknor – mixer<ref>[1] Template:Dead link</ref>
• Chris Blackwell – producer
• The Wailers – producers
• Tony Wright – cover art