Bob Marley and the Wailers
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Wailers were a ska, rocksteady, and reggae group formed in Kingston, Jamaica in 1963, consisting of Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, Bunny Livingston (aka Bunny Wailer), Robert Nesta Marley (aka Bob Marley), Winston McIntosh (aka Peter Tosh), and Cherry Smith.
They were called variously The Teenagers, The Wailing Rudeboys, The Wailing Wailers, and finally The Wailers. By 1966, Braithwaite, Kelso, and Smith had left the band, leaving the trio of Livingston, Marley, and McIntosh.
Some of The Wailers most notable songs were recorded together with Lee "Scratch" Perry and his studio band, The Upsetters. In the early 1970s, The Upsetters members Aston "Family Man" Barrett and his brother Carlton (Carlie) Barrett, formed the Wailers Band, the backing band of The Wailers.
The Wailers recorded such groundbreaking reggae songs as, "Simmer Down", "Trenchtown Rock", "Nice Time", "Stir It Up", "Get Up, Stand Up", and many others.
The Wailers broke up in 1974, with each of the three main members going on to pursue solo careers. Bob Marley went on to international fame with Bob Marley & The Wailers (with the Wailers Band as the backing band and the I Threes as the backing vocalists). Peter Tosh had a moderately successful career, while Bunny Wailer remained relatively unknown outside of Jamaica.
Sometimes, usually for marketing purposes, recordings are indiscriminately attributed to either "Bob Marley", "The Wailers", or "Bob Marley & the Wailers".
See also
The Wailers may refer to:
- The Wailers (1963–1974 band), 1963–1974, consisting of Bob Marley, Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, and Cherry Smith
- The Wailing Wailers, a 1965 Studio One album by The Wailers
- Bob Marley & The Wailers, 1974–1981, reggae group led by Bob Marley
- The Original Wailers, 2008–present, led by Al Anderson and Junior Marvin
- The Wailers (rock band), Tacoma, Washington-based garage rock band
- Wailers Band, 1974–present, until 1981 part of Bob Marley & The Wailers, now led by Aston Barrett
