Marley albums in top 50 count
SIX albums by Bob Marley are included in a Top 50 Reggae Albums list compiled by Jamaican disc jockey Clinton Lindsay and his colleague Marlon Burrell.
The list was done in commemoration of Jamaica’s 50th anniversary as an independent nation which will be officially celebrated on August 6.
Marley’s Exodus is number one on the Lindsay/Burrell table. The 1977 album, largely recorded in England and distributed by Island Records, was selected by Time Magazine as its Best Album of the 20th Century.
Three other Marley recordings made the top 20. They are the 1984 compilation, Legend, which is at number four; Natty Dread, his 1974 breakthrough album, is at seven while 1976’s Rastaman Vibration comes in at number 14.
Catch A Fire and Burnin’, the groundbreaking 1973 albums by Marley and the Wailers for Island, are at 26 and 34, respectively.
Dennis Brown, the popular Crown Prince of Reggae, has five albums in the list. They are Words of Wisdom (12), No Man Is An Island (32), Visions of Dennis Brown (38), Wolf and Leopards (41) and Inseparable (49).
Lovers rock great, Gregory Isaacs, has two albums in the top 20. Night Nurse (12) and Soon Forward (18) which contain some of the singer’s biggest hits.
Also included are seminal sets by Burning Spear (Marcus Garvey); Bob Andy (Songbook); Peter Tosh (Legalise It, Equal Rights); Bunny Wailer (Blackheart Man); Culture (Two Sevens Clash); Max Romeo (War Ina Babylon); Satta Masa Gana (The Abyssinians); and the soundtrack to The Harder They Come.
Four albums from the 1980s made the cut. Anthem by Black Uhuru, Sugar Minott’s Black Roots, Bobby Babylon by Freddie McGregor and Inseparable, are at 25, 33, 45 and 49, respectively.
There is just one album from the 1990s. Buju Banton’s sensational ‘Til Shiloh, released in 1995, comes in at 50.
There are two albums by women: Marcia Griffiths’ Naturally and Black Woman by Judy Mowatt.
Clinton Lindsay has been involved in broadcasting in North America since the early 1980s, starting out at WHBI 105.9 FM in New York City. He is also founder of the Tamika Reggae Awards and compiler of the New York/South Florida Reggae Chart.
Lindsay presently operates the Foundation Radio Network.
Here are the Clinton Lindsay/Marlon Burrell Top 50 Reggae Albums
1 EXODUS BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS 1977
2 The Harder They Come Soundtrack featuring Jimmy Cliff 1972
3 Bob Andy’s Songbook Bob Andy 1968
4 Legend Bob Marley & The Wailers 1984
5 Right Time The Mighty Diamonds 1976
6 Marcus Garvey Burning Spear 1975
7 Natty Dread Bob Marley & The Wailers 1974
8 Night Nurse Gregory Isaac 1982
9 1000 Volts Of Holt John Holt 1973
10 On Top The Heptones 1968
11 Funky Kingston Toots & The Maytals 1973
12 Words Of Wisdom Dennis Brown 1979
13 Feel Good All Over Delroy Wilson 1968
14 Rastaman Vibration Bob Marley & The Wailers 1976
15 96 Degrees In The Shade Third World 1976
16 Skylarking Horace Andy 1972
17 Showcase Black Uhuru 1979
18 Soon Forward Gregory Isaacs 1979
19 Black Heart Man Bunny Wailer 1976
20 Legalise It Peter Tosh 1976
21 Two Sevens Clash Culture 1977
22 Black Woman Judy Mowatt 1979
23 Mr Rock Steady Ken Boothe 1967
24 On The Beach The Paragons 1968
25 Anthem Black Uhuru 1984
26 Catch A Fire Bob Marley & The Wailers 1973
27 Naturally Marcia Griffiths 1978
28 King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown Augustus Pablo 1976
29 War Inna Babylon Max Romeo 1976
30 Police And Thieves Junior Murvin 1976
31 A Love I Can Feel John Holt 1971
32 No Man Is An Island Dennis Brown 1970
33 Black Roots Sugar Minott 1980
34 Burnin’ The Wailers 1973
35 Mr Soul Of Jamaica Alton Ellis 1967
36 Fattie Fattie The Heptones 1967
37 What Kind Of World The Cables 1970
38 Visions Of Dennis Brown Dennis Brown 1977
39 Everything I Own Ken Boothe 1974
40 Equal Rights Peter Tosh 1977
41 Wolf & Leopards Dennis Brown 1977
42 Satta Massa Gana The Abyssinians 1976
43 Natty Rebel U Roy 1976
44 Heart Of The Congos The Congos 1977
45 Bobby Babylon Freddie McGregor 1980
46 Mr Isaacs Gregory Isaacs 1978
47 How Long Pat Kelly 1970
48 Waiting In The Park The Chantells 1978
49 Inseparable Dennis Brown 1988
50 Til Shiloh Buju Banton 1995