June 10, 1980 - Uprising

Nearly two months after my last release and just eight months since their last album "Survival", Bob Marley & The Wailers released their sixth album under this name "Uprising" on June 10, 1980. This is perhaps Bob Marley's most religious album as there are several songs about Rastafarianism and lots of references to Jah, or God. I'm not a religious person so I'm not sure how I feel about this change but let's listen first and judge later.

The album begins with "Coming In From The Cold" and we hear a soft guitar riff start it off before they settle into a peaceful, uplifting reggae beat with some cool bass and keyboards by Aston Barrett and Tyrone Downie respectively. Bob sings in a soft soothing voice that fits this mood well and the I-Threes sound good echoing him. Bob speeds up things a bit in the next verse with some quicker vocals that sound pretty good and Carlton Barrett plays some nice faster drums. Downie plays some nice slow piano the whole time and after another chorus they resume the slower main riff. They repeat the same formula with a slow verse followed by a faster sung one but they are a little too similar for me. They continue to jam this main riff for the whole four and a half minutes and while it's not bad by any means, it gets less interesting the more they repeat it. Up next is "Real Situation" and it's driven by some nice keyboards by Downie that have a very happy feel to them as Bob starts the verse right away. It's another slow-paced reggae jam with Bob singing softly along and the Barrett's providing a nice rhythm section. The verse and chorus are both pretty basic and Bob leads the way singing about nations going to war and how no one can stop them. The message doesn't fit the light mood at all but Junior Marvin plays some cool guitar to spice up the end of this otherwise pretty tame song. Track 3 is called "Bad Card" and Bob plays a typical reggae guitar riff in the background while Downie drives this song with some upbeat piano. Bob sings in his usual soothing voice and the music continues to sound uplifting and spiritual. This song, like the others before it, establishes a nice main riff but then doesn't go anywhere else. Once again they don't stray from the main riff at all as Downie must have gotten bored of playing the same four bars over and over. On previous albums the music would ebb and flow and it seems much more stagnant so far on this one as they fade it out in under three minutes. The next song is titled "We And Dem" and it has another basic piano riff but Downie also adds some nice organ to this more unique riff. We really notice Alvin Patterson for the first time on this album as he plays some interesting percussion and this song has less of the happy vibes. I like it's darker feel as Bob sings a solid verse before the I-Threes join him for the chorus. This main riff has much more jumping out at you with Marvin playing some cool guitar and Downie's organ sounds nice as well. They jam out the chorus several times at the end as Bob rambles on until the song fades away. Side one ends with "Work" as we hear some cool guitar and some hard to describe keyboards that sound a little weird. Bob begins in the chorus singing "we the people can make it work". The verse takes on a different meaning as they count down the five working days and Bob exclaims "every day is work". Don't we all know it Bob. It's a pretty catchy tune and I like how they use the word in different ways. After an extended chorus they count 'em down again with another verse before slowly fading out the chorus at the finish.

The second side begins with "Zion Train" and Downie's piano and Barrett's bass carry the beat while Marvin plays a nice lead guitar riff. Bob sings slowly in his typical voice as his lyrics alternate with Marvin's guitar in the chorus. The I-Threes echo Bob in the slow verse and he even says "to the bridge" before they move to a new bridge riff! It's brief though before they play another chorus followed by another verse. This song follow the theme of the first side: it's a decent enough song but it stays at the same level the whole way through, never getting truly exciting. The next song is called "Pimper's Paradise", which is actually about a perfect girl. Carlton plays some cool drums to kick it off before they settle into a very tame riff, even for this lax group. Bob sings nicely along about this perfect girl in the verse and for reasons I don't understand, that makes her a pimper's paradise I guess, as Bob tells us in the chorus. The I-Threes sound nice in the background of the next verse and Downie plays some nice organ that makes things a bit more interesting. They continue to jam out the chorus at the end of the song as Bob does some nice rambling vocals that slowly fade away. Track 8 was the big hit single off this record, "Could You Be Loved" and it's driven by quite a catchy lead guitar riff. Even in the opening seconds you can tell this song is unlike all the others as it has a nice fast pace and sounds more mainstream than their typical reggae riffs. The rest of the band forms a solid backing to this catchy lead riff and Bob begins in the chorus by shouting the name of the song. He sings a quick verse and he sounds pretty good in this song that makes you want to get up and move. It has some simple lyrics about love but both Bob and the I-Threes sound pretty great and I certainly like this upbeat tune. They follow the same album formula by establishing a main beat and not straying far from it but this was easily the best song so far I thought and I wasn't tired of this riff even after four minutes. Up next is "Forever Loving Jah" and Downie plays some very un-Wailer-like keyboards that sound almost computer-y while Bob plays some classic reggae guitar and lets out a few interesting yells. He and the I-Threes start at the chorus and sing together a very simple chorus that certainly feels a bit like a hymn. I don't dislike the very odd keyboards but a slow reggae riff is not where I expected to hear them. Patterson plays some cool percussion and Bob leads a solid verse while Downie plays a few different kinds of keyboards that make for a unique sound indeed. I like the long verses in this song but the chorus gets pretty stale I find. The album ends with "Redemption Song" and this song is just the main man Bob Marley and his guitar as for the first time we hear a Wailers song that is purely a solo. Bob begins with a nice bit of guitar before settling into a breezy acoustic riff and his vocals sound very passionate. Words don't do justice to describe how powerful this simple song sounds as this solo effort by Bob sounds very grand and is somehow the most enthralling main beat on the album. When he begins the chorus with "won't you help me sing these songs of freedom" I think it sounds really smooth and Bob delivers a superb performance on this song that is a great way to end the album.

That is the end of "Uprising" and while side two was way better than side one, I still thought overall it was another sub-par effort from Bob Marley & The Wailers. "Could You Be Loved" and "Redemption Song" were the highlights, but most of the songs seemed content to just slowly make their way through and I thought it was largely unexciting. I said similar things about their previous album "Survival" and I think these two are close on the ladder, but sadly in my opinion they've outdone themselves again with a new bottom rung on the ladder. These guys have been heading in the wrong direction I tink but they still stay true to their billing with some decent reggae music.