“Catch A Fire” the album by Bob Marley and The Wailers has re-entered the US Billboard Reggae Albums chart at No. 5 for the week ending November 18, 2023. The re-entry follows the re-release of the 50th anniversary 3CD deluxe editionand a 3LP vinyl + 12-inch package on November 3.
The groundbreaking album which previously peaked at No. 1 was The Wailers fifth studio album that was first released April 13, 1973 and was the group’s first Island Records project and has sold more than 500,000 units in the US since 1991 according to data provided to WMV by Luminate.
This commemorative release consists of all the track list created by the iconic Wailers during the album’s inception plus “Live at The Paris Theatre, London,” a Sessions disc featuring alternate, extended, and instrumental versions of album tracks. There is also a third disc highlighting three tracks performed at the Sundown Theatre in Edmonton, North London.
Other than the three original members of the Wailer band—Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, and Bob Marley—the album also featured vocals from Marcia Griffiths and Rita Marley, with Aston and Carlton Barrett on bass and drums, respectively. The timeless Jamaican recording has spent a total of 25 non consecutive weeks on the Billboard Reggae albums chart.
Earlier this year ahead of its anniversary “Catch A Fire” had re-entered the U.S. Billboard Reggae albums at No. 6.
History Of Catch A Fire
When Marley signed to island Records, he already had a contract with CBS by way of an African producer named Danny Sims. Still they recorded the album in 1972 after accepting £4,000 from Island Records founder Chris Blackwell without a contract according to Blackwell at Dynamic Sound studios, Harry J’s, and Randy’s (now VP Records).
Bass guitarist Aston “Family Man” Barrett revealed in the 2009 book “Wailing Blues: The Story of Bob Marley’s Wailers” by John Masouri that “some of the songs had been recorded before … in different studios and with different musicians, but we gave them that strict timing and brought the feeling out of them more.” Notably, “Baby We’ve Got a Date (Rock It Baby)” bears resemblance to “Black Bitter,” a track from an earlier session.
Robbie Shakespeare played bass on “Concrete Jungle,” Tyrone Downie contributed on organ for “Concrete Jungle” and “Stir it Up,” Winston Wright played organ on all other tracks, and Alvin “Seeco” Patterson played akete drums on several compositions. Rita Marley and her friend Marcia Griffiths were the backing vocals while Tommy McCook added his touch with the flute.
After the album was recorded, a legal dispute ensued when CBS and Danny Sims, who took Blackwell and the Island Records label to court over the recording. Danny was connected to the Mob according to Roger Steffens in an interview with The Independent.
“‘Danny’s mob connections were no secret.’ Roger said. ‘He admitted to me that his partner in JAD Records for decades was Joe Armone, head of one of the biggest crime families in America. ‘I’m a mobster,’ he told me proudly, more than once.’ (Armone, who died in 1992, was involved in the “French Connection” heroin smuggling case and participated in the 1985 killing of Sims’ Cayman Music partner Paul Castellano.) “
Island Records and Chris Blackwell emerged victorious, securing US$9,000 and two percent of royalties from the band’s initial previous albums. Meanwhile, Sims received £5,000 and the publishing rights to the Wailers’ songs.
Despite its eventual success, Blackwell, in his memoir “The Islander: My Life In Music And Beyond,” recalls the initial challenges faced by “Catch A Fire” in major music markets, particularly the U.S. He noted the album’s lack of resonance in its first year, prompting meticulous efforts to overdub the songs at the U.K. Island Studios to impart a distinctive “rock feel.”
In the first year or release, the album sold 14,000 copies, with a global reach of around 6,000 copies in the first week. Blackwell attributes the enduring success of “Catch A Fire” to his insistence on the record label providing unwavering support, even during the challenging early stages.
The music impresario, now 86 years old, says he made Catch A Fire sellable by “taking the music out of Jamaica without taking Jamaica out of it,” emphasizing the band’s powerful and self-possessed demeanor.
