Soul Rebel: An Intimate Portrait of Bob Marley in Jamaica and Beyond [Hardcover]

David Burnett (Photographer), Chris Murray (Introduction), Chris Salewicz (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 6, 2009

In 1976, while on assignment in Jamaica for Time magazine, David Burnett photographed Bob Marley for the first time, and Burnett became so entranced by Marley’s charisma that he continued to document the reggae king throughout his groundbreaking European “Exodus” tour. Burnett’s vision, coupled with Marley’s larger-than-life charisma, resulted in an amazing collection of images, only a handful of which appeared in the Time article. The other photos — more than 200 in all — appear for the first time in Soul Rebel. This stunning visual biography offers a rare look at Marley’s personal life in Jamaica, as well as the exodus from his home country that culminated in his tragic death in 1981. Though it focused on Marley, Burnett’s work also canvassed a wide array of up-and-coming reggae talents, providing striking early looks at Peter Tosh, Lee Scratch Perry, Burning Spear, and Ras Michael. Compelling and incomparably candid, Soul Rebel is a remarkable testament to the legacy of a legend.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Burnett captures the haunting Misty Mornings of the Isle of Springs, and the private Jamming and cloudy studio wizardry of its musical magicians. We see intimate portraits of Burning Spear; the Bush Doctor, Peter Tosh; the irrepressible producers Jack Ruby and Lee 'Scratch' Perry; and most impressively, the Prophet Bob Marley, deep in thought and serious as a heart attack, in the process of creating and sharing his immortal Redemption Songs."

-Roger Steffens, Chairman, Reggae Grammy Committee; founder, The Beat magazine; author of Reggae Scrapbook

About the Author

CHRIS SALEWICZ has been writing on popular culture for more than 20 years. He wrote Bob Marley: Songs of Freedom. Salewicz edited the booklet contained in the 4-CD box set Tougher Than Tough: The Story Of Jamaican Music, and co-wrote the script for the 1999 movie Third World Cop, which broke Jamaican box office records.

CHRIS MURRAY is the founder and director of Govinda Gallery in Washington, D.C. For over 30 years, Murray has organized more than 200 exhibitions of many of the nation's leading artists. He has been involved in SHOTS: An American Photographer's Journal, 1967-1972 by David Fenton, Elvis at 21: New York to Memphis by Al Wertheimer, and Days of Hope and Dreams: An Intimate Portrait of Bruce Springsteen.

DAVID BURNETT launched his photographic career at Time Magazine in 1967. He covered the Vietnam War as a staff photographer for Life Magazine. In 1975, he co-founded Contact Press Images in New York. Traveling to more than 75 countries, Burnett has produced photographic essays for Time, Life, Fortune, The New Yorker, and The New York Times Sunday Magazine.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 200 pages
• Publisher: Insight Editions (February 6, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933784261
• ISBN-13: 978-1933784267
• Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 9.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #825,737 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #67 in Books > History > Americas > Caribbean & West Indies > Jamaica

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sooul Rebel, February 23, 2009

By 

Thomas D. Herman (Boston, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Soul Rebel: An Intimate Portrait of Bob Marley in Jamaica and Beyond (Hardcover)

A pure delight! This beautifully designed and printed book contains the kind of extraordinary photographs of reggae master Bob Marley the world has come to expect from award-winning photojournalist David Burnett, almost all of which are previously unpublished. But it is not just a picture book. Burnett spent time with Marley at Marley's home in Jamaica, and traveled with Marley and the Wailers on their famous "Exodus" European tour. He writes about them with the insight that perhaps comes from Burnett's rare access to Marley's private life few journalists were granted, combined with Burnett's rare gifts of observation and expression.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Marley Portrait Ever, February 13, 2009

By 

Daniel J. Mendez (Atherton, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Soul Rebel: An Intimate Portrait of Bob Marley in Jamaica and Beyond (Hardcover)

The pictures are gorgeous and illuminate Bob Marley's spirit and music. You just have to look these while listening to his songs to really "hear" them. I strongly recommend this one--just gorgeous.

4.0 out of 5 stars An Intimate Portrait of Bob Marley in Jamaica and Beyond, February 25, 2011

By 

Genevieve - See all my reviews

This review is from: Soul Rebel: An Intimate Portrait of Bob Marley in Jamaica and Beyond (Hardcover)

The natural light Burnett used in the series of pictures of Marley at his home in Jamaica has the effect of making a man--who even decades later is considered a musical legend--completely down to earth and human.

"I think that rarely do you find journalists as sharp-eyed as photographers," said Burnett in an interview about his craft. "We are paid to look, and look around, we do. We notice little things that sometimes become very telling in a story."

You see these little details in the photos in Soul Rebel. The light in Marley's eyes, the lines in the skin of his hands, the lines of his face in his introspective profile.

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