But with Bob Marley and the Wailers, Bunny helped craft such hits as “Is This Love”, “Jammin”, “I Shot the Sherrif” and more.
Most of Bob Marley’s early music was recorded with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, who together with Marley were the most prominent members of the Wailers.
In 1972, the Wailers had their first hit outside Jamaica when Johnny Nash covered their song “Stir It Up”, which became a UK hit. The 1973 album Catch a Fire was released worldwide, and sold well. It was followed by Burnin’, which included the song “I Shot the Sheriff”.
Eric Clapton’s cover of the song became a hit in 1974.
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Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer left the Wailers in 1974. Bob Marley proceeded with Bob Marley and the Wailers, which included the Wailers Band and the I Threes.
In 2017, the Jamaican Government awarded Bunny Wailer an Order of Merit, the country’s fourth highest honour. The Government again recognised his contribution to Jamaican music in February 2019 with a Reggae Gold Award.
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In a 2016 NPR interview in New York — during his first U.S. tour in more than two decades — Wailer stated that he hoped to “just keep on singing ska, rocksteady and reggae music. That’s my legacy: to sing for you people and to teach you people of what I’ve known by singing this music.”
For more of The Wailers music, you can see the playlist below:
