Songs of Freedom is a four-disc box set containing music by Bob Marley and the Wailers, from Marley's first song "Judge Not", recorded in 1961, to a live version of "Redemption Song", recorded in 1980 at his last concert.

Songs of Freedom
Box set by
Released6 October 1992
Recorded1961–1980
GenreReggae
Length4:59:11
LabelTuff Gong
Bob Marley and the Wailers chronology
Talkin' Blues
(1991)
Songs of Freedom
(1992)
Natural Mystic
(1995)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic [1]
Rolling Stone[2]
Baltimore Sun[3]

The song "Iron Lion Zion" was first released on this compilation, in what is often considered the original mix (although the original is said to not have included the harmony vocals from the I-Threes). The single releases (and subsequent compilation releases) use a remix which was created for the single using modern production, which sounds very different.

"Why Should I" was remixed for this compilation and released as a single. The original wasn't released until the JAD/Universal box set Man To Man in 2004. The original was recorded in 1971 and features Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer's backing vocals, which were replaced by The I-Threes on the remix.

It is said to be complementary to the greatest hits compilation Legend, in the sense that any of the tracks with the same names are presented in different versions from the normal single mixes on Legend - as an example see the number of 12" mixes in the track listing below. The exceptions are the original versions of "Get Up, Stand Up" and "Easy Skanking", the latter appearing on the 2002 Deluxe Edition remaster.

Track listing

edit

Disc one

edit
No.TitleWriter(s)Original releaseLength
1."Judge Not"Bob Marleynon-album single (1962)2:26
2."One Cup of Coffee"Brooke Benton, arr. B. Marleynon-album single (1962)2:34
3."Simmer Down"B. MarleyThe Wailing Wailers (1965)2:50
4."I'm Still Waiting"B. MarleyThe Wailing Wailers (1965)3:07
5."One Love/People Get Ready"B. Marley, Curtis MayfieldThe Wailing Wailers (1965)3:21
6."Put It On"B. MarleyThe Wailing Wailers (1965)3:08
7."Bus Dem Shut (Pyaka)"B. Marleysingle (1967)2:47
8."Mellow Mood" (original)B. Marleysingle (1967)3:31
9."Bend Down Low"B. Marleysingle (1967)2:30
10."Hypocrites"B. Marleysingle (1967)2:36
11."Stir It Up" (original)B. Marleysingle (1967)3:13
12."Nice Time"B. Marleysingle (1967)2:44
13."Thank You Lord" (original)B. Marleysingle (1967)3:41
14."Hammer"B. Marleypreviously unreleased demo (1968)2:57
15."Caution"B. MarleyThe Best of The Wailers (1970)2:45
16."Back Out"B. MarleyThe Best of The Wailers (1970)2:18
17."Soul Shake Down Party"B. MarleyThe Best of The Wailers (1970)3:06
18."Do It Twice"B. MarleyThe Best of The Wailers (1970)2:49
19."Soul Rebel"B. MarleySoul Rebels (1970)3:19
20."Sun Is Shining"B. MarleySoul Revolution Part II (1971)2:11
21."Don't Rock My Boat"B. MarleySoul Revolution Part II (1971)4:32
22."Small Axe"B. Marleysingle (1971)3:57
23."Duppy Conqueror"B. Marleysingle (1971)3:39
24."Mr. Brown"B. Marleysingle (1971)3:32

Disc two

edit
No.TitleWriter(s)Original releaseLength
1."Screwface"B. Marleysingle (1971)2:23
2."Lick Samba"B. Marleysingle (1971)2:33
3."Trenchtown Rock" (alternative mix)B. Marleysingle (1971)3:28
4."Craven Choke Puppy"B. Marleysingle (1971)2:52
5."Guava Jelly"B. Marleysingle (1971)2:18
6."Acoustic Medley" (medley of "Guava Jelly", "This Train", "Cornerstone", "Comma Comma", "Dew Drops", "Stir It Up" and "I'm Hurting Inside")B. Marleypreviously unreleased JAD audition (1971)12:09
7."I'm Hurting Inside" (alternative mix)B. Marleypreviously unreleased, from an unfinished JAD album (1971)3:29
8."High Tide or Low Tide"B. Marleypreviously unreleased outtake from Catch a Fire (1972)4:09
9."Slave Driver"B. MarleyCatch a Fire (1972)2:51
10."No More Trouble"B. MarleyCatch a Fire (1972)3:59
11."Concrete Jungle"B. MarleyCatch a Fire (1972)4:11
12."Get Up, Stand Up"B. Marley, Peter ToshBurnin' (1973)3:14
13."Rastaman Chant"Traditional, arr. The WailersBurnin (1973)3:51
14."Burnin' and Lootin'"B. MarleyBurnin (1973)4:13
15."Iron Lion Zion" (original)B. Marleypreviously unreleased recording for this release. (1973)2:55
16."Lively Up Yourself"B. MarleyNatty Dread (1973)5:11
17."Natty Dread"B. MarleyNatty Dread (1973)3:34
18."I Shot the Sheriff" (live)B. MarleyLive! (1975)5:26

Disc three

edit
No.TitleWriter(s)Original releaseLength
1."No Woman No Cry" (live at The Roxy)Vincent Fordpreviously unreleased at the time, though later appears on the live release Live at the Roxy (1976)5:22
2."Who the Cap Fit"Aston Barrett, Carlton BarrettRastaman Vibration (1976)4:41
3."Jah Live"B. Marley, Lee Perrysingle (1975); later added to the remastered edition of Rastaman Vibration (1976)4:15
4."Crazy Baldheads"R. Marley, FordRastaman Vibration (1976)3:10
5."War"Cole, C. BarrettRastaman Vibration (1976)3:36
6."Johnny Was"R. MarleyRastaman Vibration (1976)3:46
7."Rat Race"R. MarleyRastaman Vibration (1976)2:49
8."Jamming" (12-inch mix)B. Marleyremix of track from Exodus (1977)5:45
9."Waiting in Vain" (advert mix)B. Marleypreviously unreleased remix of track from Exodus (1977)3:59
10."Exodus" (12-inch mix)B. Marleyremix of track from Exodus (1977)7:25
11."Natural Mystic"B. MarleyExodus (1977)3:26
12."Three Little Birds" (alternate mix)B. Marleyalternate version of track from Exodus (1977)2:56
13."Running Away"B. MarleyKaya (1978)4:14
14."Keep on Moving" (London version)C. Mayfieldouttake from an unreleased Lee Perry album (1978), first released on the "One Love/People Get Ready" 12-inch single (1984)5:44
15."Easy Skanking"B. MarleyKaya (1978)2:55
16."Is This Love" (horns mix)B. Marleyalternate mix of track from Kaya (1978)4:00
17."Smile Jamaica"B. Marley, Perrynon-album single (1976); later added to deluxe edition of Rastaman Vibration (1976)3:13
18."Time Will Tell"B. MarleyKaya (1978)3:32

Disc four

edit
No.TitleWriter(s)Original releaseLength
1."Africa Unite"B. MarleySurvival (1979)2:54
2."Survival"B. MarleySurvival (1979)3:52
3."One Drop"B. MarleySurvival (1979)3:51
4."One Dub"B. MarleySurvival (One Drop" b-side) (1979)3:53
5."Zimbabwe"B. MarleySurvival (1979)3:47
6."So Much Trouble in the World"B. MarleySurvival (1979)3:57
7."Ride Natty Ride" (12-inch mix)B. Marleyremix of the track from Survival (1979)6:22
8."Babylon System"B. MarleySurvival (1979)4:18
9."Coming in from the Cold" (12-inch mix)B. Marleyremix of the track from Uprising (1980)6:04
10."Real Situation"B. MarleyUprising (1980)3:08
11."Bad Card"B. MarleyUprising (1980)2:48
12."Could You Be Loved" (12-inch mix)B. Marleyremix of the track from Uprising (1980)5:26
13."Forever Loving Jah"B. MarleyUprising (1980)3:50
14."Rastaman Live Up"B. MarleyConfrontation (1983)5:21
15."Give Thanks and Praises"B. MarleyConfrontation (1983)3:14
16."One Love/People Get Ready" (12-inch mix)B. Marley, Mayfieldremix of track from Exodus (1977)7:08
17."Why Should I"B. Marleypreviously unreleased recording, which The I-Threes were on the remix for this release. (1992)3:33
18."Redemption Song" (live in Pittsburgh)B. Marleypreviously unreleased at the time, though later appears on the live release Live in Pittsburgh (1980)4:08

Charts

edit
Chart performance for Songs of Freedom
Chart (1992) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[4] 87
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[5] 44
UK Albums (OCC)[6] 10
US Billboard 200[7] 86

References

edit
  1. ^ Erlewine Thomas, Stephen. "Bob Marley: Songs of Freedom". allmusic.com. Allmusic.
  2. ^ Bob Marley Rolling Stone Album Guide
  3. ^ Considine J.D. (29 November 1992). "Compact Collections". baltimoresun.com. Baltimore Sun.
  4. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 176.
  5. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Bob Marley – Songs of Freedom" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  6. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  7. ^ "Bob Marley Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
edit