Soul Rebels

This article is about the album by the Wailers. For the New Orleans band, see the Soul Rebels.

"Soul Rebel" redirects here. For the John Givez album, see Soul Rebel (John Givez album).

1970 studio album by Bob Marley and the Wailers

Soul Rebels

Studio album by

Bob Marley and the Wailers

Released| December 1970
Recorded| August–November 1970
Studio| Randy's, Kingston, Jamaica
Genre| Reggae
Length| 33:09
Label| Trojan
Producer| Lee Perry
Bob Marley and the Wailers chronology
| The Wailing Wailers
(1965)  | Soul Rebels
(1970)  | Soul Revolution Part II
(1971)

|
|

Soul Rebels is the second studio album by the Wailers, their first album to be released outside Jamaica. The Wailers approached producer Lee "Scratch" Perry in August 1970 to record an entire album, and the sessions took place at Randy's recording studio (also known as Studio 17)[1] above Randy's Record Mart at 17 North Parade in Kingston, Jamaica,[2] until November. First issued in the UK by Trojan Records in December 1970, the album has since been re-released several times on several different labels. Perry's production is sparse and haunting, only featuring guitar, bass, drums, electronic organs, and vocals with no horns or other embellishments.

## Songs

[edit]

The first track, "Soul Rebel", was from the first collaboration of Perry and Bob Marley.[3] Marley initiated the idea for the song, and Perry arranged and co-wrote the music as Marley dictated the lyrics.[4]

## Critical reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [5]

Writing in Newsday in 1973, Robert Christgau found Soul Rebels superior to Marley and the Wailer's only American release at the time, Catch a Fire.[6]

AllMusic gave Soul Rebels a glowing retrospective review, calling it "a strange and wonderful set of early reggae that at times plays fast and loose with the already established conventions of the genre".[5]

## Cover

[edit]

According to the book, I & I: The Natural Mystics, the band was not happy with the "soft porn" look of the album cover, clashing as it did with their sensibilities, and were upset that they weren't consulted on its look.[7]

## Track listing

[edit]

### Original album (1970)

[edit]

All tracks are written by Bob Marley, except where noted.

Side oneNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Soul Rebel"|  | 3:19
2.| "Try Me"|  | 2:45
3.| "It's Alright"|  | 2:34
4.| "No Sympathy"| Peter Tosh| 2:13
5.| "My Cup"| James Brown| 3:34
6.| "Soul Almighty"|  | 2:42

Side twoNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

7.| "Rebel's Hop"| Curtis Mayfield, Norman Whitfield, Barrett Strong, Marley| 2:38
8.| "Corner Stone"|  | 2:28
9.| "400 Years"| Tosh| 2:33
10.| "No Water"|  | 2:08
11.| "Reaction"|  | 2:41
12.| "My Sympathy"|  | 2:41

### The Definitive Remastered edition (2002)

[edit]

Current CD VersionNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Soul Rebel"|  | 3:19
2.| "Try Me"|  | 2:45
3.| "It's Alright"|  | 2:34
4.| "No Sympathy"| Tosh| 2:13
5.| "My Cup"| Brown| 3:34
6.| "Soul Almighty"|  | 2:42
7.| "Rebel's Hop"| Mayfield, Whitfield, Strong, Marley| 2:38
8.| "Corner Stone"|  | 2:28
9.| "400 Years"| Tosh| 2:33
10.| "No Water"|  | 2:08
11.| "Reaction"|  | 2:41
12.| "My Sympathy"|  | 2:41
13.| "Dreamland"| Bunny Wailer| 2:44
14.| "Dreamland" (version)| Wailer| 2:36
15.| "Dracula"| Lee "Scratch" Perry| 2:55
16.| "Soul Rebel" (version 4)|  | 2:54
17.| "Version of Cup"| Perry| 3:13
18.| "Zig Zag"| Perry| 3:24
19.| "Jah Is Mighty"|  | 2:26
20.| "Brand New Second Hand"| Tosh| 3:11
21.| "Brand New Second Hand" (version)| Tosh| 3:05
22.| "Downpresser"| Tosh| 3:16

### JAD Remastered edition (2004)

[edit]

Bonus tracksNo.| Title| Length

|
|

13.| "Jah Is Mighty"| 2:26
14.| "Soul Rebel" (version 4)| 2:52

Also "No Sympathy (Version)" (replaces "My Sympathy", due to error)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Wayne Robins (8 May 2004). "VP Celebrates 25 Years". Billboard. p. 21.
2. ^ John Masouri (11 November 2009). Wailing Blues: The Story of Bob Marley's Wailers. Omnibus Press. p. 154\. ISBN 9780857120359.
3. ^ David Katz, People Funny Boy - The Genius Of Lee 'Scratch' Perry, p. 116: "Shortly after the success of 'Duppy Conqueror,' Perry and the Wailers scored another hit with 'Soul Rebel,' ... The Wailers later issued alternate versions of the song with entirely different lyrics as 'Run For Cover,' which surfaced on ..."
4. ^ Kevin O'Brien Chang, Wayne Chen, Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican Music, 1998, p. 167: "We started to work together and the ideas started to flow 'till we made the tune 'Duppy Conqueror'. Then he came up with the idea 'I'm a rebel, soul rebel' and I arranged the music for that song 'Soul Rebel'. He wrote the lyrics."
5. ^ a b Soul Rebels at AllMusic
6. ^ Christgau, Robert (6 May 1973). "An Outsider's Guide to the Inside World of Reggae". Newsday. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
7. ^ Colin Grant (2011). I & I: The Natural Mystics: Marley, Tosh and Wailer. Random House. p. 179.

* v
* t
* e

Bob Marley and the Wailers

* Bob Marley
* Peter Tosh
* Bunny Wailer

* Other vocalists: Junior Braithwaite
* Cherry Smith
* Beverley Kelso
* Constantine "Vision" Walker
* Rita Marley
* Marcia Griffiths
* Judy Mowatt

* Musicians: Aston "Family Man" Barrett
* Carlton Barrett
* Earl Lindo
* Tyrone Downie
* Alvin "Seeco" Patterson
* Al Anderson
* Earl "Chinna" Smith
* Donald Kinsey
* Junior Marvin

Studio albums|

* The Wailing Wailers (1965)
* Soul Rebels (1970)
* Soul Revolution Part II (1971)
* The Best of the Wailers (1971)
* Catch a Fire (1973)
* Burnin' (1973)
* Natty Dread (1974)
* Rastaman Vibration (1976)
* Exodus (1977)
* Kaya (1978)
* Survival (1979)
* Uprising (1980)
* Confrontation (1983)

Compilations|

* African Herbsman (1973)
* Rasta Revolution (1974)
* Legend (1984)
* Bob, Peter, Bunny & Rita (1985)
* Rebel Music (1986)
* Natural Mystic: The Legend Lives On (1995)
* 21 Winners: The Best of Bob Marley and the Wailers (1997)
* One Love: The Very Best of Bob Marley & The Wailers (2001)
* Gold (2005)

Live albums|

* Live! (1975)
* Babylon by Bus (1978)
* Talkin' Blues (1991)
* Live at the Roxy (2003)
* Live Forever (2011)
* Easy Skanking in Boston '78 (2015)

Remix albums|

* Chances Are (1981)
* Chant Down Babylon (1999)
* B Is for Bob (2009)

Box sets|

* Songs of Freedom (1992)
* The Complete Bob Marley & the Wailers 1967–1972 (1997–2002)

Singles|

* "Judge Not"
* "Simmer Down"
* "Guava Jelly"
* "Stir It Up"
* "Get Up, Stand Up"
* "I Shot the Sheriff"
* "No Woman, No Cry (Live '75)"
* "Jah Live"
* "Exodus"
* "Waiting in Vain"
* "Jamming"/"Punky Reggae Party"
* "Is This Love"
* "Satisfy My Soul"
* "So Much Trouble in the World"
* "Could You Be Loved"
* "Redemption Song"
* "Three Little Birds"
* "Forever Loving Jah"
* "Buffalo Soldier"
* "One Love/People Get Ready"
* "Iron Lion Zion"
* "Sun Is Shining"
* "Turn Your Lights Down Low"
* "Slogans"
* "Is This Love"

Other songs|

* "Rude Boy"
* "Mr Brown"
* "Small Axe"
* "No Woman, No Cry"
* "Turn Your Lights Down Low"
* "Natural Mystic"
* "Sun Is Shining"
* "One Drop"
* "War"
* "Hammer"

Performances|

* Smile Jamaica Concert (1976)
* Exodus Tour (1977)
* One Love Peace Concert (1978)
* Uprising Tour (1980)

Associated acts|

* The Skatalites
* The Upsetters
* Word, Sound and Power
* The Wailers Band
* The Original Wailers

Related people|

* Chris Blackwell
* Errol Brown
* Allan Cole
* Coxsone Dodd
* Vincent Ford
* Neville Garrick
* Joe Higgs
* Lee Jaffe
* Arthur Jenkins
* King Sporty
* Leslie Kong
* Johnny Nash
* Jimmy Norman
* Lee "Scratch" Perry
* Mortimer Planno
* Karl Pitterson
* Alex Sadkin

Related articles|

* Discography
* Band members
* Outline of Bob Marley
* 1976 assassination attempt
* Marley Natural
* Upsetter Records
* Tuff Gong
* Bob Marley Museum
* Statue of Bob Marley
* Tribute to the Legend: Bob Marley
* Marley
* soundtrack
* Hall of Fame: A Tribute to Bob Marley's 50th Anniversary
* Time Will Tell: A Tribute to Bob Marley
* One Love: The Bob Marley Musical
* Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical
* Bob Marley: One Love
* soundtrack

* Category

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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