Burning Spear: Winston Rodney, Delroy Hines, Rupert Willington.

Additional personnel: Earl "Chinna" Smith, Valentine "Tony" Chin (guitar); Carlton "Sam" Samuels (flute); Herman Marquis (alto saxophone); Richard "Dirty Harry" Hall (tenor saxophone); Bobby Ellis (trumpet); Vincent "Trommie" Gordon (trombone); Bernard "Touter" Harvey (piano, organ, clavinet); Tyrone "Organ D" Downie (piano, organ); Robert "Rabbi" Shakespeare, Aston "Family Man" Barrett (bass); Leroy "Horse" Wallace (drums).

One of the most distinctive and original talents in the history of Reggae, Burning Spear--ne Winston Rodney--was launched internationally with this striking album. His deep, preaching vocal is immediately arresting, a characteristic enhanced by a dense and brooding accompaniment. Taking cues from Rastafarian chants, Spear subtly builds an intensity, locking each track into a seamless whole. His knowledge of black history brings a chilling realism to the album's lyrics, resulting in what is incontestably a milestone in the development of reggae. Listening to it is an education itself. The CD reissue has the bonus of the dub version GARVEY'S GHOST.

What the critics say...

The Wire (6/00, p.62) - "...At once militant, joyous and devotional, MARCUS GARVEY busts out of the reggae genre....coupled with its dub companion...the dub set remains essential...making up the greatest ever roots reggae album."
Mojo (Publisher) (8/02, p.77) - Included in Mojo's 50 Greatest Reggae Albums - "...Outstanding melodies, trilling flutes and, above all, Winston Rodney's Garveyite quest for African repatriation grip the heart throughout..."
NME (Magazine) (9/18/93, p.19) - Ranked #47 in NME's list of The Greatest Albums Of The '70s.