BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS : “Talkin’ Blues” <i> Tuff Gong/Island</i> ***
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“Talkin’ Blues” is a collection of unreleased tracks from the early days of the Wailers’ international career, but rather than an album of bottom-of-the-vaults filler it’s a valuable addition to the legacy of a group that revolutionized the pop world. Its core is seven songs from a live radio broadcast recorded in San Francisco at the end of the Wailers’ first American tour in 1973--augmented by strong outtakes from the “Natty Dread” album sessions and illuminating excerpts from a 1975 Jamaican radio interview with Marley.
The treat lies in hearing “Burnin’ and Lootin’ ” with co-founder Peter Tosh plus Joe Higgs (subbing for Bunny Wailer) rather than the I-Threes on backing vocals, and potent versions of such live rarities as “Slave Driver” and the mid-’60s vintage “Walk the Proud Land.” Tosh shines on several lead vocals, particularly “Get Up, Stand Up,” where his gruff directness and Marley’s elastic improvising on the melody take a now-familiar reggae standard to surprising heights. And latter-day fans may be surprised at how compact and funky these Wailers were as an instrumental unit.
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