Ziggy Marley - Fly Rasta

  by Adrian Huggins

published: 8 / 4 / 2014

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I am not sure if is completely obvious, particularly given the album title ‘Fly Rasta’, that Ziggy Marley is the eldest offspring of Reggae’s most famed songwriter Bob Marley. His father, of course, was not only the most well known and loved reggae musician ever but also one of the greatest and most popular artists ever. Imagine having him as your dad. It is potentially a great deal to live up to. The first track ‘I Don’t Want to Live on Mars’ quite frankly worried me as it begins with a radio rock, Ben Harper-lite style intro. This filled me with dread as I wondered if this was all going to be easy-on- the-ear, radio friendly pop-rock and from Bob Marley’s son I had hoped for more. Fortunately ‘I Don’t Want to Live on Mars’ does break into a more familiar reggae beat, and very quickly sinks its hooks into your conscience. What is evident straight away is the similarity of Ziggy’s voice to that of his father’s, which is real joy. While the opening tune isn’t much to chew on it, it is nevertheless a gentle grower upon which you warm to its simplistic side more and more. Title track ‘Fly Rasta’ is an upbeat, full reggae number. It just smashes you round the face in the most spectacular way. If you don’t bounce around when you listen to this, you must have no pulse. It does sound of its day. It is an instant reggae-ska classic, musically closer to Aswad and far more reminiscent of the more modern take on reggae. It is basically everything that is great about this genre, brimming with sunshine and a self-assured air of positivity. ‘Sunshine’ and ‘Moving Forward’ stick to a sunny, straightforward reggae sound but avoid the clichéd and unimaginative. There are similar moments in the quirky ‘You’re My Yoko’ and ‘Give it Away’, both of which are so impeccably produced. They are slick without being stale and again delve into a realm that all Ben Harper fans would be most pleased about. ‘You’ is similarly upbeat, and once again combines modern school with original reggae. Female backing vocals belt out like a choir, and an unmistakeable drum beat develops a real funky edge throughout the song. The chorus features the most brilliant distorted bass sound that growls along and hooks you in. Throughout the album Marley shows that he has certainly inherited plenty of talent from his father and is doing wonders for his family’s musical legacy, while also managing to push reggae and steer it respectively in a modern direction without losing any of the simplistic charm that the

Track Listing:-

1 I Don't Wanna Live on Mars
2 Fly Rasta (feat. U-Roy)
3 Lighthouse
4 Sunshine
5 Moving Forward (feat. Beezy Col
6 You
7 So Many Rising
8 I Get Up (feat. Cedella Marley)
9 You're My Yoko
10 Give It Away
11 I Don't Wanna Live on Mars (Acou

Band Links:-

https://www.ziggymarley.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ZiggyMarley/
https://twitter.com/ziggymarley

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