Bob Marley Timeline

(February 6, 1945 – May 11, 1981)

Bob Marley (1945–1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist who popularized reggae music worldwide. As the frontman of Bob Marley and the Wailers, he blended ska, rocksteady, and reggae with themes of peace, love, and Rastafarian spirituality, becoming one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Early Life

Born in Nine Mile, Jamaica

Feb 6, 1945

Robert Nesta Marley was born on 6 February 1945 at the farm of his maternal grandfather in Nine Mile, Saint Ann Parish, Colony of Jamaica, to Norval Sinclair Marley and Cedella Malcolm.

Image source: Bob Marley

Musical Career

First recordings at Federal Studios

Feb 1962

In February 1962, Marley recorded four songs, "Judge Not", "One Cup of Coffee", "Do You Still Love Me?" and "Terror", at Federal Studios for local music producer Leslie Kong.

Forms the Teenagers with Tosh and Wailer

1963

Marley began his career in 1963, forming the group the Teenagers with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, which became the Wailers. The group also included Junior Braithwaite, Beverley Kelso, and Cherry Smith.

Image source: Bob Marley and the Wailers

Forms the Teenagers with Tosh and Wailer

"Simmer Down" becomes a hit

Feb 1964

The Wailers' single reached number one in February 1964, selling an estimated 70,000 copies in Jamaica.

Debut album The Wailing Wailers released

1965

In 1965, the group released their debut studio album, The Wailing Wailers, which included the single "One Love", a reworking of "People Get Ready".

Image source: The Wailing Wailers

Debut album The Wailing Wailers released

Core trio forms as others leave

1966

By 1966, Braithwaite, Kelso, and Smith had left the Wailers, leaving the core trio of Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, and Peter Tosh.

Re-records tracks with JAD Records

1968 - 1972

Between 1968 and 1972, Bob and Rita Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer re-cut some old tracks with JAD Records in Kingston and London in an attempt to commercialise the Wailers' sound.

Visits songwriter Jimmy Norman

1968

In 1968, Bob and Rita visited songwriter Jimmy Norman at his apartment in the Bronx, where they worked on material together.

Image source: Jimmy Norman

Jamaican music slows its beat

1969

1969 brought another change to Jamaican popular music, where the beat slowed down even further, influencing the Wailers' evolving sound.

Releases The Best of The Wailers

1971

Around this time, Marley relocated to London, and the group embodied their musical shift with the release of the album The Best of The Wailers (1971).

Image source: The Best of the Wailers

Signs with CBS Records and UK tour

1972

In 1972, Bob Marley signed with CBS Records in London and embarked on a UK tour with soul singer Johnny Nash. He lived in Ridgmount Gardens, Bloomsbury, during 1972.

Catch a Fire released on Island Records

Apr 1973

The Wailers' first album for Island, Catch a Fire, was released worldwide in April 1973, packaged like a rock record with a unique Zippo lighter lift-top. It helped the band gain international attention along with Burnin'.

Image source: Catch a Fire

Wailers disband; members go solo

1974

The Wailers disbanded in 1974, with each of the three main members pursuing a solo career. That year also saw the release of Natty Dread, which received positive reviews.

Clapton's "I Shot the Sheriff" hits number 1

Sep 14, 1974

Eric Clapton recorded a cover version of Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff", which became his first US hit since "Layla" two years earlier and reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on 14 September 1974.

Image source: I Shot the Sheriff

International breakthrough with "No Woman, No Cry"

1975

Following the global popularity of Eric Clapton's version of "I Shot the Sheriff", Marley had his international breakthrough in 1975 with his first hit outside Jamaica, a live version of "No Woman, No Cry", from the Live! album.

Image source: No Woman, No Cry

International breakthrough with "No Woman, No Cry"

Rastaman Vibration breaks through in US

1976

Marley's breakthrough album in the United States, Rastaman Vibration (1976), reached the Top 50 of the Billboard Soul Charts.

Image source: Rastaman Vibration

Rainbow Theatre concerts in London

Jun 1, 1977 - Jun 4, 1977

From 1–4 June 1977, Marley played four successive nights with the Wailers at the Rainbow Theatre in London. The highlights were recorded in the BBC documentary Bob Marley: Live at the Rainbow 1977.

Image source: Bob Marley and the Wailers discography

One Love Peace Concert

1978

In 1978, Marley returned to Jamaica and performed at the One Love Peace Concert, again in an effort to calm warring political parties. He also recorded the video for "Is This Love" from the Kaya album at the Keskidee centre in London, and released the acclaimed double live album Babylon by Bus.

Image source: One Love Peace Concert

Amandla Festival performance

Jul 1979

His appearance at the Amandla Festival in Boston in July 1979 showed his strong opposition to South African apartheid, already expressed in his song "War" (1976), which drew influence from a 1937 speech by Marcus Garvey. His politically charged album Survival was released in 1979.

Performs at Zimbabwe Independence celebration

Apr 17, 1980

In early 1980, Marley was invited to perform at a 17 April celebration of Zimbabwe's Independence Day.

Image source: Zimbabwe

Uprising, final studio album, released

May 1980

Uprising (1980) was Marley's final studio album and the last album released during his lifetime. He was scheduling a 1980 world tour despite his illness.

Image source: Uprising (Entombed album)

Final outdoor concert in Dublin

Jul 6, 1980

Marley's final outdoor concert was played on 6 July 1980 at Dalymount Park in Dublin, Ireland. The only known photographs from the show were included in Kevin Macdonald's 2012 documentary film Marley.

Image source: Dalymount Park

Posthumous album Confrontation released

1983

Confrontation, released posthumously in 1983, contained unreleased material recorded during Marley's lifetime, including the hit "Buffalo Soldier" and new mixes of singles previously available only in Jamaica.

Image source: Confrontation (Bob Marley and the Wailers album)

Personal Life

Birth of Imani Carole (Unverified)

May 22, 1963

Various websites listed Imani Carole, born 22 May 1963 to Cheryl Murray, as one of Marley's children, but the Bob Marley website does not.

Converts to Rastafari faith

1966

Marley converted to the Rastafari faith from Catholicism in 1966 and began to use cannabis in accordance with his religious beliefs.

Marries Rita Anderson

Feb 10, 1966

Marley married Alfarita Constantia "Rita" Anderson in Kingston, Jamaica, on 10 February 1966. He then moved near his mother's residence in Wilmington, Delaware, working as a DuPont lab assistant and at a Chrysler plant under the alias Donald Marley.

Image source: Rita Marley

Arrested for cannabis possession

1968

Marley was arrested in 1968 after being caught with cannabis but continued to use marijuana in accordance with his religious beliefs.

Self-imposed exile in England

Dec 1976 - 1978

Marley left Jamaica at the end of 1976 and, after a month-long sojourn at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas, arrived in England, where he spent two years in self-imposed exile.

Survives assassination attempt

Dec 3, 1976

On 3 December 1976, two days before the "Smile Jamaica" concert, Bob Marley, Rita, and manager Don Taylor were wounded in an assault by unknown gunmen inside Marley's home.

Image source: Attempted assassination of Bob Marley

Baptised into Ethiopian Orthodox Church

Nov 4, 1980

Marley converted to Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity and was baptised by Archbishop Abuna Yesehaq in the presence of his wife Rita and their children, with the name Berhane Selassie, on 4 November 1980, shortly before his death.

Image source: Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church

Illness and Death

Diagnosed with skin cancer

Jul 1977

In July 1977, Marley was diagnosed with acral lentiginous melanoma, a type of skin cancer, under the nail of his right big toe. Despite his illness, he continued touring.

Image source: Acral lentiginous melanoma

Collapses in Central Park

Sep 21, 1980

On 21 September 1980, Marley collapsed while jogging in Central Park and was taken to hospital, where it was found that his cancer had spread to his brain, lungs, and liver.

Death of Bob Marley

May 11, 1981

Marley died on 11 May 1981, at the age of 36, due to the spread of cancer to his lungs and brain. His daughter Makeda was born weeks later, on 30 May 1981, to Yvette Anderson.

Image source: Bob Marley

Legacy and Honors

Awarded Jamaica's Order of Merit

Feb 1981

Three months before his death, Marley was honoured with a designated Order of Merit, Jamaica's highest honour related to people involved with the arts, literature or science.

Image source: Order of Merit (Jamaica)

State funeral in Jamaica

May 21, 1981

On 21 May 1981, Marley was given a state funeral in Jamaica that combined elements of Ethiopian Orthodoxy as well as Rastafari tradition. Footage of the funeral features in Alan Greenberg's 1982 film Land of Look Behind.

Legend greatest hits album released

1984

The greatest hits album Legend was released in 1984 and became the best-selling reggae album of all time.

Image source: Legend (Bob Marley and the Wailers album)

Inducted into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

1994

In 1994, Marley was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Image source: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award

Feb 2001

In February 2001, Marley was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

"Bob Marley Boulevard" named in Brooklyn

2006

In 2006, the New York City Department of Education co-named a portion of Church Avenue from Remsen Avenue to East 98th Street in East Flatbush, Brooklyn as "Bob Marley Boulevard".

Statue inaugurated in Serbia

2008

In 2008, a statue of Marley was inaugurated in Banatski Sokolac, Serbia.

Marley documentary announced by Scorsese

Feb 2008

In February 2008, director Martin Scorsese announced his intention to produce a documentary movie on Marley, set for release on 6 February 2010, what would have been Marley's 65th birthday.

Image source: Scrooge & Marley (2012 film)

A Brief History of Seven Killings wins Booker Prize

Oct 2015

In October 2015, Jamaican author Marlon James's novel A Brief History of Seven Killings, a fictional account of the attempted assassination of Marley, won the 2015 Man Booker Prize at a ceremony in London.

Image source: A Brief History of Seven Killings

Get Up, Stand Up! musical premieres

Oct 20, 2021

Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, written by Lee Hall and directed by Dominic Cooke and starring Arinzé Kene as Marley, premiered at London's Lyric Theatre on 20 October 2021, after being postponed from February due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Image source: Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical

Bob Marley: One Love biopic released

Feb 14, 2024

Bob Marley: One Love, an American biographical drama musical film directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green and starring Kingsley Ben-Adir as Marley, was released in the United States on 14 February 2024.

Image source: Bob Marley: One Love

Key Facts

Bob Marley was born on February 6, 1945, in Nine Mile, Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica.
He formed The Wailers in 1963 with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, helping define the reggae genre.
His 1977 album 'Exodus' was named Album of the Century by Time magazine in 1999.
Marley survived an assassination attempt at his home in Kingston in December 1976.
He died of melanoma on May 11, 1981, at age 36, and received Jamaica's Order of Merit posthumously.

Source

This Bob Marley timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

We work hard to keep these timelines accurate, but mistakes do get through. If you spot one, email us at [email protected] and we'll fix it for future visitors.

Want a timeline like this one?

Generate yours with AI or build it from scratch, for free.

Try It for Free