Bunny Wailer (born as Neville Livingston on 10 April 1947 in Kingston, Jama… Read Full Bio ↴Bunny Wailer (born as Neville Livingston on 10 April 1947 in Kingston, Jamaica-2 March 2021) was a three-time Grammy Award winner, singer, percussionist and devoted Rastafarian, known for the reggae classic Dreamland. He is founding member of reggae group The Wailers with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. Bunny, Marley's step brother, toured with the band in England and USA after the success with the 1973 albums Catch A Fire and Burnin', but meant it was against Rastafari to perform for almost only white people and left Wailers 1973. He then made a number of solo reggae albums. Blackheart Man (1976) is a good example of his religious roots reggae, and Rock 'n' Groove (1981) of solid uptempo Sly & Robbie based reggae. He started to tour internationally again and is regarded as one of the most important reggae artists ever. Bunny Wailer has won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1991, 1995 and 1997.
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Bunny Wailer was a singer, songwriter and percussionist, born Neville O'Riley Livingston on April 10, 1947 in Kingston, Jamaica. He was founder and an original member of ska, rocksteady and reggae group The Wailers (formed 1963) along with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. The young Livingston spent his earliest years in the village of Nine Mile in St. Ann Parish. It was there that he first met Bob Marley, and the two toddlers became fast friends. The boys both came from one parent families; Livingston was being brought up by his father, Marley by his mother. Later, Bunny's father Thaddeus "Toddy" Livingston lived with Bob Marley's mother Cedella Booker and had a daughter with her named Pearl Livingston. Peter Tosh had a son, Andrew Tosh, with another of Bunny's sisters, Shirley, making Andrew his nephew

Livingston was underused as a writer and lead vocalist in The Wailers compared with Marley and Tosh. When Wailers regularly changed producers during the early reggae years in the late 1960s, Livingston continued to be a key part of the group's distinctive harmonies. He sang however lead on "Dreamland" (a cover of El Tempos' My Dream Island, which soon became Bunny's signature song), "Riding High", "Brainwashing" and on one verse of the Wailers' Impressions-like "Keep On Moving", both produced by Lee "Scratch" Perry. In 1971, he recorded the original version of Pass It On

Bunny Wailer toured with the Wailers in England and the United States, but soon became reluctant to leave Jamaica. He and Tosh became more marginalized in the group as the Wailers became an international success, and attention was increasingly focused on Marley. Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh subsequently left the Wailers to pursue solo careers. They were replaced by the I Threes, a move to broaden the base of success for the Wailers in the non-Jamaican market.

After leaving the Wailers, Bunny became more focused on his spiritual faith. He identified with the Rastafari movement, as did the other Wailers. He self-produced a number of his recordings after striking out on his own. He has also written much of his own material as well as re-recording a number of cuts from the Wailers catalogue. Bunny Wailer has recorded primarily in the roots style, in keeping with his often political and spiritual messages. The album "Blackheart Man" is a good example of his roots reggae style and the dub version,Dub d*sco vol 1 equally magnificent if hard to find. "Sings the Wailers" successfully reworks many of The Wailers songs with the backing of top Jamaican musicians, Sly and Robbie. He has also had success recording in the typically apolitical, more pop dancehall style. He has outlived his contemporaries in a culture where death by violence is commonplace.

Bunny Wailer has won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1990, 1994 and 1996.

Bunny Wailer died on 2 March 2021.

ALBUMS WITH ORIGINAL MATERIAL

* ''Blackheart Man'' (1976) [[Island Records|Island]]/Solomonic
* ''Protest'' (1977) Island/Solomonic
* ''Struggle'' (1978) Solomonic
* ''Dubd'sco vol.1'' (1978) Solomonic
* ''In I Father's House'' (1979) Solomonic
* ''Bunny Wailer Sings the Wailers'' (1980) Island/Solomonic
* ''Dubd'sco vol.2'' (1981) Solomonic
* ''Rock 'n' Groove'' (1981) Solomonic
* ''Tribute'' (1981) Solomonic
* ''Hook Line & Sinker'' (1982) Solomonic
* ''Roots Radics Rockers Reggae'' (1983) [[Shanachie Records|Shanachie]]
* ''Live!'' (1983) Solomonic
* ''Marketplace'' (1985) Solomonic
* ''Rootsman Skanking'' (1987) Shanachie (international re-release of ''Rock And Groove'' edited version plus 3 extra tracks)
* ''Rule Dance Hall'' (1987) Shanachie
* ''Liberation'' (1989) Shanachie
* ''Time Will Tell: A Tribute to Bob Marley'' (1990) Shanachie (international re-release of ''Tribute'' + 2 extra tracks)
* ''Gumption'' (1990) Shanachie
* ''The Never Ending Wailers'' (1991)
* ''Dance Massive'' (1992)
* ''Just Be Nice'' (1993) [[RAS Records|RAS]]
* ''Hall of Fame: A Tribute to Bob Marley's 50th Anniversary'' (1996) RAS
* ''Communication'' (2000) Solomonic/Tuff Gong
* ''World Peace'' (2003) Solomonic
* ''Rub A Dub'' (2007) Solomonic
* ''Cross Culture'' (2009) Solomonic
* ''Combinations Vol.1'' (2009) Solomonic
* ''Blackheart Man (Remastered & Extended)'' (2009) Solomonic
* ''Reincarnated Souls'' (2013), VP - 3CD + 2DVD set

Johnny Too Bad
Bunny Wailer Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Johnny was grown in a twisted broken down one room shack in-a the ghetto
The going was tough and the ditch of survival was getting steep in-a the ghetto

It was robbing and stabbing and
Looting and a shooting and its too bad
It was just robbing and stabbing and
And a shooting and its too bad

Johnny grew tough, and his task of survival was to plunder in-a the ghetto
Johnny never lost no fight and he never never stoop to conquer Johnny you too bad
You just a robbing and stabbing a
Looting and a shooting and you too bad, too bad
You just a robbing and stabbing
Looting and a shooting and you sad.

Now you walking down the road with a shotgun in your waist
Johnny you too bad.
Johnny was so smart that he never caught in a cop chase
Johnny you too bad.

Hey little wild one a beg you throw
Away you shot-gun Johnny you too bad.
What you gonna do when you hear
A voice say son, who you gonna run to.

You just a robbing and stabbing a looting and a shooting and you to bad, too bad
You just a robbing and stabbing looting and a shooting and you to sad. (rep.)

As smart as Johnny was strong he
Was tricked trapped cornered and
Shot down ina the ghetto
Now all Johnny left behind is a
Struggling woman and two sons.
In-a the ghetto.

You just a robbing and stabbing a looting and a shooting and you too bad, too bad
You just a robbing and stabbing a looting and a shooting you too
Poor Johnny, Johnny you too bad
Poor Johnny, Johnny you too sad
Poor Johnny, Johnny you too bad
Poor Johnny, Johnny you too sad.

Some say big bad Joh

Overall Meaning

ny is a cautionary tale of the consequences of a life of crime and violence. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of Johnny's upbringing in a dilapidated shack in the ghetto, where violence and crime were a way of life. As Johnny grows up, he becomes tougher and more skilled at surviving in this environment. He resorts to robbing, stabbing, looting, and shooting to get by, and becomes known as "too bad" because of his formidable reputation.

Despite his success in the criminal underworld, there is a sense of sadness and inevitability about Johnny's story. He is trapped in a cycle of violence and crime, and it ultimately leads to his downfall. The lyrics describe Johnny being "tricked trapped cornered and shot down in the ghetto", leaving behind a struggling woman and two sons. The final lines of the song express a sense of pity for Johnny's fate, with the repeated refrain of "Poor Johnny, Johnny you too bad, poor Johnny, Johnny you too sad."

Overall, Bunny Wailer's "Johnny Too Bad" is a powerful commentary on the destructive nature of violence and crime in impoverished communities. It is a cautionary tale that highlights the futility of resorting to violence and crime as a means of survival, and the tragic consequences that can result.

Line by Line Meaning

Johnny was grown in a twisted broken down one room shack in-a the ghetto
Johnny was born and raised in a small and dilapidated home in the ghetto.

The going was tough and the ditch of survival was getting steep in-a the ghetto
Life in the ghetto was harsh and it was becoming increasingly harder to survive.

It was robbing and stabbing and
The way to survive in the ghetto was through stealing and attacking people.

Looting and a shooting and its too bad
People in the ghetto were resorting to looting and shooting one another to survive, and it was unfortunate.

Johnny grew tough, and his task of survival was to plunder in-a the ghetto
Johnny had to become resilient in order to survive and resorted to stealing in the ghetto.

Johnny never lost no fight and he never never stoop to conquer Johnny you too bad
Johnny was never defeated in a fight and was determined not to stoop to conquer, which made him impressive in the eyes of his peers.

You just a robbing and stabbing a
You are simply stealing and attacking others.

Looting and a shooting and you too bad, too bad
Stealing and shooting others does not make you a good person.

Now you walking down the road with a shotgun in your waist
You are walking around with a weapon on you.

Johnny you too bad.
Johnny, you are impressive.

Johnny was so smart that he never caught in a cop chase
Johnny was intelligent enough not to get caught by the police.

Hey little wild one a beg you throw
I'm asking you to get rid of your weapon.

Away you shot-gun Johnny you too bad.
Johnny, even though you are impressive, it is not a good thing to walk around with a weapon.

What you gonna do when you hear
What will you do when you hear

A voice say son, who you gonna run to.
Someone asks you who you will run to for help.

As smart as Johnny was strong he
Although Johnny was intelligent and strong

Was tricked trapped cornered and
He was eventually deceived, trapped and cornered.

Shot down ina the ghetto
Johnny was killed in the ghetto.

Now all Johnny left behind is a
All Johnny left behind was

Struggling woman and two sons.
A woman who was struggling to make ends meet and two sons.

Poor Johnny, Johnny you too bad
Johnny, even though you were impressive, it is unfortunate that you had to resort to stealing and violence to survive.

Poor Johnny, Johnny you too sad
It is sad that Johnny's family has been left struggling after his death.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DERRICK CROOKS, HYLTON BECKFORD, TREVOR WILSON, WINSTON BAILEY

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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