Early music and with the Wailers
Tosh was born in Westmoreland, the westernmost parish of Jamaica. He was abandoned by his parents and "shuffled among relatives". When McIntosh was fifteen, his aunt died and he moved to Trenchtown in Kingston, Jamaica. He first learned guitar after watching a man in the country play a song that captivated him. He watched the man play the same song for half a day, memorizing everything his fingers were doing. He then picked up the guitar and played the song back to the man. The man then asked McIntosh who had taught him to play; McIntosh told him that he had. During the early 1960s, as an aspiring musician, Tosh went to vocal teacher Joe Higgs, who gave free music lessons to young people. Through his contact with Higgs, Tosh met Robert Nesta Marley (Bob Marley) and Neville O'Reilly Livingston (Bunny Wailer). He then changed his name to Peter Tosh and the trio started singing together in 1962. Higgs taught the trio to harmonise and while developing their music, they would often play on the street corners of Trenchtown.
In 1964 Tosh helped organise the band the Wailing Wailers, with Junior Braithwaite, a falsetto singer, and backup singers Beverley Kelso and Cherry Smith. Initially, Tosh was the only one in the group who could play musical instruments. According to Bunny Wailer, Tosh was critical to the band because he was a self-taught guitarist and keyboardist, and thus became an inspiration for the other band members to learn to play. The Wailing Wailers had a major ska hit with their first single, "Simmer Down", and recorded several more successful singles before Braithwaite, Kelso and Smith left the band in late 1965. Marley spent much of 1966 in Delaware in the United States with his mother, Cedella (née Malcolm) Marley-Booker, and for a brief time was working at a nearby Chrysler factory. He returned to Jamaica in early 1967 with a renewed interest in music and a new spirituality. Tosh and Bunny were already Rastafarians when Marley returned from the US, and the three became very involved with the Rastafari faith. Soon afterwards, they renamed the musical group the Wailers. Tosh would explain later that they chose the name Wailers because to "wail" means to mourn or to, as he put it, "...express one's feelings vocally". He also claims that he was the beginning of the group, and that it was he who first taught Bob Marley the guitar. Also according to Bunny Wailer, the early Wailers learned to play instruments from Tosh.
During the mid-1960s Tosh, along with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, were introduced to Danny Sims and Johnny Nash who signed the three artists to an exclusive recording contract on Sims' and Nash's JAD Records label as well as an exclusive publishing agreement through Sims' music publishing company, Cayman Music. Rejecting the up-tempo dance of ska, the band slowed their music to a rocksteady pace, and infused their lyrics with political and social messages inspired by their new-found faith. The Wailers composed several songs for the American-born singer Nash before teaming with producer Lee "Scratch" Perry to record some of the earliest well-known reggae songs, including "Soul Rebel", "Duppy Conqueror", and "Small Axe". The collaboration had given birth to reggae music and in 1970 bassist Aston "Family Man" Barrett and his brother, drummer Carlton Barrett, joined the group. They recorded the album The Best of The Wailers, which was produced by Leslie Kong and released in 1971.[citation needed]
In 1972, Danny Sims assigned the balance of the JAD Records recording contract with the band to Chris Blackwell and Island Records company and released their debut, Catch a Fire, in 1973, following it with Burnin' the same year. The Wailers had moved from many producers after 1970 and there were instances where producers would record rehearsal sessions that Tosh did and release them in England under the name "Peter Touch".
In 1973, Tosh was driving home with his girlfriend Evonne when his car was hit by another car driving on the wrong side of the road. The accident killed Evonne and severely fractured Tosh's skull. After Island Records president Chris Blackwell refused to issue his solo album in 1974, Tosh and Bunny Wailer left the Wailers, citing the unfair treatment they received from Blackwell, to whom Tosh often referred with a derogatory play on Blackwell's surname, 'Whiteworst'. Tosh had written many of the Wailers' hit songs such as "Get Up, Stand Up", "400 Years", and "No Sympathy". Tosh began recording and released his solo debut, Legalize It, in 1976 with CBS Records company, and Treasure Isle. The title track soon became popular among endorsers of cannabis legalization, reggae music lovers and Rastafari all over the world, and was a favourite at Tosh's concerts.
That was his last album from the Wailers, Island Records. In 2013, a book co-written by French scholar Dr Jeremie Kroubo Dagnini and American Lee Jaffe, his former associate, says Tosh was part of a smuggling operation that raised money to fund this album.
Solo career
Tosh started to make his own albums with Rolling Stones Records and CBS Records Equal Rights followed in 1977, featuring his recording of a song co-written with Marley, "Get Up, Stand Up", and a cover of "Stepping Razor" that would also appear on the soundtrack to the film Rockers.
Tosh organised a backing band, Word, Sound and Power, who were to accompany him on tour for the next few years, and many of whom performed on his albums of this period. In 1978, the Rolling Stones record label Rolling Stones Records contracted with Tosh, on which the album Bush Doctor was released, introducing Tosh to a larger audience. The album featured Rolling Stones frontmen Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, and the lead single – a cover version of The Temptations song "Don't Look Back" – was performed as a duet with Jagger.
During Bob Marley's free One Love Peace Concert of 1978, Tosh lit a marijuana spliff and lectured about legalising cannabis, lambasting attending dignitaries Michael Manley and Edward Seaga for their failure to enact such legislation. Several months later he was apprehended by police as he left Skateland dance hall in Kingston and was beaten severely while in police custody.
Mystic Man (1979), and Wanted Dread and Alive (1981) followed, both released on Rolling Stones Records. Tosh tried to gain some mainstream success while keeping his militant views, but was only moderately successful, especially when compared to Marley's achievements.
In 1984, after the release of 1983's album Mama Africa, Tosh went into self-imposed exile, seeking the spiritual advice of traditional medicine men in Africa, and trying to free himself from recording agreements that distributed his records in South Africa. Tosh had been at odds for several years with his label, EMI, over a perceived lack of promotion for his music.
Tosh also participated in the international opposition to South African apartheid by appearing at anti-apartheid concerts and by conveying his opinion in various songs like "Apartheid" (1977, re-recorded 1987), "Equal Rights" (1977), "Fight On" (1979), and "Not Gonna Give It Up" (1983). In 1987, Peter Tosh seemed to be having a career revival. He was awarded a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Performance in 1987 for No Nuclear War, his last record.
Death
On 11 September 1987, just after Tosh had returned to his home in Jamaica, a three-man gang came to his house on motorcycles demanding money. Tosh replied that he did not have any with him but the gang did not believe him. They stayed at his residence for several hours and tortured Tosh in an attempt to extort money from him. Over the hours, as various associates of Tosh arrived to visit him, they were also taken hostage by the gunmen. The gunmen became more and more frustrated, especially the chief thug, Dennis "Leppo" Lobban, a man whom Tosh had previously befriended and tried to help find work after a long jail sentence. Tosh said he did not have any money in the house, after which Lobban and the fellow gunmen began opening fire in a reckless manner. Tosh was shot twice in the head and killed. Herbalist Wilton "Doc" Brown and disc jockey Jeff 'Free I' Dixon also died as a result of wounds sustained during the robbery. Several others in the house were wounded, including Tosh's common law wife Andrea Marlene Brown, Free I's wife Yvonne ("Joy"); Tosh's drummer Carlton "Santa" Davis, and musician Michael Robinson.
According to Police Commissioner Herman Ricketts, Dennis "Leppo" Lobban surrendered and two other men were interrogated but not publicly named. Lobban went on to plead innocent during his trial, telling the court he had been drinking with friends. The trial was held in a closed court due to the involvement of illegal firearms. Lobban was ultimately found guilty by a jury of eight women and four men and sentenced to death by hanging. His sentence was commuted in 1995 and Lobban remains in jail. Another suspect was acquitted due to insufficient evidence. The other two gunmen were never identified by name.
Discography
Legalize It (1976)
Equal Rights (1977)
Bush Doctor (1978)
Mystic Man (1979)
Wanted Dread & Alive (1981)
Mama Africa (1983)
No Nuclear War (1987)
One Love
Peter Tosh Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let's get together and feel all right
Hear the children crying (One love)
Hear the children crying (One heart)
Sayin', "Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right."
Sayin', "Let's get together and feel all right."
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa
There is one question I'd really love to ask (One heart)
Is there a place for the hopeless sinner
Who has hurt all mankind just to save his own?
Believe me
One love, one heart
Let's get together and feel all right
As it was in the beginning (One love)
So shall it be in the end (One heart)
Alright, "Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right."
"Let's get together and feel all right."
One more thing
Let's get together to fight this Holy Armageddon (One love)
So when the Man comes there will be no, no doom (One song)
Have pity on those whose chances grow thinner
There ain't no hiding place from the Father of Creation
Sayin', "One love, one heart
Let's get together and feel all right."
I'm pleading to mankind (One love)
Oh, Lord (One heart) Whoa.
"Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right."
Let's get together and feel all right.
"Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right."
Let's get together and feel all right.
Peter Tosh's song "One Love/People Get Ready" is a call to action for unity and love among all people, regardless of differences. The lyrics tell a story of the current state of the world, with children crying and people passing dirty remarks, but the answer to this is to come together and feel all right. Tosh explores the idea that there is a place for even the hopeless sinner who has hurt others to save themselves, but it starts with coming together in love and unity. The song ends with a plea to fight for a better world and to have pity on those who are struggling against the Father of Creation.
The lyrics to "One Love/People Get Ready" are a powerful message of hope, love, and unity for all people. Tosh was known for his activism and was a strong advocate for social justice, and this song is a reflection of that. Through the lyrics, Tosh is urging people to come together and create a better world, one where everyone can feel all right. The song became an anthem for both the civil rights movement and the reggae movement, and it still resonates with audiences today.
Line by Line Meaning
One love, one heart
We should all strive for unity and love.
Let's get together and feel all right
We should come together to create positive change and feel good.
Hear the children crying (One love)
We need to listen to the cries of the children and work towards a better future for them.
Hear the children crying (One heart)
We need to have compassion and empathy for those who are suffering.
Sayin', "Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right."
Expressing gratitude and recognizing a higher power can bring inner peace and happiness.
Sayin', "Let's get together and feel all right."
Coming together can create a sense of unity and positivity.
Let them all pass all their dirty remarks (One love)
We should not let negativity and hate bring us down.
There is one question I'd really love to ask (One heart)
The question is how we can create a more compassionate and equitable society.
Is there a place for the hopeless sinner
Who has hurt all mankind just to save his own?
Even those who may have caused harm should be given the chance to redeem themselves and find a place in society.
Believe me
The idea presented is important and should be taken seriously.
As it was in the beginning (One love)
So shall it be in the end (One heart)
We should strive for a world of love and unity, as it was meant to be.
One more thing
There is another important point to be made.
Let's get together to fight this Holy Armageddon (One love)
We must come together to fight against the impending catastrophic event.
So when the Man comes there will be no, no doom (One song)
If we work together, we can prevent the disastrous consequences of inaction.
Have pity on those whose chances grow thinner
We should be sympathetic to those who are struggling and may have fewer opportunities.
There ain't no hiding place from the Father of Creation
We can't escape our actions and must take responsibility for them.
I'm pleading to mankind (One love)
The artist is asking for humanity to come together and create positive change.
Oh, Lord (One heart) Whoa.
The singer is calling on a higher power to guide us.
"Give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel all right."
"Let's get together and feel all right."
Reiterating the importance of gratitude and unity.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BOB MARLEY, NEVILLE ORIL LIVINGSTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Frank Lesko
Brilliant, raw, gutsy, transcendent. One of the best concert performances ever!
Remmy Kangwa
This was Peter Tosh's most militant, fearless and powerful performance, starting from the playlist right up to the speeches. He really was not pulling any punches with the message which was equal rights & justice, black dignity & upliftment, and of course legalization of the herb. And what better audience than the "Crime" Minister himself, the leader of the opposition and the other leaders of Jamaica? In my honest opinion, this performance had and will always have more historical significance than Bob Marley's joining the hands of the two leaders, because Peter's was fearless and enduring truth! RIP
Jean Clarke
Totally agree. Bless
King Saint
One zillion percent
Jomo Tekena Ekpebu
A great artist at his militant best. Using music as a weapon to wipe away transgressions, uplift the slumbering mentalities, and speaking truth to power - literally! What A Man...What An Artist...
justin holl
One of the best concert albums of all time! Peter Tosh especially but the entire band are just on fire!
Jean Clarke
Did you notice how Sly used the drums to applaud?
Sievu Nyungwe
The militant fearless Peter Tosh, much respect. This remains the greatest live performance and speech he gave. Rest in power Rasta. Your music lives on.
Rede Rádio Reggae Oficial
Esse, foi um dos maiores é melhores artistas do reggae mundial. Era, o casca grossa é problemático, é o cara das maiores confusões do mundo do reggae. Também, foi muito injustiçado no meio do reggae, até hoje. Curto, muito o trabalho, dele. Luiz Carlos Brandão, radialista é jornalista - Paraíba - Brasil.
Violet Brown
Best concert in the world 🌎 😍 🙌 ✨️ 🙏RIP my brother 🙏