- … Read Full Bio ↴There are or have been - at least - two bands named The Wailers:
- The legendary Jamaican reggae band (founded as a ska group 1963, and became a Rastafarian reggae band in 1968), renamed Bob Marley & The Wailers in 1974, which are still active led by bassist Aston Barrett after Marley's death in 1981.
- The Fabulous Wailers, a rock and roll and garage band from the USA, active 1958-1969, first led by John Greek, replaced in 1960 by Rockin' Robin Roberts.
1) Bob Marley & The Wailers have together sold in excess of 255 million albums worldwide. Since they are extraordinary popular also in poor countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America with big markets for pirate copies the total amounts of albums sold has been estimated to over 1 billion. In England alone, they've notched up over 20 chart hits, including seven Top 10 entries. In USA on the other hand, Bob Marley & The Wailers reached superstar status only after Marley's death, with the album Legend , focusing on the person Bob Marley but not on the band. Outside of their groundbreaking work with Marley, the Wailers have also played or performed with international acts like Sting, the Fugees, Stevie Wonder, Carlos Santana, and Alpha Blondy, as well as reggae legends such as Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, and Burning Spear. As the greatest living exponents of Jamaica's reggae tradition, the Wailers have completed innumerable other tours, playing to an estimated 24 million people across the globe. They have also been the first reggae band to tour new territories on many occasions, including Africa and the Far East.
Their nucleus formed in 1969, when the vocalist group "The Wailers" (formed 1963 by Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, and Peter Tosh) requited the talented Barrett brothers: bassist Aston "Family Man" and drummer Carlton (writer of well-known Marley songs like "War" and "Talking Blues", 'sound-maker' of more Marley songs, developer of the one drop style in reggae music) played on hits such as Lively Up Yourself, Trenchtown Rock, Duppy Conqueror, and many more besides. Inspired by Rastafari and their ambitions of reaching an international audience, this is the line-up that pioneered roots rock reggae, and signed to Island Records in 1971. Bunny and Peter left two years later. It was at this point that the in-demand Barrett brothers - whose rhythms also underpinned innumerable seventies' reggae hits by other acts - assumed the title of Wailers, and backed Marley on the group's international breakthrough album, Natty Dread. Under Family Man's musical leadership, they then partnered Bob Marley on the succession of hit singles and albums that made him a global icon, winner of several Lifetime Achievement awards, and Jamaica's best-loved musical superstar.
Drummer Carlton "Carlie" Barrett was murdered 1987, leaving his brother as the main beneficiary of the Wailers' mantle. Subsequent line-ups have revolved around Family Man, who is widely regarded as one of the world's greatest bass players. Modest and unassuming, he was present on all of those unforgettable performances by Bob Marley & The Wailers from the seventies. Family Man continues to be the main axis of the current Wailers - a group that's one of the last, great reggae institutions, yet which refuses to live off past glories. That's because Family Man represents tried and trusted roots authenticity and, along with the Wailers, injects fresh excitement into a show that continues to attract enthusiastic audiences from around the world.
2) The Fabulous Wailers were an American rock band from Tacoma, Washington. Formed around 1958, they are often considered the first garage rock group. They performed a hybrid of saxophone-driven rhythm and blues and Chuck Berry rock and roll.
Five 45s (four released in 1959, including Tall Cool One, and one in 1960) and an LP release, The Fabulous Wailers (released December 1959 on Golden Crest Records), put the Wailers on the national scene. Their 1961 cover of Louie Louie, which they recorded as a backing band for singer Rockin' Roberts, was the first to use the trademark 1-2-3, 1-2, 1-2-3 riff. Their version inspired other groups from the Seattle area, most notably the The Kingsmen of Portland, Oregon, to record the same song. The Fabulous Wailers' influence established the Pacific Northwest area as a center for musical innovation and the home of a long string of regional favorites playing a kind of raunchy, amateur, yet passionate, form of rock and roll, such as The Sonics, with whom they exchanged various band members and who recorded on The Wailers own Etiquette Records label.
They became popular around the United States Pacific Northwest around the late 1950s and the start of the 1960s, performing saxophone-driven R&B and Chuck Berry rock and roll. Their biggest hit was "Tall Cool One", first released in 1959, and they have been credited as being "one of the very first, if not the first, of the American garage bands."
The group was formed – originally as The Nitecaps – in 1958, by five high school friends:
John Greek (27 October 1940 – 6 October 2006) – rhythm guitar, trumpet
Richard Dangel (1 December 1942 – 2 December 2002) – lead guitar
Kent Morrill (2 April 1941 – 15 April 2011) – keyboards, vocals
Mark Marush (15 August 1940 – 9 August 2007) – tenor sax
Mike Burk (b. 1942) – drums
In late 1958, the group recorded a demo of an instrumental written by Dangel, Morrill and Greek, which found its way to Clark Galehouse of New York based Golden Crest Records. He liked the track and had it re-recorded by the band in Lakewood in February 1959; its title "Tall Cool One" was apparently suggested by Morrill's mother. Released as a single, it reached # 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 and # 24 on the R&B chart. The band made the cross-country trip to New York to record an LP, The Fabulous Wailers, which was released in December 1959 and featured two vocals by Morrill as well as instrumentals. They also appeared on Dick Clark's nationally televised American Bandstand, and toured the east coast. A second instrumental from their first recording session, "Mau-Mau", made # 68 on the Billboard pop chart, but their third single, "Wailin'", failed to make the chart.
The band decided to return to the Northwest, rather than staying in New York as their record label wished, and they were dropped from their contract. Around the same time, they added lead vocalist "Rockin' Robin" Roberts (Lawrence Fewell Roberts II), a charismatic frontman who had previously been the singer with rival Tacoma band the Bluenotes. John Greek left the group in acrimonious circumstances, and was replaced by bassist John "Buck" Ormsby (Seattle, October 29, 1941 - October 29, 2016). Ormsby, Morrill and Roberts then formed Etiquette Records and, in 1961, the label released its first single, a cover version of Richard Berry's "Louie Louie". For contractual reasons the single was credited to Roberts, but was performed by the whole band. Their recording became a local hit and was distributed nationally by Imperial Records, but did not make the national chart. However, its style, with its trademark 1-2-3, 1-2, 1-2-3 riff, inspired other groups from the Seattle area, most notably the Kingsmen of Portland, Oregon, to record the same song.
The Wailers continued to perform locally and, according to Morrill, one of their biggest fans was the young Jimi Hendrix, then starting to perform guitar. The band performed both with and without Roberts, who studied at the University of Washington, the University of Puget Sound, and Oregon State University, eventually achieving a masters degree in biochemistry. They also occasionally featured teenage girl singer Gail Harris, notably on the live album The Fabulous Wailers at the Castle, recorded in 1961, which has been described as "undoubtedly one of the most influential albums in Seattle rock & roll history." In all, the band recorded and released four albums on their own Etiquette label between 1962 and 1966, as well as a succession of singles. They also helped instigate the recording career of The Sonics, whose first two albums were issued by the label, and helped begin Jini Dellaccio's career as a rock'n'roll photographer when they hired her to shoot cover photos for their album Wailers, Wailers, Everywhere.
Mark Marush left The Wailers in 1962 and was replaced by Ron Gardner, who also handled lead vocals; Dangel and Burk left in 1964 and were replaced by guitarist Neil Andersson and drummer Dave Roland respectively. Continuing to perform live as well as recording, the band added a trio of girl backing singers, known as the Marshans. Also in 1964, "Tall Cool One" was re-promoted by the Golden Crest label, and again made the Billboard pop chart, this time peaking at # 38. In 1965 Roberts made his final recordings with the group, and, in 1967, guitarist Neil Andersson was replaced by Denny Weaver. Roberts was killed, aged 27, in a car crash in late 1967.
The band split up in 1969, by which time Kent Morrill was the only remaining original member. Morrill, Dangel and Ormsby, with other musicians, reunited as The Wailers for occasional concerts from the 1970s onwards. In 1979, they joined with Burk, Gardner, and Gail Harris to play a reunion show.
Later activities
Ormsby re-established the Etiquette label in the mid-1980s, and issued a Wailers compilation, The Boys from Tacoma, in 1993. The Wailers' song, "Out of Our Tree", was featured in the 1998 CD version of the Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era collection. Several of the Wailers' tunes were also covered by The Ventures, and the two bands released an album together, Two Car Garage, in 2009 to celebrate their 50 years in existence.
Ron Gardner died in 1992. Richard Dangel died of an aneurysm in 2002. John Greek died in 2006, Mark Marush in 2007, and Kent Morrill died of cancer on 15 April 2011. Buck Ormsby died in 2016.
Can
The Wailers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What you're doing to me, girl
I am bound
Won't you set me free (set me free)
Told me you loved me
Try to break my heart
You do such a trick girl
You gotta a heart
That be made of stone
A pity you don't know, while your fresh were grown
Can't you see
What you're doing to me
I say girl
I am bound
Won't you set me free (set me free)
Let you jerk on my heart
And you shatter my brain
If you have conscience
Ain't that a shame
Told me you loved me
Try to break my heart
You do such a trick girl
You gotta be smart
Can't you see
What you're doing to me, girl
I say girl
I am bound
Won't you set me free
Set me free
Can't you see
What you're doing to me, girl
I am bound
Baby won't you set me free (set me free)
Let you dream on my heart
And you shatter my brain
If you have conscience
Ain't that a shame
Told me you loved me
Try to break my heart
You do such a trick girl
You gotta be smart
Can't you see
What you're doing to me, girl
I am bound
Won't you set me free
In the Wailers' song "Can't You See," the singer is pleading with his beloved to release him from the emotional bonds that hold him captive. He accuses her of toying with his heart, claiming that she has a heart of stone. He laments that she does not seem to understand the impact her actions are having on him, as if she is oblivious to his pain. Despite her promise of love, he feels that she is trying to break his heart, and he implores her to set him free. It is a classic love song, but with a sense of desperation that makes it resonate deeply.
The lyrics suggest one possible interpretation – that the singer has been manipulated by his lover and is asking for freedom. However, it is possible to interpret the song differently: it could be seen as a metaphor for addiction. In this interpretation, the singer is asking for help to break free of drugs, which have taken hold of him. While his lover may have promised to love and support him, he realizes that her actions are feeding his addiction and he needs to escape to break free.
Interestingly, the song was recorded twice by the Wailers. The first version was recorded in 1966, when the band was still known as The Wailing Wailers, and it features a slower, more soulful tempo. The second version, released in 1971, was recorded with the full band and features a faster, more upbeat reggae groove. This second recording is the one that is typically played on the radio today.
Line by Line Meaning
Can't you see
Do you not realize or understand
What you're doing to me, girl
The negative effect of your actions on me
I am bound
Feeling trapped or limited
Won't you set me free (set me free)
To be allowed to be free from something that is restraining
Told me you loved me
Expressed love for me
Try to break my heart
Attempted to cause pain and heartbreak
You do such a trick girl
Trickery or manipulation used to hurt or control
You gotta be smart
It takes cunning and intelligence to pull off such behavior
You gotta a heart
Having a heart, however it may be malicious or unloving
That be made of stone
Unfeeling, unempathetic, and harsh
A pity you don't know, while your fresh were grown
It's a shame you didn't learn empathy and love while you were young
Let you jerk on my heart
Allowing someone to emotionally hurt and manipulate
And you shatter my brain
Emotionally damaging and destructive behavior towards me
If you have conscience
Appealing to the idea of having morals or empathy
Ain't that a shame
It's unfortunate and regrettable
Baby won't you set me free (set me free)
Asks to be freed from the negative and harmful behavior
Let you dream on my heart
Letting someone lead you on and encourage false hope
If you have conscience
Appealing to the idea of having morals or empathy
Ain't that a shame
It's unfortunate and regrettable
Can't you see
Do you not realize or understand
What you're doing to me, girl
The negative effect of your actions on me
I am bound
Feeling trapped or limited
Won't you set me free
To be allowed to be free from something that is restraining
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Toy Caldwell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@natdigga3879
One of my fav wailers songs. Definitely under rated.
@musarerosinepoetry8882
PETER TOSH & BOB MARLEY GREAT VOICES💖
@greggalant7543
Peter was right to leave Bob, he was so talented that he would not be able to give us all those albums he produced. He and bunny were stars in there own right. Bob was Mega as everyone saw later, but they all sharpened each other. They gave us music that will NEVER be repeated or challenged. Even Ziggy and the rest have no chance of replicating such standards. Once in a life time talent
@lubabalomahlombe451
Thank you for saying that brother. The man did not have such a phenomenal voice just to be a back up singer. Not to mention that he wrote a lot of those revolutionary songs that made Bob a superstar.
@MKG021
🇬🇷The Wailers !!!
@keepingitvillarreal6621
The greatest ever
@kwakukyei792
Blessed
@psst...heyyou6508
Peter Tosh!!! The toughest!! 💪🤨🔊🎶♥️
@PrescilliaBebiScaredofTheMoon
C'est le meilleur titre de Peter Tosh !!!!! C'est du rock steady mais pour moi, ça c'est du Rock'N'Roll !!!!!!!!!!
@leowarner8813
Wailing wailers When they were united Peter, bunny and bob