Ziggy learned Rastafari faith from his parents and had access to some of the world's best reggae musicians in the comp band of his father ā the legendary reggae Wailers. Ziggy Marley first sat in on recording sessions with Bob Marley and the Wailers when he was around 10 years old. Joining with his three siblings to become The Melody Makers, Ziggy crafted his own soulful sound blending blues, RnB, hip-hop and roots reggae.
After their first two albums, Play The Game Right (1985) and Hey World! (1986), The Melody Makers earned their first Grammy (Best Reggae Recording) for Conscious Party (1988), an album produced by Talking Heads Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth which included the hit songs "Tomorrow People" and "Tumbling Down."
Subsequent albums included the Grammy-winning One Bright Day (1989), Jamekya (1991), Joy and Blues (1993), Free Like We Want 2 B (1995), their third Grammy winner Fallen is Babylon (1997), Spirit of Music (1999) and Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers Live, Vol 1 (2000), which featured some of their biggest hits as well as a cover of Bob Marley's "Could You Be Loved."
While selling records by the millions and selling out countless concerts with the Melody Makers, including a recent European tour, Ziggy Marley has never lost sight of his foundation of faith, fellowship and family.
After two decades as the driving creative force behind The Melody Makers, Ziggy stepped out on his own with his first solo album, Dragonfly (2003). Never content to rehash the success of his past, Ziggy uses Dragonfly to explore new ground and create his own distinctive musical identity as a solo artist.
"Working on my own gave me a chance to take my time and experiment a lot," Ziggy says of the material on Dragonfly." It took one year to finish this record. It's the longest I've ever worked on a album. It's different when you on your own. At some point it's scary and then at another it's a drive that makes you focus more."
Although the members of the most close-knit musical families often yearn to step out on their own, for Ziggy, a solo debut was not a long-awaited goal. "It's not something that I wished for since I began doing music," he says. "It was just the circumstances, and I wanted to be true to myself and what I feel. The record has strong messages and it feels good."
In addition to being Ziggy's first album of solo material, for Dragonfly he felt it was time for a change of scene. "Usually we record in Kingston. These songs were written in Jamaica and recorded in America. I did the first set of recordings in a house in Miami and then went to L.A. rented a house, set up my equipment and basically did the rest there. I left Jamaica for a while, because as an artist I need to experience different things, to see the world and have different energies. Living in one place is not good for me and I was tired of making music in a studio setting. I wanted it to be more like everyday life a part of me.
"As an individual, I've opened up more by traveling outside Jamaica, and I've been more able to be open to people and ideas. It helps me to grow as a person to be outside of my element; to be on my own in a strange place meeting people. That's good for me not to be in my secure domain."
The evidence of that growth is everywhere on Dragonfly.
On July 2nd, 2006, Ziggy released his second album, Love is My Religion. He states "This album is from my heart," and he feels that he embraces his spiritual and emotional side of life. This album show Ziggy coming into his own as an artist, as he wrote all of the songs for the album and played nearly all of the instruments.
Love is My Religion is a testament to Ziggy Marley's talent as he follows in the footsteps of his father, the Legend.
Keep My Faith
Ziggy Marley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They trying to change us too
I might be going crazy
What am I to do
Keep my faith
Walls crumble around me
What could I do
When you took my rights
Keep my faith
Like forty days and forty nights
In this wilderness of life
I am tempted
Frustration stirs up strife
Oh no no
Keep my faith
Circle around the sun
The signs are in the skies
The day will come
After the night
Mama say
Keep my faith, what you gonna do
Daddy say Lord
Keep my faith
Jah Jah say now
Keep my faith
People say
Keep my faith
Nothing they can do
Keep my faith
I even could be blue
I keep my faith
Could be down in the trenches
Could be down in the trenches
Keep my faith
Could down on my last breath
keep my faith
One more thing Jim
Walls crumble around me
I am not surprised
There's nothing I could do
When they took my rights but
What you say
Keep my faith
Jah Jah, Keep my faith
What you gonna do
Jah I Keep my faith
I'll Keep my faith
What you gonna do
Keep my faith
In Ziggy Marley's song Keep My Faith, he addresses the changing world and the struggle to hold onto one's beliefs and values. He begins by acknowledging the changes happening around him and the pressure to conform to these changes. He expresses his own feelings of uncertainty and confusion, struggling with the question of what he should do. However, in the chorus, he emphasizes the importance of keeping his faith, even in the midst of uncertainty and chaos.
Marley then goes on to talk about the various challenges that he faces in life - walls crumbling around him, his rights being taken away, and enduring the hardships of life for forty days and forty nights. He speaks of being tempted and the frustration that arises from it. However, he continues to hold onto his faith as a source of strength and hope.
In the following verses, Marley draws inspiration from the signs in the skies and the promise of a new day after the darkness of the night. He also mentions the wise words of his parents and the encouragement of Jah, urging him to keep his faith even when things seem bleak.
Overall, this song is a powerful message of encouragement and hope in the face of adversity. It emphasizes the importance of holding onto one's beliefs and values, even when it seems like everything is falling apart.
Line by Line Meaning
Worlds all changing
The world is constantly changing.
They trying to change us too
Others are trying to change us too.
I might be going crazy
I feel like I might be losing my mind with all these changes and pressures.
What am I to do
I don't know how to handle it.
Keep my faith
I will hold on to my beliefs and not let these changes bring me down.
Walls crumble around me
Things are falling apart around me.
I'm not surprised
But I am not shocked by it happening.
What could I do
I feel powerless to stop it.
When you took my rights
When someone took away my rights and freedoms.
Like forty days and forty nights
Like in the biblical story of Jesus in the wilderness.
In this wilderness of life
This difficult and confusing journey we call life.
I am tempted
I am faced with temptations and pressures.
Frustration stirs up strife
This frustration is causing conflict and tension in my life.
Circle around the sun
The earth's movement around the sun.
The signs are in the skies
There are signs and omens in the skies that point to future events.
The day will come
The future is coming, no matter what happens.
After the night
After the difficulties and darkness, there will be a new day.
Mama say
Keep my faith, what you gonna do
Daddy say Lord
Keep my faith
Jah Jah say now
Keep my faith
People say
Keep my faith
Nothing they can do
Keep my faith
My family, friends, and faith tell me to keep believing and hold onto my faith, even when things are tough.
I even could be blue
I keep my faith
Could be down in the trenches
Could be down in the trenches
Keep my faith
Could down on my last breath
keep my faith
Even if I am feeling depressed, hopeless, or near death, I will still hold onto my faith.
One more thing Jim
An interjection used to introduce a new thought or idea.
Walls crumble around me
I am not surprised
There's nothing I could do
When they took my rights but
What you say
Keep my faith
Jah Jah, Keep my faith
What you gonna do
Jah I Keep my faith
I'll Keep my faith
What you gonna do
Keep my faith
Despite everything that is happening, I will still hold onto my faith and ask for help and strength from higher powers.
Lyrics Ā© Regard Music, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: DAVID MARLEY, ZIGGY MARLEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Christian Herzog
20 years went by since this album was out! 1999-2019 keep my faith šš§š·
goldenageindigo
This album is perfection ššā¤ļøš»šš„„š
Zach Kopka. Zake
How did you discover the album?
Blindman Music
Indeed!!
goldenageindigo
@Zach Kopka. Zake just endless reggae roots and marley playlists but mainly from the song off this album called~One Good Spliff~ ššššš
PeekaPeep
My dad turned me on to Ziggy and his sibling group (Melody Makers) with the 'Conscious Party' album back when I was a wee youngin'. But 'Spirit Of Music' was the one that made me a lifelong fan of him especially! It was so roots-oriented and stripped down in terms of production, had to play the whole CD several times over just to make sure my ears weren't deceiving me (lol). Most of my favorite Ziggy songs are on this one as well as some of younger brother Stephen's best vocal performances to boot. Over 20 years later and it still stands out from the rest of their music catalog, I'll never tire of it!
šš
Allen Taggart
Perfect album to grow move forward with in new Avenues of life and not on sour feelings but quiet the opposite
Pokinho Nicolas
Wow I remember when my dad bought this albumn, at first I didn like it, this song in particular however gradually I started to pick up on the rhythm and the melodies of all these instruments, by the time Christmas came up back in December of 1999, man I had the whole album recorded on a cassette tape and I listen to this song, first song on the albumn as I walk to school. Iām talking 1999 and the 2000 here
Glenn Moynihan
sweet swweeet sound brother :)
Anel Montes de Oca
super ziggy