EXCLUSIVE: They may be the biggest reggae band, but Bob Marley’s former bandmates, The Wailers, struggled financially following his death in 1981
Bob Marley and his bandmates, The Wailers, might have had it all, but after his death, they were left struggling. The band formed in 1963 after musician Peter Tosh met Marley and Bunny Wailer, and the three honed their craft.
Several years later, Aston ‘Family Man’ Barrett joined the band on bass. They went on to sign with Island Records and instantly became one of the best-known bands of their time, achieving chart success in March 1978 with their tenth record, Kaya, charting at Number Five in Australia and Number 4 in the UK.
But surprisingly, the band never had a UK Number 1 but racked up multiple Top 10’s, including Could You Be Loved and their highest-charting single, One Love, re-released in 1984. And while the band have generated over 25 million album sales and racked up a reported $200 million in gross revenue, much of this went to their label.
Nine years after being diagnosed with a type of skin cancer, Marley tragically died on May 11, 1981, aged just 38, after his cancer spread to his lungs and brain, despite eight months of alternative treatment failing to work.
Aston Barrett JR, who stepped into his father’s footsteps in the band in 2016, told the Mirror: “Many of The Wailers members, when Bob was alive, they were good money-wise.
“When Bob died, a lot of them lost a lot of money.” But despite the struggles, Aston Jr says that the true message of The Wailers “never dies” – adding that the band will continue to learn from their mistakes.
“I feel honoured,” Aston told me. He added: “My father paved the way for me, and I was privileged enough to tour with my dad. I’ve been touring with my father since 2009 until they retired in 2016, and then when he retired, he showed me and gave me the formula, not only to spread the music, but also to teach it. Yeah, and that’s what we’re able to teach the band members, the true sound of The Wailers and carry on this message.”
Speaking at Rock in Rio Lisboa moments after their set to thousands of fans, Aston said that the message of The Wailers is still as strong, 50 years later. “We can’t use power to control people,” he said, adding: “When you use power to control people and to gain money, when you die, you can’t take the money.”
And it’s fair to say that despite being the son of musical royalty, Aston has remained humble throughout his life. Instead of being able to boast that he’s met some of the most famous people, he keeps himself to himself.
In 2017, Aston Jr won a Grammy after working with Damien Marley, the youngest son of Bob, after co-producing the track The Struggle Discontinues from his album Stony Hill, which took home the Best Reggae album at the awards. “It was one of my favourite songs on the album,” said Aston Jr.
Although he may have a Grammy for the track, Aston made it clear that it wasn’t just his work, it was that of a team. “When we come together, we make magic,” he said of working with Damien. “When you have a legacy, sometimes it can be a lot that people expect it to be a certain way,” he said of carrying The Wailers’ name.
Aston went on to add: “Sometimes it’s people telling you what [to do], how you’re supposed to live. But being the son of Family Man does come with some setbacks, Aston revealed.
He said: “People used to say, ‘How in the world do you have two kids?’ I’m like, why is that a problem? No, but your father’s Family Man. I said, so you want me to go through the same stress that he had with so many, with so many women, and so many children?”
Family Man famously had 41 children – 23 daughters and 18 sons. But the exact number of different women he had children with is not publicly documented.
However, despite having 40 siblings, Aston Jr admits it’s “amazing” that his older sisters were close with one another. However, there are some relatives he’s not so close with – including on both his paternal and maternal sides of his family.
Growing up, Family Man gave his son simple mottos to live by: “Peace, love, and unity to live, to live this world,” he said, adding: “And my mother is such a huge impact on me in my life, so when I do things, I do it for man and woman.
“It’s a balance, and it’s called respect. If you want a man to respect a woman, the woman has to respect the man, and vice versa, the man has to respect the woman, and that’s how it comes together.”
And despite Aston’s father having more children while married to his mother, Angela Barrett, she made it clear that their children should respect the Wailers’ legend.
“My father has so many kids, even after me, and he’s married to my mom, right? And guess what, my mother said he’s still your father, and you must respect him,” he said.
Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: mirror.co.uk
