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REDEMPTION SONG
Redemption song was written by Bob Marley in which it was one of the most influential

songs of all time. The song was released in October in 1980 as a single from the album Uprising.

According to the title it deals with redemption, freedom and total emancipation. The song

represents surreal yet powerful images reminiscent of Bob Dylan’s mid 60s work. Marley calls up

the history of slavery in the first verse with talk of pirates and the merchant ships (Stephen, P32).

According to the lyrics of the song they were inspired by a famous speech that was titled as “The

work that has been Done” which was given by the legendary Jamaican activist and pan leader

Marcus gravy in nova scotia in Canada in 1937. Bob Marley sings about the need to emancipate

oneself from mental slavery, further he says that it is only us who have the power to free our minds

from being mentally enslaved (Stephen, P45).

Redemption song was magnificently composed to relate the oppression and the deliverance

of African slaves who were brought from Africa to Jamaica. Marley initiates the song on a delicate

level by describing the obliteration of the African people by slavery. For instance, from stanza one

to four it portrays the appalling technique used to take Africans from their homeland to toil for

others. Further, from stanza 5-8, they illustrate how the authority was given to the slaves by God.

As a result through His hand, the present generation has been capable of moving onward and

prospering.

The song maintains an optimistic tone in which Bob Marley believes that through all the

pain and agony of slaves his generation will be able to formulate a difference. This can be clearly
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seen in verses 3-4. Therefore this means that the descendants of Africans have been given an

opportunity to right and improve the prospects their ancestors never had (Beviglia, P34).

According to the rolling stone magazine, it placed the song at the 66th position on their

2004 list out of 500 greatest songs of all time. Other artists, for instance, the renowned poet

Mutabaruka considered the song as the most influential song to have ever come out of Jamaica.

Further, the song is one of the most covered songs by a number of artists of all time, in which over

the years numerous artists, for instance, Rihanna, Madonna, Alicia keys and Johnny cash have

covered the song. According to Rihanna in one of the interviewed she said that the song is a very

special song for her and that growing up. She continued to say that she plays it whenever she found

herself in a challenging situation since it has the power to inspire and liberate (Beviglia, P65).

In conclusion, Redemption song is an incredibly stunning song that connects to not only

the African slaves but all others that have been oppressed. As a result, the main aim of this song is

that Bob Marley was trying to show us that in the end, it is upon those who are oppressed to be

able to determine their freedom and destiny.

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References

"Bob Marley - Redemption Song". Youtube, 2018,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOFu6b3w6c0. Accessed 29 June 2018.

Beviglia. "Behind The Song: Bob Marley, "Redemption Song" « American Songwriter".
American Songwriter, 2018, http://americansongwriter.com/2014/02/behind-song-bob-
marley-redemption-song/. Accessed 29 June 2018.

King, Stephen, and Richard J. Jensen. "Bob Marley's “Redemption Song”: The Rhetoric Of
Reggae And Rastafari". The Journal Of Popular Culture, vol 29, no. 3, 1995, pp. 17-36.
Wiley, doi:10.1111/j.0022-3840.1995.00017.x.