Burnin' is the sixth album by Jamaican reggae band Bob Marley and the Wailers, released in October 1973. It was written mostly by Bob Marley and recorded and produced by Bob Marley and the Wailers in Jamaica, and then mixed and overdubbed by Chris Blackwell in London. It contains the song "I Shot The Sheriff", which was later covered by Eric Clapton. It was the last album before Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer departed for solo careers. A commercial and critical success in the United States, Burnin' was certified Gold and later added to the National Recording Registry, with the Library of Congress deeming it historically and culturally significant.
The album was recorded at Harry J's studio in Kingston, Jamaica, with Bob Marley and the Wailers produccing.[3] It was mixed and overdubbed by Chris Blackwell at Island Records' Basing Street Studios in London during the spring of 1973 while the band were touring in support of their previous album, Catch a Fire.[3]
Music and lyrics[]
Burnin' opens with one of Marley's best known songs,[citation needed] the call to action "Get Up, Stand Up" and includes a more confrontational and militant tone than previous records,[citation needed] such as in another Marley standard turned into a number one hit by Eric Clapton, "I Shot the Sheriff". The songs "Duppy Conqueror", "Small Axe", and "Put It On" are re-recordings of songs previously released.[citation needed]
Critical reception[]
The Wailers' gold record award for Burnin' in Nine Mile, Jamaica
Reviewing in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981), Robert Christgau wrote: "This is as perplexing as it is jubilant—sometimes gripping, sometimes slippery. It's reggae, obviously, but it's not mainstream reggae, certainly not rock or soul, maybe some kind of futuristic slow funk, War without the pseudo-jazz. What's inescapable is Bob Marley's ferocious gift for melodic propaganda. It's one thing to come up with four consecutive title hooks, another to make the titles 'Get Up Stand Up,' 'Hallelujah Time,' 'I Shot the Sheriff,' 'Burnin' and Lootin'.'"[2]
In 2003, the album was ranked number 319 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[4] The album maintained the same position in a 2012 update of the list.[5]
