Ziggy Marley

Tonight was a warm, Indian summer, night in an air-conditioned theatre, but most people wouldn’t have noticed it. The captive crowd pumpped the temperature as they skanked to the eight-piece band banging out, Look Who’s Dancin’. Ziggy donned a sweat-drenched shirt which he had to ditch somewhere between two hours of rootsy, dub-style and dancehall reggae.

Between those of his own, Ziggy ran some of the same plays as his father, keeping the show familiar, yet interestingly fresh.

The first time I ever saw Ziggy perform was actually here in this theatre in 1984 when he played with The Legend Tour, A Tribute to Bob Marley. Barely sixteen back then, he bravely chimed in, sharing the same stage with the legendary I-Threes and The Wailers. One of the show highlights I recall most was Ziggy soloing Redemption Song on an acoustic guitar.

Since that time he has done well for both himself and the reggae genre, picking up and running with the ball that was forced from his father’s hands.

Earlier in the day, Ziggy performed a full, family-friendly set for a crowd of children at UCSB. Not missing a beat for Arts & Lectures, he played another two hours here at The Arlington Theatre, including all the following songs and a few more:

• Tomorrow People
• Justice
• One Lifetime Isn’t Enough To Love You
• Make Some Music
• Free Like We Want To Be
• Get Up, Stand Up
• True To Myself
• Love Is My Religion
• Is This Love
• Look Who’s Dancin’
• Let Jah Will Be Done
• Wake Up And Live
• Jammin’
• Shalom, Salam
• Dragonfly (acoustic)
• Melancholy Mood

From the lyrics of One Lifetime, I couldn’t help being drawn to the phrase, “making sweet songs all night long.” The grooving audience didn’t disagree. Mr. Marley has no doubt inherited the knack of sweet poetry, delivered with a silky resonance that just makes you smile.

“Freedom is something that is really good for you. Don’t let anyone take it away!” This simple yet pithy statement sounds funny because it’s so core to us Americans, yet it’s easy to take for granted. Ziggy trailed into Free Like We Want to Be.

After a quick pat-down with a dry towel, the band jumped into a teaser, ripping the opening lick to Rat Race. Though it quickly got my feet shakin’, the diddy actually turned into Get Up, Stand Up, which in turn led the crowd to echoing the “woo-yoo-yoo-yoo” chant, conspicuously present in any live version.

Like his brother, Julian, who I photographed at the Ragga Muffins Festival last year, Ziggy has well-kept dreads down to his knees. Though they remained bound by his guitar strap for much of the show, he did manage to get a little momentum into them once or twice.

As a nice little tribute to John Lennon’s birthday (yesterday), during Love Is My Religion, the band took a short tangent into All We Need Is Love, which got the audience chanting the verse in a swaying chorus. The song nicely transitioned into Bob’s Is This Love (that I’m feeling). I suddenly felt the absence of my girlfriend who was unable to attend the show. As I looked around, I could see that reggae was still alive and well with the college crowd, the same crowd that introduced me to the genre many years ago at UCSB.

After a short acoustic set which included Dragonfly, Marley commented on Prop 19. “I’ve heard about this vote that’s happening in November. I think it’s a good thing. It’s just a weed. Sometimes the simplest things can be the greatest things. This is [about] more than just smoking…clothing, food, oil, medicine... I’m just telling the truth; you don’t have to like it…” I’m sure he didn’t need to convince anyone in this crowd. From that, he led into Melancholy Mood, ending the show with a clever and pensive tune.