I thought this was a simple point, but like everything else it is not so for many.

I believe in a recent program on the life on Bob Marley that showed on VH1, Chris Blackwell said something to the effect that he picked Bob Marley because he had the best image to sell. Don't quote me on this as yet. I am waiting on a copy of that program so I can quote his exact words. But certainly Peter Tosh and other Blacks got the drift long time.

This is not questioning Bob's music or how influential he was. I have no problem with liking Bob Marley while being aware of how his color gave him an unfair advantage.

Many dismiss Marcus Garvey's views in Rastafari just like how many prefer to dismiss Peter Tosh's views on this matter. What were the obvious differences in these personalities?

--Ayinde

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Extract: http://www.thetalkingdrum.com/tosh.html

As for Chris Blackwell, Peter did not hold his one time producer in very high regard, as evidenced here in one of Tosh's interviews: "Chris Whiteworst. You talk about Blackwell, what was well with him? (much laughter) So me call him every time me see him, 'what happen whitewell, what happen Blackwell?' (Holmes and Steffens, Reasoning With Tosh 12)."

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Extract: Honoring Bob Marley
http://www.jahworks.org/music/features/bobmarley.html

The Wailers broke up soon after, leaving Bunny, Peter and Bob to pursue their own musical careers. The reasons for the break-up were never clear. Tosh claimed that Blackwell wanted Bob in front because of his fair skin color and others claimed that Bunny and Peter wanted to achieve their own success, apart from Bob. For whatever reason, the band was no longer together.

http://www.jahworks.org/music/features/bobmarley.html

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Extract: http://ska.about.com/library/2001/aa020701.htm

The most common criticism of the legend of Marley is that it was a fabrication fostered by the commercial interests of Island Records, that the image of Bob as a christ-like "prophet with dreadlocks" was a story carefully crafted by producer Chris Blackwell. The Island marketing team clearly did well at packaging Marley-as-reggae-deity for a rock audience that relied so much on hero worhip. The Wailers originally were a singing and songwriting group, an ensemble in which Bob was on relatively equal level with members like Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. Blackwell was the first to single Bob out as the best singer and songwriter and place his name prominently at the top of the billing. More serious criticism also suggests that Marley was more packageable because of his mixed race and lighter skin tone. While it's fair to argue that Bob was the best musically, the front-billing caused irreparable tension and led to the departure of Peter and Bunny. The Island Records Wailers became a significantly different package than the songwriting group that had crafted so many hits for Studio One and for Lee Perry. And for many fans, Bob had been at his best in those early years when he was in collaboration with Peter and Bunny.

http://ska.about.com/library/2001/aa020701.htm

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"The press had been dealing with the greatest time in the emergence of rock 'n' roll and it was starting to quiet down.

Now here was this Third World superstar who had a different point of view, an individual against the system, who also had an ((( incredible look ))): this was the first time you had seen anyone looking like that, other than Jimi Hendrix. And Bob had that power about him and incredible lyrics," he continued.

http://www.bobmarley.com/life/island/island2.html

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HERE IS HOW THIS SITE SPEAKS ABOUT PETER TOSH
http://www.bobmarley.com/life/wailers/tosh.html

Peter Tosh met Bob Marley in Trenchtown, and became one of the three original Wailers. A strong-willed man, Tosh withdrew from the Wailers in 1974 after Chris Blackwell refused to issue his first solo album.

Peter Tosh was an extremely talented man, but, at the same time, he was very bitter. Arrogant, unreasonable, inflexible, he was in many ways almost the personification of Bob Marley's shadow. What bound them together more than anything was that they both naturally rebelled against the "shit-stem."

"Yet his accusation that Bob's success was only because he had white blood was inexcusable. Rita Marley: "That's the opposite of what it took him to get there. And if so be the case, there really had to be something at the end to pay off the sacrifice during the early years of coming up."

http://www.bobmarley.com/life/wailers/tosh.html