Have a wailer of a time

The Wailers' line-up may have changed in the 27 years since they last performed with their charismatic lead singer Bob Marley, but the band's philosophy remains the same.

It's "one love," says Marley's replacement, lead singer Elan.

It's the foundation that's driven the band since their heyday in the '70s. Who can forget the captivating sounds of No Woman No Cry, Get Up, Stand Up and Could You be Loved?

For many, they're the sounds of our childhoods, the sounds of our crazy teenage years and good times well into our adult lives. For others, they're much more than that — an essential guide to life.

The Wailers set up with bandmate Bob Marley in 1963 and went on to transform the way the world saw reggae music. In a drive to break the US market, they set about injecting a their music with a hint of commercialism — sounds that American audiences could identify with, like guitar riffs over reggae basslines.

So eager was the band for success that a rigorous practice schedule created a meticulously honed sound.

But despite record execs pushing Marley to the forefront, the band says it was only ever about The Wailers as one unit.

"Bob has been quoted many times saying, ‘I never asked for us to be called Bob Marley and The Wailers'," said Elan. "He used to say, ‘I'm a Wailer and I've always been a Wailer'.

It was the record label's idea to push Bob forward, [but] he always said, ‘We're about the musicians and about the message. We're all one unit'."

Since Marley's death in 1981, band mates have come and gone like a fluid family unit, with sturdy members like Aston "Family Man" Barrett forming the backbone.

"New members have come into the band through friends," says Elan, who joined 12 years ago through guitarist Al Anderson.

"[Anderson] is one of the original lead guitarists and he brought me into the band. It was the first band I ever got to play with. No sound-check, no rehearsal, just thrown out onto the stage. I was straight out of high school — just 19 years old. I've been very fortunate and lucky that I get to do what I love."

Though the band may change, the message stays the same.

"The message is the most important thing about this band," says Elan. "The movement of what we accomplish is more important than any singular musician."

Voice of the people

"Wailing means to cry out and it was the voice of the people. The majority of the world are poor and oppressed. They need songs to uplift their spirits — spiritually, mentally and emotionally. So that's what the music is about. That's why it became so big."

It's a theme that's as relevant today as ever.

"There are more atrocities going on in the world now that weren't around back then," says Elan. "Not only the environment, but poverty, oppression, hatred, fascism, racism and wars.

"So today the music is more relevant. People of different nationalities, religions, opinions and languages all gravitate to the music because they can feel what it's about even if they don't understand the lyrics."

The Wailers are putting their money where their mouth is with the launch of a United Nations World Food Programme charity called I Went Hungry.

"We got the idea from the list of things that artists want backstage at a show, like drinks and food. These can range from $200 to $10,000 [Dh734 to Dh36,700] every night. When we're travelling on long tours, there's only so much you can bring on the bus and only so much you can eat, so the majority of the food would go to waste.

"Every six seconds a person dies of hunger. That's 25,000 a day and 15,000 of them are children. So we sat down and thought, we'll go hungry. We'll tell the promoters that for the couple of nights that we are performing, take that money that has been allocated and give it to the World Food Programme. So that's how we started I Went Hungry. We make people aware of it at out shows and sell wristbands to raise money.

"The response has been unbelievable. We've been raising so much money and recruiting other artists, musicians, comedians and actors do the same."

It's a message that will crop up in The Wailers' new album, with an appropriately titled song, I Went Hungry, already penned.

"We've really put that into our new album [that we're currently working on]," says Elan. "We've taken different artists from different genres who have been inspired by the band and have written new music for us. So it's all about the positive message and the spiritual and emotional uplifting. That's what the band is about and always has been."

When The Wailers came out with their first album Catch a Fire in 1973, the band consisted of Earl "Wya" Lindo, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Bob Marley, Aston "Family Man" Barrett and Carlton Barrett. Those were the original members and despite some new influences — they created a sound that the band are eager to hark back to.

"My idea for the album that we're working on at the moment was, ‘Bob's not here, but I want to get everyone who is, together to make the music'," says Elan.
‘We're all human'

"Carlton Barrett, Family Man's brother, was assassinated in '87 and before he died, he laid down some drum tracks onto two-inch tapes. So we digitalised them to use as the heartbeat of our new recordings today. So we've brought back the sound and included a member who hasn't been with us for 20 years."

With so much going on at home, a trip to Dubai comes as a welcome break for the stars.

"It's a very open minded place," says Elan, who plans to visit the Dubai Autodrome, the Burj Al Arab and Atlantis. "I was surprised that everybody speaks English. You hear all these things in the news about the Middle East — and if you go by that, you would think that everybody wants to blow you up when you come here. The news really ruins people's perception and scares people. And then you get here and you're like ‘wait, this is not bad at all'. You feel so welcome."

It all ties in rather nicely with The Wailers' grand one love philosophy.

"[We aim to] bring people together through music," says Elan. "To keep people aware in their hearts and in their minds not to discriminate for any reason whatsoever — for the way people pray or the way people look, or for differences of opinion or nationality. We're all human beings and everyone wants the best. If we treat everyone like family then that's really what our message is — to be together as one."

Could The Wailers be loved? Most definitely! Check them out this Friday at the Dubai Desert Rhythm Festival.

Storming up the charts

The Wailers have enjoyed fresh chart success recently after working on a song with country star Kenny Chesney. The song Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven — a fusion of country and reggae — stormed up the country music charts going straight to number one.

Other acts at Dubai Desert Rhythm

Paul Weller is as big as ever — and out with a ninth solo album 22 Dreams.

"After As Is Now, I thought the time was right to make the sort of record I wanted to make," he said of the creative process.

"Instead of worrying about anyone else, I wanted to really push the boat out. I think the result is going to surprise a few people."

The new album incorporates rock, funk, soul, free jazz, krautrock, classical, spoken word, electronica and everything in between.

Kassav's new album, All U Need is Zouk, celebrates three decades of one of the most popular West Indian bands.

The band have held an influential position on the world music scene with Miles Davis telling reporters that "Kassav' has largely influenced the music of the record [Amandla] on which Marcus Miller, Tommy LiPuma and I are working."

Vix N The Kix: The flame-haired guitar-playing rock-princesses have come a lomg way since Vix's days as lead singer of the all-girl group We've got a… Fuzzbox...and we're gona use it!!

Their new album Moon on a Stick, out this autumn, is a true example of candy-coated rock at its greatest.

Juliana Down: Up-and-coming indie-greatness.

Don't miss it!

Tickets: prices range from Dh250 to Dh550. Buy them from timeouttickets.com, Virgin and Spinneys.
When: October 31
Where: Dubai Festival City