Glen DaCosta
Glen DaCosta worked with Bob Marley long before he became a superstar, beginning back in early 1972 at Lee Scratch Perrys Blackheart Studio in Kingston, Jamaica, where Bob was passing through with Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh. At the time Glen DaCosta was there as a regular studio musician, and since Bob knew and liked my work he asked me to do saxophone arrangements for some of his own songs. They all got along well on a personal level, and that combined with the professional aspect meant my credentials with him were doubly good.
That was the start of over a decade during which Glen DaCosta spent much time with Bob Marley.
Glen DaCosta did scores of shows and concerts together with Bob Marley and Zap Pow, recorded at least six albums with numerous songs and toured extensively, and during this period I discovered facets of Bobs character that not everyone appreciates.
For instance, when Glen DaCosta and Bob Marley were arrested at the drugbust in London his sense of humor really came to the fore, helping us all to see the funny side of an otherwise very serious situation. No one else in the group would have dared speak to the British police like he did.
On the other hand, the shooting in Jamaica illustrated so richly his concern for others:
Bobs first words after the gunfire died down were addressed to me, wanting to know if Glen DaCosta was okay, even though he had been the obvious target. And then, in spite of being wounded himself, he began asking around to find out how everyone else was.
When Bob was recording at Tuff Gong studio Glen DaCosta witnessed his openhanded generosity to all who asked him for help: he not only listened to every problem, he also emptied his
pockets to feed those around him. He even bought equipment for people to earn money with.
Commenting about the universal appeal of his lyrics and music, Bob once told a
mutual friend, When I am finished with reggae, reggae will be all over the world This
was years before he attained his dream, but in his mind there were no doubts. He was driven
by ambition, but that itself was fuelled by a genuine concern for the disenfranchised coupled
with a desire for the elites to recognize the importance of truth, rights and justice for all.
And yet, for all of this, he was a remarkably uncomplicated man. Look at the amazing
impact Three Little Birds has had: released in 1980 and one of Bobs most straightforward
songs, it made the British Top 20 and has remained one of his most popular, and enduring,
numbers.
Humor, compassion, generosity, ambition, simplicityin So Help Me Bob I have
documented all these and much more, in order to give the world a window into a private and
spontaneous side of Bob Marleys character that few people have ever heard about, especially
from firsthand accounts.
Everyone, for instance, knows of Bobs love for music, but not what childhood events
kickstarted it; everyone knows his trademark tilt of the chin, but few know where he got it
from; everyone knows how beautifully he wrote a 2001 BBC poll voted Bob Marley one of
the greatest lyricists of all time but the source of that ability has never been acknowledged.
Just recently, however, I had the privilege of conducting the first-ever interview with the man
who, many years ago, began crafting the young Bob Marley into the famous lyricist he
eventually became. This special person was the genius behind the genius, so to speak, and
our conversation is something I need to share with all Bobs fans. It is an unprecedented
behind-the-scenes scoop that no one will want to miss.
Glen DaCosta was around when the original Marley trio split up, making way for, among others,
Family Man Barrett, Al Anderson, Wya Lindo and the I Threes.Glen DaCosta played and partied with them all, the old and the new. Glen DaCosta witnessed Bobs serious drug habit and heard him talk about not only his rastafarian beliefs but also the doubts that caused him to search for alternative spiritual comfort in more troubled times. Glen DaCosta was in New York when Bob fell ill there, and even though only immediate family, doctors and lawyers were allowed to visit him, Junior Marvin, Tyrone Downie, Al Anderson and Carlton Barrett kept me informed of the situation. Glen DaCosta knew about his baldness from chemotherapy, about the wrong food he was fed that may have hastened his end, about his last tragic hours in Germanyfrom Bobs pre-fame days until his death in May 1981, I was as up-to-date as any of his closest friends.
Bob Marley wrote wonderful lyrics, created wonderful music, and sangwell,
everyone knows how he sang. Its the stuff of legend. Since Bobs death, however, Ive seen
the demise of almost everything he stood for coupled with a flagrant disregard for the
musicians who contributed so willingly towards his legacy, and Glen DaCosta question whether Bobs memory is treasured as much for the music he wrote and the principles he represented, as for the material gain so meticulously monitored by his widow. Whatever the case, I think its high
time for those of us who really knew him, and really loved him, to stand up and be counted.
This is my story about the real Bob Marley, and its the whole truth and nothing but
the truth, so help me Bob. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
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