WAILERS
THE NEVER ENDING WAILERS
(Tuff Gong/Ras)
This is a fascinating release, as is the story behind it. As most fans realize, The Wailers ruled the Jamaican music scene from the early 60's. Although their line-up occasionally changed, for all intents and purposes it consisted of three core members - Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer.

Superlatives cannot even begin to describe this trend-setting trio. They were simply way ahead of their time. After 10 fruitful years they disbanded in 1973, with each member moving on to successful solo careers.

According to the liner notes by Wailers' authority Roger Steffens, the three had apparently pondered for years of reuniting for a song - and a possible album - based on the title "Together Again." Marley's death in 1981 made that seemingly impossible.

But in 1984, Wailer and Tosh (along with one-time members Junior Braithwaite and Constantine "Vision" Walker) decided to proceed with the plan. Piecing together vocals left from Marley years earlier (similar to what the Doors did with Jim Morrison's voice on "An American Prayer") the tapes were skillfully incorporated into new arrangements through the wonders of technology.

The following year, as Steffen writes, "tapes of the sessions began circulating, causing tremendous excitement that was ultimately blunted by a flurry of legal obstacles. Then came the tragic assassination of Peter Tosh in September of 1987, and the project went on an indefinite hiatus."

With the recent release of "The Never Ending Wailers," the long wait is finally over. From the start, when Marley shifts the line of his classic song, "I'm Still Waiting" to the haunting "I'm Still Wailing," this is a magical journey.

The songs involving Marley are extraordinary. His vocals sound amazingly fresh, as he sings on half of the 10 tracks; "I'm Still Wailing," "Hammer," "It Hurts To Be Alone" (originally with lead vocals by Junior Braithwaite), "How Many Times" (also known as "Do You Remember") and "Music Lesson." The tunes are all modernized in new upbeat versions and are presented in an every-other-one sequence (tracks 1,3,5,7 and 9).

The other interspersed tunes include two killers with Wailer on lead vocals, "Dutch Pot" and personal favorite, "Rescue Me." The aforementioned "Together Again" (which became a tribute to Marley and has all four singers trading off vocals) and an extended update of "Nice Time" are also featured. The disc ends with "Coolie Plum Tree," recently recorded by Wailer, Braithwaite and Tosh's son, Andrew. It's a clever, fitting tribute to the Wailers and their career.

The sound is exceptionally clean considering the circumstances. Bunny Wailer has done an admirable job with production, even mixing in some nice dub, while the team of Sly and Robbie have put down some solid rhythms.

This remarkable recording is without doubt the year's major reggae release. More than a novelty, it's an impressive, magical disc which exceeds all expectations. This supergroup left a substantial musical history, and "The Never Ending Wailers" just adds to its legacy.


Junior Braithwaite, the humble co-founder of the Wailers, was murdered last 
night, June 2,  in Kingston by three unknown gunmen. 
 
Braithwaite was featured on "Simmer Down," the Wailers' first record in 
December of 1963, and sang lead with the group for the next eight months on 
such songs as "Habits," "Straight and Narrow Way," and on his swan song with 
them, "It Hurts To Be Alone," a haunting ballad that became one of the 
quartet's biggest hits. According to their initial producer, Studio One's 
Coxson Dodd, "Braithwaite had the best voice in the group when they first 
came to me."

Braithwaite left the group in September of 1964 to move to America with hopes 
of pursuing a medical career, plans which never materialized. He lived 
primarily in Chicago and southern Wisconsin for the next 20 years, but 
returned to Jamaica in 1984 at the request of former partner Bunny Wailer, 
who enlisted him in his "Never Ending Wailers" recording project. The new 
album combined tapes of Marley's voice in the '60s with new harmony tracks 
laid by Bunny, Junior and two other "original Wailers" Peter Tosh and 
Constantine "Vision" Walker. The album was finally released in 1991.

Plans for world tours with a reunited-Wailers lineup never materialized, and 
were made moot with the assassination of Peter Tosh in September of 1987. 
Bunny Wailer thus becomes, truly, the last surviving Original Wailer, with 
Walker having joined the group late, in 1966.