The Wailers

Item: Burnin'
Author: Idy

Burnin'

(1973)

Reviewed by Idy

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Label Island RecordsSomething for Nothing #61July 2005

reggae

erroneously credited to "bob marley and the wailers" on the spine, this is, of course, the wailers' second album for island records--and the last with the collaboration of bob marley, peter tosh, and bunny wailer. the first disc contains the original album, featuring newer versions of "duppy conqueror", "put it on", and "small axe", as well as the well known (and not-really-all-that-great) "i shot the sheriff" and "get up, stand up". the tosh-written and sung "one foundation" is here, along with bunny's "pass it on" and "hallelujah time". there are also five bonus tracks--two of which are just different cuts of "get up, stand up". the other three, however, are all very worth having--the bunny wailer sung "reincarnated souls" and "the oppressed song", plus a great version of "no sympathy". all three were cut during the "burnin'" sessions, and should certainly have been included on the original album. "reincarnated souls", in particular, shines above pretty much the whole album, with its funky vibe and acoustic guitar. disc two is a live set from leeds in november of 1973. it's from after bunny wailer quit touring, but still includes peter tosh (but not joe higgs, as on the "talkin' blues" album recorded in the u.s. during the same era). the vocal harmonies are more sparse, but there's plenty of tosh's crazy guitar playing! the set list is mostly drawn from "burnin'" and "catch a fire", but adds "lively up yourself" and tosh's "can't blame the youth" (shouldn't there be a studio version of that somewhere?). it's pretty good, for a live album. the packaging is nice, with a four panel gatefold sleeve and a booklet full of lyrics, liner notes, and the original album photos. overall it's a pretty nice set, and worth buying if you can find it used (but not new--it's too expensive!). island/tuff gong. find it everywhere.