Bob Marley and The Wailers – Burnin’ (Ultra Tape)

The Barrett brothers beneath the singing

On 1973's Burnin’, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer still share the front line. Behind them, Aston “Family Man” Barrett on bass and Carlton Barrett on drums organise the rhythmic relationships that hold the ensemble together. Family Man also contributed to arrangements and played additional instruments. For this tape edition's story, it is useful to shift attention from the most familiar vocal lines towards the collective playing beneath them.

Bass and drums respond to different singers, new material and returning repertoire. Earl “Wire” Lindo's keyboards are another part of that configuration. The album documents a particular working group shortly before the original vocal trio separated. Its significance grows out of these instrumental relationships as well as the songs that later became internationally familiar. Following the supporting musicians gives those compositions another context, revealing the arrangement as something created by several people at once.

What happened between Kingston and Basing Street

The foundations arrived from Harry J's studio in Kingston. Phill Brown later described transferring the Jamaican eight-track tapes to sixteen tracks in London so that further recording could take place. The studio used a Helios console and several tape machines. Transfer, additional parts and mixing were stages in the making of the album. The final stereo master was already the product of a series of deliberate production decisions.

“I Shot the Sheriff” provides a particularly clear example. Brown recalled joining sections from different takes before Family Man added another guitar part. Music that can suggest a direct ensemble performance therefore also has a precise editing history. Both aspects belong to the record. That distinction is especially useful when discussing a tape edition: access to an analogue copy makes the production story interesting, but it does not remove the need to identify the source used for that particular commercial copy.

Repertoire with a long memory

“Put It On” reaches back to the Studio One period, while “Small Axe” and “Duppy Conqueror” connect with earlier work around Lee Perry. These songs were recorded again for Burnin’. Bunny Wailer's “Pass It On” also had a lengthy history before finding its place here. Alongside the direct statements of “Get Up, Stand Up” and “Burnin’ and Lootin’”, the record preserves a musical memory of the group.

The closing progression from “Duppy Conqueror” through Tosh's “One Foundation” to “Rasta Man Chant” moves from developed song arrangements towards a communal singing tradition. Follow how the roles of voice, bass and percussion change across that sequence. The record offers several kinds of togetherness extending beyond a uniform sound. Hearing the complete programme keeps those perspectives connected and gives space to contributions that are less often foregrounded outside the album itself.

This edition: Ultra Tape and compatible playback

RRAP 0042 presents the album on two quarter-inch reels at 15 ips in two-track stereo. Edition documentation specifies IEC/CCIR equalisation and 10.5-inch reels with NAB hubs. Playback requires a suitably configured half-track machine. NAB refers here to the reel hub and should not be confused with the required equalisation. The two reels follow the original album halves.

The publisher describes transfer on an ATR-modified Ampex and a custom slipcase. The precise copying generation is not disclosed: an original-master reference appears alongside a series description identifying a copy of the original tape as the source. A direct first-generation dub is therefore not promised. Mastering credits attached to the UHQR records do not automatically apply to this tape. Its documented recording parameters and the matching playback equipment are the relevant practical specifications.

You order from Michael 45 in Germany. We arrange the US import and dispatch from Hilden. Editions not currently in stock are dispatched after the goods arrive.

In the magazine: Bob Marley: Burnin’ and Natty Dread on UHQR

Also on 33 RPM vinyl: Burnin’

More by Bob Marley and The Wailers: Catch A Fire · Exodus

Artist page: All titles by Bob Marley & The Wailers

Customer question: Buying Analogue Productions records in Europe

Musicians

Documented selection of participating musicians. Personnel may vary by track; this list does not claim to be complete.