"Get Up, Stand Up" is a song written by

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

and

Peter Tosh Winston Hubert McIntosh, OM (19 October 1944 – 11 September 1987), professionally known as Peter Tosh, was a Jamaican reggae musician. Along with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, he was one of the core members of the band the Wailers (1963� ...

. It originally appeared on

The Wailers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

' 1973 album '' Burnin'''. It was recorded and played live in numerous versions by Bob Marley and the Wailers, along with solo versions by Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. It was later included on the compilations ''

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'' and '' Rebel Music'', as well as live recordings such as '' Live at the Roxy'' among others. In 1973, "Get Up, Stand Up" peaked at number 33 on the

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. In 1986, it peaked at number 49 in New Zealand. "Get Up, Stand Up" is considered one of Marley's greatest songs. In 2020, ''

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'' ranked it number one on their list of the 50 greatest Bob Marley songs, while ''

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'' ranked it number two on their list of Marley's 30 greatest songs.

Premise and usage in concerts

Marley wrote the song while touring Haiti, deeply moved by its poverty and the lives of Haitians, according to his then-girlfriend Esther Anderson. The tune of the chorus is clearly based on the instrumental hook in " Slippin' into Darkness" by War, which was released the previous year, a band Marley had expressed admiration for. The song was frequently performed at Marley's concerts, often as the last song. "Get Up, Stand Up" was also the last song Marley ever performed on stage, on 23 September 1980 at the Stanley Theater, now the

Benedum Center The Benedum Center for the Performing Arts (formerly the Stanley Theatre) is a theater and concert hall located at 237 7th Street in the Cultural District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Designed by the Philadelphia architectural firm Hoffman-He ...

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. On his DVD '' Live at the Hollywood Bowl'', artist Ben Harper relates a childhood experience in which, during a 1978 Bob Marley concert at the Starlight Amphitheater, Peter Tosh showed up unannounced as this song was being performed, took the microphone from Marley and started singing the last verse of the song to thunderous applause. Tosh was on tour opening for the Rolling Stones at the time.

Recordings by the Wailers

The song was re-recorded and re-released by the three major Wailers on their own solo releases, each with varying arrangements and approaches to the third verse, which claims that "Almighty God is a living man". Bob Marley and the Wailers released a Bob Marley only version on ''

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'' in 1975, this version was notable for the "WO-YO!" refrain after the third verse. Tosh would include his own solo version on his second album, '' Equal Rights'' in 1977. Bunny Wailer was the last to release his own version on ''Protest''. This version actually featured Tosh due to his involvement in recording the album before his death.

Certifications

Covers and remixes

In 1988, the song was performed live at an Amnesty International Concert for Human Rights by

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

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Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...

Tracy Chapman Tracy Chapman (born March 30, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter. Chapman is best known for her hit singles "Fast Car" and "Give Me One Reason". Chapman was signed to Elektra Records by Bob Krasnow in 1987. The following year she released ...

and

Youssou N'Dour Youssou N'Dour (, wo, Yuusu Nduur; also known as Youssou Madjiguène Ndour; born 1 October 1959) is a Senegalese singer, songwriter, musician, composer, occasional actor, businessman, and politician. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine describe ...

. The 2014 album ''

Songs from a Stolen Spring ''Songs from a Stolen Spring'' is a compilation album that mainly features duets and mashups of protest and peace songs performed by pairings of Western musicians with their contemporaries from the countries where the Arab Spring The Ara ...

'' features a version of the song performed by

Glenn Tilbrook Glenn Martin Tilbrook (born 31 August 1957) is the lead singer and guitarist of the English band Squeeze, a band formed in the mid-1970s who broke through in the new wave era at the decade's end. He generally wrote the music for Squeeze's son ...

of Squeeze fame. The version is

meshed Mashhad ( fa, مشهد, Mašhad ), also spelled Mashad, is the second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. It serves as the capital of Razavi Khorasan Province and has a po ...

with "Beyond These Doors" by Egyptian singer

Dina El Wedidi Dina El Wedidi ( ar, دينا الوديدي), is an Egyptian singer, composer, guitarist, music producer, and storyteller. Dina has been known as the lead performer of an ensemble of musicians who have performed extensively in the past 2 years, f ...

. The Ukrainian band

Bloom Twins Bloom Twins are a Ukrainian-born English pop music group made up of twin sisters Anna and Sonia Kuprienko. They refer to the style of their music as "dark pop." The duo released their first digital single in June 2013. History Anna and Sonia Ku ...

recorded a version in 2014, in support of the

Euromaidan Euromaidan (; uk, Євромайдан, translit=Yevromaidan, lit=Euro Square, ), or the Maidan Uprising, was a wave of Political demonstration, demonstrations and civil unrest in Ukraine, which began on 21 November 2013 with large protes ...

protesters occupying Independence Square in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

References

External links

Recording history of ''Get Up, Stand Up''
at ''The 60's Jamaican Music Reference''. {{authority control 1973 songs Amnesty International Bob Marley songs Peter Tosh songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Protest songs Songs written by Bob Marley Island Records singles The Specials songs