Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley

Timothy White

Henry Holt and Company, May 2, 2006 - Biography & Autobiography - 556 pages

The classic biography of reggae legend Bob Marley, updated and revised for the twenty-fifth anniversary of his death

Bob Marley left an indelible mark on modern music, both as a reggae pioneer and as an enduring cultural icon. Catch a Fire, now a classic of rock biography, delves into the life of the leader of a musical, spiritual, and political explosion that continues today.

Under the supervision of the author’s widow and with the collaboration of a Marley expert, this fourth edition contains a wealth of new material, including many revisions made by the author before his untimely death. An appendix to the new edition chronicles Marley’s legacy in recent years, as well as the ongoing controversy over the possibility that Marley’s remains might be exhumed from Nine Mile, Jamaica, and reburied in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where hundreds of Rastafarians live. The new edition also contains an expanded discography and is factually updated throughout.

“Probably the finest biography ever written about a popular musician.”
—San Francisco Chronicle

“As close as rock journalism comes to transcendent literature.”
—Playboy

“White has a deep appreciation for reggae’s immediacy, hypnotic power, and contradictions . . . An exhaustively researched labor of love.”
—Chicago Sun-Times

What people are saying

Review: Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley

User Review  - Jeff - Goodreads

I notice I give a lot of high ratings, and imagine that's due to my enthusiasm for the subject matter. In this case I am a little in awe of this book. When I taught General Music, I had a sign on my ...

Review: Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley

User Review  - David Cupples - Goodreads

Well written biography, White is (was, RIP) a talented writer. He probably could have been a good novelist. Catch A Fire is certainly an outstanding contribution to the field, ie study of the life of ...

About the author

One of the most prominent music journalists of the twentieth century, Timothy White wrote extensively on Marley, reggae, and Caribbean music and culture for Rolling Stone, The New York Times, and other leading publications. His close contact with Marley and his family and inner circle of friends led to White being granted access to private papers, photographs, and memorabilia. White died in 2002.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley; Owl book
• Author: Timothy White
• Edition: 4, illustrated, revised
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Company, 2006
• ISBN: 0805080864, 9780805080865
• Length: 556 pages
• Subjects: Biography & Autobiography / Cultural Heritage; Biography & Autobiography / Entertainment & Performing Arts; Music / Genres & Styles / Reggae