Chords for The Wailers interview 1987 by Roger Steffens

[N] _ _ _ _ [Eb] _ _ _
I used to live on Valentine [Em] Street in Echo Park in Los Angeles and on Valentine's Day
1987 the [Eb] Whalers came to visit.
[F] They were in LA airport [Bb] with a 10 hour [Em] layover on their way back from New Zealand to Jamaica
and Junior [Eb] Marvin called and said can we come over and I said who's we and he said the Whalers
[G] and they arrived shortly [E] after and we [A] looked at about three hours of unreleased [Gb] Bob Marley
pictures and films and [Abm] heard their stories and I [Em] called Chili Charles on [Eb] the phone and
said the Whalers are here come right over and he ran over with his camera and just before
they left for the airport they gave me about a half hour of very interesting interview material.
The Whalers were all the major [D] figures except one who [Db] toured with Bob in the late 70s.
[Gm] Seiko Patterson [Eb] who brought Bob to his first audition at Cox and Dodd, Al Anderson the lead guitarist
along [Abm] with Junior Marvin, [Eb] _ _
Wya Lindo the keyboardist and of course the Barrett brothers, family
man Barrett and his brother Carlton Barrett.
This was the [A] last filmed [Eb] interview of Carlton's life.
He was murdered two [B] months later [Eb] and at the end of the interview I asked each of the Whalers
to tell me about [Am] their favorite [Eb] tracks with Bob and I think their [B] answers _ may surprise you.
_ [N] _
_ _ _ [Fm] I want [Bm] to ask you all [Ab] one final question.
[F] I want to ask the [B] same question to all of you now and that is what [G] piece of music that
you are [E] involved in as Whalers is your single favorite piece.
It might be something that you [F] played your favorite lick on or just an all around fantastic
[Eb] song that you're part of.
What's your favorite piece?
My favorite is War.
[Bb] The words are written by Ailee Selassie [B] and that's the message to mankind right now.
_ That's the best song Bob ever wrote.
Best best best song.
[D] And there's [G] a longer version on some demo tapes that Neville gave me that was never
released there's another [Gb] _ about 35 or [G] 40 seconds of his speech.
Every time Bob sings War it's like the first time he [Ab] ever sang it and the [Bb] last time.
Every time he sings it.
Do you have a favorite live version [B] of that? _
Babylon by Boss.
The one on that album.
That's good.
I like the original version too.
[C] I mean every version of that is my favorite.
_ And it was [B] very roundly criticized when it was on the album.
[Ab] They said why didn't he put roots on instead of this [F] speech by Ailee Selassie.
It got a lot of criticism.
Well his majesty said that you [G] must revel in the Bible.
[D] _ [B] And when he said that speech he didn't say it for anyone in [D] particular he said it for
the whole [Bb] world.
_ [Eb] But [D] people don't even realize that yet.
They're slowly coming to realize like Phil Collins [Ab] realized it the other day and did
a song called _ [B] _ _
what's that song called?
_ Land of Confusion.
_ That's another version of War.
[A] _ _ _
_ [B] _ And Carl Simon _ he did another song just recently.
Same kind of message.
But War is the ultimate.
_ Paul Simon.
_ War is the ultimate version [D] of the [B] message to the people.
_ _ _ [D] You created a [Ab] whole style of reggae drumming that [G] people are still making careers out of
your throwaway [Gb] licks.
_ _ What's your favorite [Ab] piece of music?
[F] Come over here in the light a second.
Tell me what your favorite [Db] piece of music is.
Forever [D] Loving John.
Why? _
_ [Db] Because we have to.
[D] Forever Loving John. _
_ [B] _ _ _ _ _ _
[G] Al Anderson tell me [Bb] about you.
Is it No Woman No Cry?
Come a little [B] closer.
_ _ _ _ I say Reggae. Roots.
Roots.
Interesting choice.
Not a song that a lot of people [Ab] know even if it's on the new [E] Rebel Music collection.
[G] It's not a song that people think of by Bob because it was only the [E] flip of a single all those years.
I [Bb] was around when he was writing it and I saw how it came about to him.
How did it come [Gb] about?
What's the story? _ _
[Db] Just in the same words.
What country?
It was in Jamaica.
[D] Just as [Ebm] he sings the words.
[A] That's how it came about.
[D] People around him and [Cm] there were certain [Bb] people cooking [Ab] food and motivating certain things
and certain energies were [B] going down.
_ I [A] saw that happen at the time and I just hadn't seen [Ab] anyone work like that and use all the
elements that were in [A] front of him [B] and put them into songs like that.
So, I'll take it.
_ _ [D] _ _ I can't wait [Eb] to hear what Family Man [B] says.
_ _ _ [G]
Well, yeah.
_ Well, I've got [Eb] a wide [Bm] range.
You know?
[Ab] But I'll just [D] give you a screen. _ _ _
_ _ [G] Well, number one is, [D] I don't know, [Gb] so much [D] things to say _ and guiltiness rests on their
conscience every [B] day.
_ [Db] I [D] also _ get up, [B] stand up _ for your right. _
_ That was one of my [Eb] favorite.
Zico, [B] come in please.
What's [Eb] Wya's favorite?
[D] _ _
What's Wya's favorite?
_ _ [Gb] Wya, tell me [F] your favorite thing that you played on.
What song [Gb] of Bob's do you like best?
Let me ask you to hold it down just a second.
[A] What's your favorite, Bob?
I think _ _ the Confrontation album was the happiest.
[E] The [Gm] Confrontation album, the costumes.
[C] Any [Bb] particular track that really turns you on most?
_ _ [G] _ Give Thanks [Gb] and _ Jump Naya Bing.
[D] Most of the songs, I love all the songs on Confrontation.
Very great [Fm] songs.
[Eb] Now, there are other albums that the Wailers could [Dm] put together on the [Bb] basis [C] of the Confrontation
album, and I want you to think about what songs might be in rehearsal form that [Dm] could
be turned like mix [G]-up, mix-up into [Fm] real songs.
Ask me, man, [Db] which song me like.
[Eb] No, I don't care.
[D] _ _
[F] _ [D] No, no, [Eb] Zico.
I didn't know that.
Zico, [B] tell me what song is your favorite. Naughty [Cm] Dread.
Dread, Naughty Dread.
Dread, Naughty Dread.
[D] _ Now, in Jamaica, the Tough Gone [C] single [D] in _ [Eb] Jamaica spelled it [Bb] K-N-O-T-T-Y, [Gb] not Natty Dread.
They spelled it Naughty [Ab] Dread.
You know that.
And I think that's probably [Eb] the realer title of that song, too, Naughty Dread.
Naughty Dread is my song.
[B] Now, why?
Was it written [Dm] about you? _ _
It's a part [Ab] of it.
Yes, Naughty Dread.
I think I got a few lines [B] there.
_ Yes.
Now, [D] it's said that Bob wrote his songs in community, that you would sit around on the
porch or in the studio and people would throw lines at him.
He'd [A] incorporate it into a verse, and if he found [G] something he'd like, he'd work it out
a little further.
Is that how it [Ab] worked?
At [D] times.
So, in truth, you're all co-writers.
I [Ab] kind of have to agree. Very right.
[Cm] Did you create all your own lead guitar lines, Junior?
[Dm] Well, he used to give me [B] ideas.
Who gave you the line, or did you do the line yourself in [D] Waiting in Vain?
[C] Waiting in Vain came to me in a dream.
I _
[D] _ heard the track, [Bb] _ and then I [A] tried it once, and I said, okay, I'll do it tomorrow.
[B] I went home, I slept, came back and did it in the first take.
_ [Bb] _
And [Dm] while I was sleeping, I dreamt about the [D] song, and that was came out.
Wow.
[B] _ _ _ [Eb] I was so happy that came out.
You know the word [Ab] song?
The work [B] song?
Work. _
Four days to go home.
Yeah, but it wasn't days.
[Dm] It was miles, because coming from the, [B] you don't know about that.
[D] I was coming from the country, _ and counting miles and coming in.
So I started to run a [B] rhythm.
I started to run a rhythm.
_ [D] I was singing about the miles.
_ I said, continue that song.
You know, just [B] pick up the miles, and I'm just coming to it.
_ [Eb] I'm just with miles.
[B] I'm in the studio, and I'm working on some record, and I said, well, I work on that.
So, yeah, man, I'm turning it into days.
The miles into