Peter Tosh – Legalize It (1976)

I picked this up recently in a local charity shop for a couple of quid. Back in the 1970s. Peter Tosh was probably the only reggae artist other than Bob Marley, that I was aware of, even then only knowing the title track.

Indeed, reggae wasn't a genre on my radar while at school, and I only became really aware of it when it became popular alongside punk later on.

There are some interesting tracks on this album, but a lot of it feels like generic easy reggae listening. The opening track, Legalize It, (he's not referring to riding a bike without lights, kids) sets the scene and is a solid enjoyable plea for his Rasta herbal ritual not to attract the attention of the law enforcement agencies. But from the first half, it's only No Sympathy which stirs the ears into active listening, with some nice guitar. Why Must I Cry is a Tosh/Marley composition (the backing singers on the album include Rita Marley, Bunny Wailer and Judy Mowatt, all Wailers singers), and feels solidly a cut above the rest of the songs on the album, although my favourite, the Rasta spiritual Igziabeher (Let Jah Be Praised) is probably my favourite here. And of the rest, only the single Brand New Second Hand raises the spirits.

I won't pretend that reggae is my genre of musical choice, and this feels like standard listenable reggae, nothing to exciting, nothing awful.

Link to full album

3* - just, it's a decent enough 40 minutes of easy reggae