Non-Urban Music Bob Marley's Bass Player Seeks Costly Retribution

[DEA]

By: Coryn Brown

March 20, 2006

Aston “Family Man” Barrett, former bass guitarist to The Wailers, has filed suit in London’s High Court against the family of Bob Marley and Island-Universal Records Ltd., staking claim to $105 million in unpaid royalties from the reggae legend’s postmortem money vein.


The number figures are from co-writer earnings owed for songs penned by Barrett and Marley, as well as royalties from a 1974 contract with the label. Barrett claims that Marley vowed an equal distribution of royalty shares to the band members from albums including Babylon by Bus, Natty Dread, and Rastaman Vibration.


Island-Universal and the Marley family are refuting Barrett’s appeal to litigation based on claims that the 60-year-old former guitarist, and father to over 52 children, conceded his interests in the Marley music enterprise after accepting several hundred thousand dollars in exchange for royalty rights in a 1994 settlement.



http://www.vibe.com/news/news_headlines/2006/03/bob_marley_bass_player_seeks_costly_retribution/

 

[Casey]

Hmm... He says that Bob promised to give band members royalties. Of course, what you say and what you do are two ENTIRELY different things, and Bob more than likely just said that to keep the man happy. How much do you think the guy REALLY contributed. It's not as if Marley songs are sonically intricate, in fact you can see Bob's idiosyncratic style in pretty much 90% of the songs.

I think this guy is trying to claim more than he really did.

 

[Duke]

This is pretty greedy.

 

[Casey]

It's obvious who REALLY contributed good ideas to Marley's songs...the people that found success on their own - Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer.

 

[Bugsy Siegel]

Family man has some of the nicest bass lines I've ever heard. 52 kids, jesus christ!!!

 

[ArtsyGirl]

If he did settle his royalties they'd surely have that in a contract of some kind. And 52 children?! How broke must you be tryin to raise that kind of family!