‘Weed for All’ at Marley’s Birthday Bash

Bob Marley Day Bash

If the police had attempted to push the full force of the law, a good number of crowds who turned up last Sunday to celebrate the 61st birthday of Bob Marley at the Trade Fair would have been arrested and charged for their association with ‘weed’- as active or passive smokers.

The crowd most of them in Rastafarian colours of red, yellow, green and black and wearing dreadlocks of all shapes and sizes, sang, danced and smoked marijuana in ecstasy.

For those who do not smoke the stuff, but love reggae music, as well as the law enforcement agencies there appeared to have a ‘memorandum of understanding’ that every one suffered the joys of the ‘food for the brain’ for the period that the programme lasted.

The aroma of the drug pervaded the whole area and patrons who did not know how it felt to be high may have experienced it first hand.

Thick smoke from the numerous puffs from several mouths hung overheard especially when the lights were thrown on the large crowd and that was enough to let one know the extent of smoking that was going on at the concert.

For all that ‘ getting high’ there were no awkward incidents of note of peace and love. The mega star band backed Ghana’s Batman who thrilled the large crowd who just loved him for his presentation and stagecraft.

It was beautiful, refreshing and thoroughly enjoyable and the crowd sang, yelled and danced to the pulsating music of the reggae treats from Steel Pulse, Dean Frazier and C Sharp, Tamlins, Chaka Demus and Pliers as well as the I Threes.

The Marley brothers were the toast of the crowd as they took turns to sing songs from their father’s repertoire of thought provoking and inspiring reggae songs.

The concert, dubbed Africa Unite was organised by the Bob and Rita Marley Foundation as part of activities arranged to celebrate the late Bob Marley’s 61st birthday and to rekindle the vision and aspirations of the reggae legend.

The Ghana version was the fourth held worldwide to celebrate reggae star’s birthdays.

The other three were held in Jamaica, Florida and Ethiopia.