Send "Peter Tosh " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Popmatters |
 When Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, and Bob Marley parted ways in 1973, you’d think that the end of such a fruitful and tight bond between players would have had a negative effect. Instead, Bunny Wailer put out the lush and excellent Blackheart Man and Marley hit the Top 10 in the U.S. with Rastaman Vibration. It was Tosh, though, whose work would prove most vital after his stint with the Wailers. His first two solo records, Legalize It and Equal Rights are not just two of the best reggae records ever, but also two of the finest records of the ‘70s, period. They were inventive and deeply catchy records full of songs that could be as playful as they were defiant. Peter Tosh was always outspoken, always the rebel, but it was the way he said things—that honeyed voice, those brilliant and subtly intricate compositions—that set him apart. With no context for it, you could dismiss Legalize It—with Tosh on the cover smoking in a field of marijuana—as a gimmick record, one meant solely for the parking lots of aging summer tours and college dorm rooms. However, Tosh’s first record is so much more than it appears. It was an album Tosh struggled over for years, and scraped together funding to make. Even its pro-marijuana stance isn’t some pro-drug screed, it’s a religious statement. Tosh believed deeply in his cause; it was part of his spiritual life as a devotee to Rastafari and he fought for it. Tosh had run-ins with officials where he was nearly beaten to death, and still he blew smoke in their faces. To him, marijuana was righteous, and this record wasn’t some childish call to get high—it was a vital shout for religious freedom....full text |
| Spin |
| Malcolm X to Bob Marley's MLK in the original Wailers, Peter Tosh left the group on the eve of global acclaim for a militantly uncompromising solo career, taking early public stands against apartheid and brandishing a guitar in the shape of an AK-47. On 1976's Legalize It, he brashly mixed pro-ganja agitprop and Rasta musings, while introducing riddim section Sly & Robbie to an international audience; 1977's Equal Rights is roots reggae nonpareil and one of the most powerful political statements in any genre. These two-CD editions add unreleased demos, outtakes, and dubplates....full text |
| I-reggaenation |
| Peter Tosh's first two solo albums released by Columbia Records will be commemorated with the releases of LEGALIZE IT: LEGACY EDITION and EQUAL RIGHTS: LEGACY EDITION. Both double-CD packages will contain a lion's share of previously unreleased material from the original sessions (and material previously available on very limited edition Dub Plates), along with new essays by Reggae scholar Roger Steffens (on Legalize It) and former manager Herbie Miller (Equal Rights). Both packages will be available through Columbia/Legacy, a division of SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT on June 21st at all physical and digital retail outlets. The re-releases of Legalize It (1976) and Equal Rights (1977) coincide with the 40th anniversary birthday in March 2011 of NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, based in Washington, DC). Tosh endorsed and supported the organization, and recorded a PSA (public service announcement) for NORML in 1976, promoting the legalization of marijuana. In 2011, Tosh's PSA is being re-launched at radio in a partnership between Legacy and NORML. In recognition, the two classic title tracks, "Legalize It" and "Equal Rights," will be coupled as a special 7-inch vinyl single. The double-A sided single will be released in conjunction with this year's fifth annual National Record Store Day on Saturday, April 16th. Honoring the colors of Tosh's beloved Rastarian and Ethiopian flags, the single will be available in collectible red, green and gold vinyl editions....full text |
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