What a complicated life Peter Tosh lived. Equal parts mega-success and huge disappointment, but ultimately downright tragic. Tosh is a legend that history does not quite know how to evaluate.
Born Winston McIntosh in Westmoreland (the western most parish of Jamaica), and a founding member of The Wailers with Bob Marley and Bunny Livingston, the man is a foundational piece of the history of music.
All edge and political will, he traced the history of Jamaican music from Ska to Rocksteady to Reggae. While Marley gets all the love (and the Brown Bros. have long considered Toots Hibbert the 2nd man of Reggae), it’s hard to argue that Tosh really is 1st Lieutenant to Marley’s Captain.
A car accident in 1973 killed his co-passenger girlfriend, and reports are that Tosh became ever more difficult from that incident forward. Fast forward thru many successful years, Tosh was murdered in 1987 by Dennis “Leppo” Lobban. Rumor had it that Tosh was trying to help Lobban. Rumor also has it that Lobban is still alive on a life-sentence in Jamaica.
For those interested in learning more about the music of Tosh – the Equal Rights album from 1977 is an absolute corker:
http://www.allmusic.com/album/equal-rights-mw0000196108
…and, if you have a Spotify account or CD player, we implore you to check out the Equal Rights (Legacy Edition) – chock full of out and alt takes that will blow yer mind….
Ladies and Gents – the GREAT PETER TOSH!
