“Jamming” by Bob Marley

"Jamming" comes off Exodus, the 1977 album by Bob Marley and the Wailers, with Marley writing the words and Island and Tuff Gong behind the release. Don't mistake the title for a guitar-hero workout: in Jamaican patois, jamming means getting together, a celebration, and Marley even finds room in it for a line that shrugs off bullets.

The song has had more lives than most. It landed on Legend, the compilation, and when it was reissued ten years on as a tribute to Marley it became a hit all over again, spending 4 weeks on the Dutch charts. His family has kept it on stage, too: his wife Rita Marley sang it at the tribute concert Marley Magic: Live In Central Park At Summerstage, and Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers put it in their sets, with live takes on Live Vol. 1 and Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers Live. Adult alternative stations still give it a spin now and then.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.