March 26, 2024 – Mtelus, Montreal, Quebec
The sidewalks of Sainte-Catherines street resembled a festival, as people spilled out into the road, blocking traffic and genuinely looked to be having a grand time hours before Stephen Marley and Damian Marley were scheduled to take the stage to perform together.
Before the Marley brothers would walk onto the stage though, there would be a DJ set that ran for about an hour and half. During that time, reggae classics were spun, focusing largely on dancehall jams from the 90s and early 00s. Artists like Shaggy and Sean Paul – and it turns out the crowd were in the mood for such tunes. Mostly people chatted amongst themselves while sipping their drinks.
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As soon as Stephen and Damian Marley walked out, following a man who spent the entire set waiving a Rastafarian flag, that is in essence an Ethiopian flag with the lion of Judah is at the center of the flag; clouds of smoke arose from every corner of the room. The sickly sweet stench of marijuana filled the venue which was an all-ages event – but something that should have been expected, I’d imagine.
Cast The First Stone, a Stephen Marley song off of his 2023 record, Old Soul, and features Damian on the studio recording, was perhaps the most faithful rendition on the setlist. By my count – which is by no means gospel, there were seven songs played that featured the duo together. Either Stephen’s songs featuring Damian, or vice versa. A couple were loosely based on Bob Marley tunes and a good five were, in fact, Bob Marley And The Wailers tracks.
When the opening notes to Road To Zion hit, the audience erupted in applause – myself included. I had wondered if Stephen or one of the other musicians on stage would take on the rap verses that were sung by Nas on the original recording, and soon discovered that no, nobody was going to tackle that task. Instead, Damian sang his parts and extended them as best he could, while one of the backing singers added her fantastic voice to the fold. I wouldn’t say I was disappointed by the rendition but when you’ve spent the last fourteen years with a song, it feels odd and wrong to hear it done this way.
The clash of styles that would be coming together tonight, was intriguing. Damian performs a more Dancehall approach to his reggae while older brother Stephen is more of a roots reggae musician. Through twenty-one songs, counting the encore that everyone and their dog knows is coming, five of the songs were covers of their father, Bob Marley. While the songs of Stephen and Damian were well received – the music of Bob Marley is on a whole different level – an upper echelon. Seeing two of Bob Marley’s twelve children on stage, singing his songs together, was precious and an experience I am certainly happy to have witnessed.
At the twilight of the show, the Marley brothers began to play classic songs by their late, great father, Bob Marley – and if you closed your eyes, you’d swear that Stephen Marley was in fact Bob. The similarities in their voices is astounding. They had already played a brilliant version of So Much Trouble In The World early on in the set, which got everyone in the room singing along, but by the time Jamming and Is This Love began, the party was well and truly in full swing.
The final song of the set was a strange rendition of the Bob Marley classic Exodus. The first part was sung by Damian but far faster than on the original recording, and it wasn’t until Stephan took over for the chorus and later part of the song that the original version became clear.
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The night ended much as it had began, with people taking over the streets. While the party continued for some, with an after-show party over at Le Belmont, featuring some of the best DJ’s on the reggae circuit. I had had my fill and instead decided to skip the public transit system and wander the streets, headed home.
I was in a great mood, perhaps fueled by second hand smoke, was feeling like a stroll on such a beautiful night. And that is what I did.
