Island Outpost
By Jo Cooke
Music is the heartbeat of Jamaica. Every bus, taxi, car, bar, and street stall seems to lilt its own rhythms. This is, of course, the birthplace of reggae and the world's best-known reggae star, Bob Marley. Images of the idol adorn T-shirts in every store, wall murals, fishing boats, and even houses. Avid fans can tour the places most significant to his life. Here are my favorites, together with some of the island's best music attractions.
Photo Caption: Strawberry Hill in the Blue Mountains, Jamaica.
Gee Jam gives you a taste of what it is to be a music star and so is the ultimate base for aspiring musicians or keen amateurs. A stay here comes complete with studio time. Non guests can also book the state-of-the-art recording suite complete with sound engineer. Stars that have recorded or stayed here include India Arie, Bjork, Wyclef Jean, Gwen Stefani, PM Dawn, and Roy Ayers.
Details: tel. 876-993-7000; www.geejamhotel.com
Photo Caption: The recording studio at Geejam in Port Antonio.
Flags flying the distinctive Rastafarian colors of gold, red, and green mark the Bob Marley Mausoleum, the childhood home of the world's most famous reggae singer, at the heart of rural Jamaica. Bob Marley's humble roots in the hamlet of Nine Mile belie his eventual fame. See the house where he was born; the two-room hut he was raised in by his mother until he was 13; and the inspiration stone he sat upon to meditate. The tour is led by enthusiastic Rastafarian devotees and culminates with visitors being invited to pay their respects beside the marble mausoleum within a small Ethiopian church where the star and his guitar are buried. The tour is a moving experience for all those who admire the King of Reggae.
Bob Marley's former home—a fine clapboard Kingston townhouse painted in Rasta colors that's been transformed into a museum—provides a unique glimpse into the daily life of this legendary reggae star after his rise to fame. Learn about his life, family, loves, struggles, and career through various memorabilia: photos of concerts, the magazine and newspaper articles pasted on the walls; his favorite denim shirt which hangs in a cabinet; and the mass of platinum and gold discs which are a tribute to his massive acclaim. His bedroom remains as if he was still living here, and a recreation of the record shop he once ran has been constructed in one of the rooms. You'll also get the chance to go inside the room where Marley was shot in a failed assassination attempt. The bullet holes remain in the walls.
For serious Bob Marley fans only, follow the Roots Reggae Tour, which takes in Bob Marley and the Wailers' former haunts, including Studio 1 and Trenchtown. This full-day experience is led by Maria Carla Gullotta (proprietor of Drapers San Guesthouse in Port Antonio), and finishes with a visit to one or more of the hottest and most popular dancehalls in Kingston. This tour must be booked in advance (for a minimum of three people).
Strawberry Hill is a must for serious music fans and Marley fans alike. Bob recuperated at Strawberry Hill after the attempt on his life and continued writing music for his later albums at this Blue Mountain hideaway. Chris Blackwell, founder of Island Records, purchased it in 1972 and he decorated the walls of the conference room, and his memorabelia offers a fascinating retrospective on the record label's last four decades. You can also see some personal photographs, including images of Mick Jagger, Peter Tosh, and Millie Small. The room glitters with platinum and gold discs. One entire wall of those was earned from the sale of Bob Marley and the Wailers' LPs alone. But most of the inn is as regal, refined, and relaxed in cool Caribbean style.
Music is the heartbeat of Jamaica. Every bus, taxi, car, bar, and street stall seems to lilt its own rhythms. This is, of course, the birthplace of reggae and the world's best-known reggae star, Bob Marley. Images of the idol adorn T-shirts in every store, wall murals, fishing boats, and even houses. Avid fans can tour the places most significant to his life. Here are my favorites, together with some of the island's best music attractions.
Photo Caption: Strawberry Hill in the Blue Mountains, Jamaica.
Details: tel. 876-993-7000; www.geejamhotel.com
Photo Caption: The recording studio at Geejam in Port Antonio.