Redemption Song

"Redmption Song" was a plaintive, almost Dylanesque acoustic spiritual song, devoid of any trance of reggae. When he sang it, he wore the expression of a playful child, but his voice bore the authority of a Biblical patriarch. A universal tune, another Bob Marley song that has become a standard, 'Redemption Song' is like a final statement in a career, a summation of all the themes and thought that had created it. "You've got to live out the book." An earnest acoustic version closes the Uprising album while a live version recorded at a show in Pittsburgh, Pennslyvania, on September 23, 1980 - the last concert Bob performed - appears on Songs of Freedom. "There was a feeling of a whole era coming to a climax. Everyone felt that he knew something was going to happen," says Rita Marley.

Old pirates yes they rob I
Sold I to the merchant ships
Minutes after they took I from the
Bottom less pit
But my hand was made strong
By the hand of the almighty
We forward in this generation triumphantly
All I ever had is songs of freedom
Won't you help to sing these songs of freedom
Cause all I ever had redemption songs, redemption songs
Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery
None but ourselves can free our minds
Have no fear for atomic energy
Cause none of them can stop the time
How long shall they kill our prophets
While we stand aside and look
Some say it's just a part of it
We've got to fulfill the book
Won't you help to sing, these songs of freedom
Cause all I ever had, redemption songs, redemption songs, redemption songs
Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery
None but ourselves can free our minds
Have no fear for atomic energy
Cause none of them can stop the time
How long shall they kill our prophets
While we stand aside and look
Yes some say it's just part of it
We've got to fulfill the book
Won't you help to sing, these songs of freedom
Cause all I ever had, redemption songs
All I ever had, redemption songs
These songs of freedom, songs of freedom...