Peace, love, and social justice were at the heart of the messages Bob Marley spread through his music. His lyrics could have profound political connotations yet be about the mystical beauty of his surroundings. His celebration of the human condition resonated with people from all backgrounds. The consciousness and profundity of his place in the universe make us still interested in his songs today.
Videos by American Songwriter
Marley’s spirituality is evident in each one of his albums. In 1999, Time magazine called Exodus the best album of the 20th century. Let’s look at the story behind a song from that album, “Three Little Birds,” by Bob Marley & The Wailers.
Don’t worry about a thing
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
Singing Don’t worry about a thing
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
A Simple Observation of Nature, or Is It?
The idea of birds singing in the morning is nothing unusual. But Marley brings the moment’s beauty alive in the verse of the song. His friend Tony Gilbert told author Vivien Goldman in The Book of Exodus: The Making and Meaning of Bob Marley and the Wailers’ Album of the Century, “Bob got inspired by many things around him. He observed life. I remember the three little birds. They were pretty birds, canaries, who would come by the windowsill at Hope Road.”
Marley himself told Sounds magazine in 1980, “That really happened. That’s where I get my inspiration.”
Rise up this mornin’
Smiled with the risin’ sun
Three little birds
Pitch by my doorstep
Singin’ sweet songs
Of melodies pure and true
Saying, (This is my message to you)
The I Threes
Another account of the inspiration comes from the trio of background singers, the I Threes. Marcia Griffiths claimed, “After the song was written, Bob would always refer to us as the Three Little Birds. After a show, there would be an encore. Sometimes, people even wanted us to go back onstage four times. Bob would still want to go back, and he would say, ‘What is my Three Little Birds saying?'”
Singin’ Don’t worry ’bout a thing
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
Singin’ Don’t worry (don’t worry) ’bout a thing
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
Griffiths continued,”‘Three Little Birds’ was our song, officially for I Threes. It was more or less expressing how we all came together when he says, ‘Rise up this morning, smile with the rising sun.’ We loved it. Even when we were recording it, we knew that it was our song.”
Rise up this mornin’
Smiled with the risin’ sun
Three little birds
Pitch by my doorstep
Singin’ sweet songs
Of melodies pure and true
Sayin’, This is my message to you
The Mysticism of Nature
Marley’s awe and wonder of his surroundings tap into the mysticism of nature. In a bigger sense, his message praises God’s creation and conveys his thoughts of truth and hope. He would strike out around the world, sharing his songs with different cultures and people from different backgrounds.
Singin’ Don’t worry about a thing, worry about a thing, oh
Every little thing gonna be alright. Don’t worry
Singin’ Don’t worry about a thing I won’t worry
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
The song has nothing specific about theology, yet it touches on the theory of God being all around us. Whatever God you believe in, it’s all around us in everything we interact with. The beauty within a moment of a trio of birds singing their song. On one hand, it’s just what they do. Birds sing. On the other hand, it’s a powerful, beautiful moment to be treasured and studied. The wonder of nature humbles us all.
Singin’ Don’t worry about a thing
Cause every little thing gonna be alright, I won’t worry
Singin’ Don’t worry about a thing
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
Singin’ Don’t worry about a thing, oh no
Cause every little thing gonna be alright
Biblical Parallels
Although the lyrics are clearly not stolen, there is a vivid parallel between the lyrics of “Three Little Birds” and Matthew 6:25-27 from the American Standard Version of the Bible:
Therefore I say unto you, Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment? Behold the birds of the heaven, that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value than they? And which of you, by being anxious, can add one cubit unto the measure of his life?
When Marley was asked about the Bible and how many of his listeners didn’t believe in it, he responded, “Because the way they have been taught about the Bible. That is not the way of the Bible. You know? I mean, because if I was living in that world where the everyday interpretation of the Bible goes on, then I would adhere to the Bible, too. But know that we have found the right way of the Bible. The Bible is to be loved because the Bible is a record of man’s creation. It is the only book can make, can show you how mankind began without any prejudice, or anything like that or any boasiness, pride, or anything like that. Just our God and that’s it.
“Well, all Christian people, not only Christians, all the people who goes to churches interpret the Bible as the preachers tell. That is not the right way,” he continued. “Because the greatest thing is that life, see, is life. Life we’re dealing, and the preachers read the Bible and tell you, you have to die to go to heaven. That means he’s not really reading the Bible. Because the Bible tell you you have to live in a heaven. You don’t die and go to heaven, you have to live in a heaven. A lot of places in Earth could be, but Africa is our heaven. Because that’s where we come from. Maybe you’re a Swiss. Maybe you come from Switzerland, and the people know God then, maybe you could live in peace, unity, harmony. But people are stubborn on this Earth because of material vanity.”
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
