More than words: Bob Marley - a true soldier

Bob Marley (c: poponthepop.com)

Have you ever loved a song to the point of ridiculousness but no matter how hard you try, you just can’t understand the lyrics? What was the artist thinking when writing your favorite tune? More Than Words, a weekly column, will help to delve a little deeper…

Buffalo Soldier, Bob Marley (Confrontation, 1983)

"People want to listen to a message, word from Jah. This could be passed through me or anybody. I am not a leader... The word of the songs, not the person, is what attracts people. I don't stand for the black man's side; I don’t stand for the white man's side. I stand for God's side. Every man gotta right to decide his own destiny.” Bob Marley.

Although the lyrics to Bob Marley’s most famous political anthem may seem fairly straight forward, the history associated with the song is not quite so clear-cut.

Co-written by Marley and Noel G. Williams (also known as ‘King Sporty’) in 1978, Buffalo Soldier was developed after Marley read an article about African-American soldiers in the 1800s. The name ‘Buffalo Soldiers’ was given to the troops of the all-black 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments by their adversaries in the Indian wars in 1866.

“In America, the red Indians used to say the black people resembled buffalos because of their dreadlocks - so 'Buffalo Soldier, dreadlock rasta' - and the song is about them being 'stolen from Africa, brought to America, fighting on arrival, fighting for survival' about 400 years ago.” Paul Kelly, Bob Marley Foundation, Jamaica.

The name ‘Buffalo Soldier’ is believed to have originated because the Indians thought the soldiers' hair resembled a buffalo's mane. However according to the Buffalo Soldier National Museum in Houston, the name originated with the Cheyenne warriors in 1867 - the actual Cheyenne translation being ‘Wild Buffalo’. The soldiers were respected for their courage and fearlessness, qualities they found in the buffalo.

Historians have also argued that the lyric ‘'stolen from Africa, brought to America’, is historically incorrect as the slave trade was abolished by Thomas Jefferson in 1808, long before the Indian wars.

“Importation of slaves to the United States was banned from 1808 onward, so that the youngest person stolen from Africa would have been 58 years old when the Buffalo Soldier regiments were first formed in 1866.” American University, Washington DC.

However, it is believed that Marley’s intention through writing the song was to highlight the irony of using minorities to fight other minorities who were posing a ‘threat’ to white-American society. It is understood that Marley was writing about a series of events that lead to a struggle for survival. “They (the Buffalo Soldiers) fought for the ones who captured and enslaved them simply to stay alive (because they had no choice),” Music Mama, Songfacts. “This is an incredibly poignant song, combining thoughts about slavery and war and colonial history”.

“This song was one of Bob Marley’s biggest posthumous hits. He took a keen interest in social issues and historical developments. The (fact that) Buffalo soldiers were being used to fight another racial minority and then treated with disdain after winning the war for America was very intriguing to him.” www.rasta-man-vibration.com.

More than 20 Buffalo Soldiers went on to receive the Medal of Honor, the military's highest award for valor. No other unit has won more. (Larry Shaughnessy, CNN.com)

Marley often referred to the point of his music as educating people about their history so they can take control of their future. “Music gonna teach dem a lesson...,” Bob Marley.

*More Than Words is a weekly column. If you liked this column, you may also enjoy – Return of the Giant Hogweed,  Message In A Bottle, I am The Walrus, Riders on the Storm, White Room, Wear Your Love Like Heaven, Could Have Lied, Go Your Own Way, Sweetest Thing, Smells Like Teen Spirit.