Peter Tosh -

Peter Tosh — aka Winston Hubert MacIntosh (Oct. 19, 1944 — Sept. 11, 1987) — was a Jamaican roots-reggae musician who rose to prominence during the 1960s as a member of the Wailers. In 1976, he released the album Legalize It on Intel Diplo/Columbia, followed by three further albums on the imprint during the late 1970s.

Background

Peter Tosh was born Winston Hubert McIntosh on October 19, 1944, in Grange Hill, Westmoreland, Jamaica. Relatives raised him in rural Westmoreland, while his mother, Alvera Coke McIntosh, reared him on church music. Tosh sang in church choir, learned organ, and taught himself guitar on a home-built model made from board, tin pan, and plastic strings. He attended school in Bluefields, then moved to Kingston and lived with an aunt in Trench Town. Though he apprenticed as a welder, he soon entered the Third Street circle around singer Joe Higgs.

Tosh met Robert Nesta Marley and Neville “Bunny” Livingston at Higgs’s yard during the early Sixties. Higgs trained the young singers in harmony while hand drummer Alvin “Seeco” Patterson linked them with producer Clement “Coxsone” Dodd. Tosh gave the early group its instrumental base as the member who already played guitar and keyboards; he also helped Marley obtain a guitar and learn the instrument.

The Wailing Wailers formed in 1963 with Tosh, Marley, Livingston, vocalist Junior Braithwaite, and singers Beverley Kelso and Cherry Smith. Dodd produced their 1964 debut single, “Simmer Down,” compiled with subsequent singles on the 1965 Studio One release The Wailing Wailers.

Peter Touch Singles

Peter Tosh issued a run of solo-billed and feature-billed sides under the Peter Touch name between the 1965 Muzik City single “Hoot Nanny Hoot” and the 1972 High School single “We Can Make It.”

The sides appeared under Peter Touch, Peter Touch and the Wailers, Peter Touch and the Chorus, Hugh Roy and Peter Touch, and Peter Touch and Pat credits across Jamaican and UK label issues. Clement “Coxsone” Dodd produced the Studio One-period sides, while later singles appeared on Upsetter, Unity, Shock, Pressure Beat, Sterling, and High School outlets.

Muzik City issued “Habits” (b/w “Amen”) in 1965. The label credited “Amen” to Peter Touch and the Wailers. Dodd produced the Studio One session in Kingston with Tosh on lead vocal and guitar.

Muzik City also issued “Hoot Nanny Hoot” (b/w Bob Marley and the Wailers’ “Do You Remember”) in 1965. Dodd produced and engineered the Studio One session with Tosh on lead vocal, Marley and Bunny Wailer on harmony vocals, Lloyd Knibbs on drums, Lloyd Brevett on bass, guitarists Jerome “Jah Jerry” Haines and Lyn Taitt, pianist Jackie Mittoo, and horn players “Dizzy” Johnny Moore, Don Drummond, Lester Sterling, Roland Alphonso, and Tommy McCook.

Studio One issued “Shame and Scandal” in 1965, with Roland Alphonso and the Soul Brothers’ “Sca-Balena” on the Jamaican reverse. Island issued a UK pairing of “Shame and Scandal” (b/w the Wailers’ “The Jerk”) in July 1965. Sydney “Siddie” Bucknor engineered the Studio One session for Dodd.

Muzik City issued Peter Touch and the Chorus’ “Making Love” (b/w the Soul Brothers’ “Crawfish”) in 1966. Tosh sang lead with harmony vocals by Bunny Wailer, Constantine “Vision” Walker, Marlene Gifford, and Rita Marley.

Coxsone issued the Wailers’ “Dancing Shoes” (b/w Peter Touch and the Chorus’ “Don’t Look Back”) in 1966. Dodd produced the Temptations adaptation at Studio One with Tosh on lead vocal and harmony vocals by Wailer and Walker.

Studio 1 issued Marcia Griffiths’ “No Faith” (b/w Peter Touch’s “The Toughest”) in 1966. Tosh adapted the lead line from James and Bobby Purify’s “I’m Your Puppet” for the Dodd-produced session.

Lee “Scratch” Perry paired Hugh Roy and Peter Touch on “Rightful Ruler” in 1969. The Upsetter issue placed Tosh beside U Roy over a Randy’s Studio 17 rhythm by drummer Carlton Barrett, bassist Aston Barrett, guitarists Alva Lewis and Ranford “Rannie Bop” Williams, pianist Glen Adams, and percussionist Count Ossie.

Unity issued Peter Touch’s “The Return of Al Capone” (b/w Lenox Brown’s “Q Club”) in 1969. The UK label followed with “Sun Valley” (b/w Headley Bennett’s “Drums of Fu Manchu”) the same year.

Shock issued “Here Comes the Judge” (b/w Winston Wright’s “Rebeloution”) in 1971. Joe Gibbs produced and engineered the session at Joe Gibbs’ Studio in Kingston, where Tosh sang over rhythm tracks tied to the Abyssinians’ “Satta Massa Gana.”

Pressure Beat and Sterling issued Peter Touch versions of “Maga Dog” (b/w the 3rd and 4th Generation’s “Bull Dog”) in 1971. The single also circulated under the Peter Tosh name on Jogibs and in a UK Bullet issue.

High School issued Pat Satchmo’s “We Can Make It” (b/w Peter Touch and Pat’s “Version We Can Make It Uptight”) in 1972. The single ends the early Peter Touch trail before Tosh’s Intel Diplo sequence.

The Wailers

Between 1970 and 1973, the Wailers proliferated as an album act under their classic trio iteration, starting with the Trojan release Soul Rebels and the 1972 Maroon/Upsetter followup Soul Revolution Part II. Tosh served as their guitarist, organist, baritone second vocalist and occasional songwriter. In 1973, they linked with Island Records for the back-to-back albums Catch a Fire and Burnin’.

On Soul Rebels, Tosh wrote “No Sympathy” and “400 Years” and sang the lead line on both songs. Marley and Wailer sing harmony parts behind Tosh on the two titles, and Tosh also plays guitar on “No Sympathy.” The album places Tosh’s voice beside Marley-led material elsewhere in the Perry-period group format.

Soul Revolution Part II gives Tosh a performance role through voice and melodica. The original LP credits the songs to Marley, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Curtis Mayfield, Bunny Wailer, and Richie Havens, while Tosh appears through group-sung material and lead melodica on “Memphis.” The album keeps his named instrumental presence inside the stripped Perry rhythm setting.

Catch a Fire returns Tosh to two written and led songs, “400 Years” and “Stop That Train.” The album credits him with organ, guitar, piano, and voice, and the two Tosh titles also place him on guitar and keyboards. Marley and Wailer supply harmony parts on both songs.

Burnin’ expands Tosh’s final Wailers album role through one co-written anthem, one self-written song, and a shared arrangement credit. Marley and Tosh wrote “Get Up, Stand Up,” Tosh wrote “One Foundation,” and Marley, Tosh, and Livingston arranged “Rasta Man Chant” from traditional source material. Tosh shares the lead line with Marley on “Get Up, Stand Up,” then takes the lead line on “One Foundation” with guitar and keyboards in his credit line.

In 1974, Tosh and Bunny Wailer left the group in the hands of Marley, who continued to use the Wailers name for his backing musicians.

Tosh Solo Singles: 1969–75

Peter Tosh issued a pre-album run under Peter Tosh, Peter Toush, and Peter Tosh and the Wailers billings between the 1969 Jamaican issue “You Can’t Fool Me Again” and the 1975 Intel Diplo issue “What You Gonna Do.”

The run includes single-only A-side titles, Wailers-linked recuts, version sides, and early album-cycle singles. Labels include Randy’s, Impact!, Derrick’s, Tempa, Pressure Beat, Jogibs, Trans-AM, Justice League, Tuff Gong, Joe Gibbs Record Globe, and Intel Diplo.

Randy’s placed the Tosh recording “Little Green Apples” on the reverse of the Count Machuki single “Stick Up” in 1969. Impact! placed the Tosh recording “Green Duck” on the reverse of the Bob Marley and the Wailers single “Sugar Sugar,” then a separate Jamaican issue paired “You Can’t Fool Me Again” with “Green Duck.”

Derrick’s and Tempa issued the Peter Tosh and the Wailers single “Give Me a Ticket” in 1969. The Tempa issue used “Version” as the reverse.

Pressure Beat issued the Peter Toush single “Them a, Fi Get a Beaten” (b/w the 3rd and Fourth Generation recording “Get a Beaten”) in 1971. Pressure Beat later issued the Peter Tosh single “Them Have to Get a Beating” (b/w the Love Generation recording “You Can’t Get Away”).

Jogibs issued “Maga Dog” (b/w the 3rd and Fourth Generation recording “Bull Dog”) in 1971. Joe Gibbs produced the single, which also appeared on Pressure Beat and Sterling under the Peter Touch name.

Jogib issued “Leave My Business” (b/w “Business Man Version”) in 1971. The label credited Tosh as composer and Gibbs as producer.

Trans-AM issued “Oppressor Man” (b/w Trans-AM All Stars’ “Version”) in 1971. The label credited Tosh as producer.

Justice League issued the Peter Tosh and the Wailers single “Secondhand” (b/w the Upsetters recording “Secondhand Part 2”) in 1971. Tuff Gong issued the Peter Tosh and the Wailers single “Here Comes the Sun” (b/w “Version”) the same year.

Intel Diplo issued “Can’t Blame the Youth” (b/w “Version”) in 1972. Tosh used Intel Diplo H.I.M. as his solo outlet during the post-Studio One single run.

Tuff Gong issued the Peter Tosh and Wailers single “Lion” (b/w “Version”) in 1972. Joe Gibbs Record Globe issued “Arise Blackman” (b/w “Version”) the same year.

A Jamaican no-label issue paired “Labour Gonna Beat Them” with “Beat Them” in 1972. Intel Diplo issued “No Mercy” (b/w “Version”) during the same label period.

Tuff Gong issued the Peter Tosh and Wailers single “Once Bitten” (b/w “Version”) in 1973. A related Jamaican promo placed “Once Bitten Version” on the reverse of the Judy Mowatt single “Mellow Mood.”

Intel Diplo issued the Peter Tosh and the Wailers single “The Mark of the Beast” (b/w “Version”) in 1975. The single carried the Wailers-linked billing into the Intel Diplo sequence.

Intel Diplo issued “Legalize It” (b/w “Version”) in 1975. The label followed with “Brand New Second Hand” (b/w “Version”), the Peter Tosh and the Wailers single “Burial” (b/w “Version”), and “What You Gonna Do” (b/w “Version”) in advance of his album.

Legalize It

Peter Tosh released his debut solo studio album, Legalize It, in June 1976 on Columbia.

The album presents roots reggae with clipped offbeat guitar, settled bass lines, organ blocks, and call-and-answer backing parts.

Legalize It contains six Tosh compositions, two Tosh–Neville Livingston credits, and one Tosh–Bob Marley credit. Tosh recorded the album with roughly a dozen players, including guitarists Al Anderson and Donald Kinsey, bassists Aston “Family Man” Barrett and Robbie Shakespeare, drummers Carlton Barrett and Carlton “Santa” Davis, and keyboardist Tyrone Downie. Harmonica player Robbie “Ras” Lee and backing singers Rita Marley, Judy Mowatt, and Bunny Wailer complete the principal lineup.

“Legalize It” lopes through offbeat chops and a patient title chant. “What’cha Gonna Do” quickens beneath an arrest narrative with brighter backing response. “No Sympathy” darkens around blues-bent guitar figures and a heavier low-end line. “Why Must I Cry” sets a mournful lead against brisk accompaniment and answering harmony. “Igziabeher (Let Jah Be Praised)” deepens the praise refrain with synthesizer haze. “Ketchy Shuby” teases short title phrases through playful call-and-reply. “Till Your Well Runs Dry” alternates blues-styled verses with a reframed chorus and a solo passage.

A1. “Legalize It” (4:42) – Tosh
A2. “Burial” (3:58) – Tosh, Livingston
A3. “Whatcha Gonna Do” (2:30) – Tosh
A4. “No Sympathy” (4:39) – Tosh
A5. “Why Must I Cry” (3:15) – Tosh, Marley

B1. “Igziabeher (Let Jah Be Praised)” (4:41) – Tosh
B2. “Ketchy Shuby” (5:02) – Tosh
B3. “Till Your Well Runs Dry” (6:14) – Tosh, Livingston
B4. “Brand New Second Hand” (4:05) – Tosh

Tosh recorded Legalize It in 1975 at Treasure Isle and Randy’s in Kingston with associate producer Lee Jaffe and engineers Jerry Smith and Karl Pitterson. The team mixed the album at CBS Studios in New York.

Columbia issued Legalize It in an Andy Engel sleeve with photography by Lee Jaffe. The front image shows Tosh crouched among cannabis plants with a pipe in hand.

Columbia serviced “Legalize It” on a 1976 promotional single backed with “Why Must I Cry” and “Till Your Well Runs Dry.” Virgin issued “Legalize It” as a 1976 UK single (b/w “Brand New Second Hand”).

Legalize It reached No. 199 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album also reached No. 54 on the Official Albums Chart under the UK title Legalise It.

Equal Rights

Peter Tosh released his second solo studio album, Equal Rights, in May 1977 on Columbia.

The album places rights and African identity inside longer, slower arrangements. Tosh extends the program through Rasta declaration on “I Am That I Am” and anti-apartheid protest on “Apartheid.”

Equal Rights contains six Tosh compositions, the Tosh–Bob Marley song “Get Up, Stand Up,” and the Joe Higgs song “Stepping Razor.” Tosh recorded the album with roughly fifteen players, including drummer Sly Dunbar, drummer Carlton “Carly” Barrett, bassist Robbie Shakespeare, guitarist Al Anderson, and keyboardist Earl “Wya” Lindo. The sessions also include keyboardist Tyrone Downie, clavinet player Harold Butler, tenor saxophonist Dirty Harry Hall, trumpeter Bobby Ellis, and backing singer Bunny Wailer.

“Get Up, Stand Up” strikes clipped title commands over terse offbeat accents. “Downpressor Man” stretches its warning through a long low-end pattern and spare response phrases. “I Am That I Am” steadies the voice in declarative praise over a measured one-drop pattern. “Stepping Razor” slices through a hard personal refrain and compact rhythmic turns. “Equal Rights” presses repeated justice phrases into a sustained chorus line. “African” lopes through plain-spoken diaspora address and firm backing replies. “Apartheid” starts with gunfire, then locks its protest chant to blunt offbeat accents.

A1. “Get Up, Stand Up” (3:29) – Tosh, Marley
A2. “Downpressor Man” (6:25) – Tosh
A3. “I Am That I Am” (4:28) – Tosh
A4. “Stepping Razor” (5:47) – Higgs

B1. “Equal Rights” (5:58) – Tosh
B2. “African” (3:41) – Tosh
B3. “Jah Guide” (4:29) – Tosh
B4. “Apartheid” (5:31) – Tosh

Tosh produced Equal Rights from Kingston sessions at Randy’s Studio, Aquarius, Joe Gibbs, and Dynamic Sound. Karl Pitterson recorded the album and remixed it with Alex Sadkin and Jack Nuber at Criteria Studios in Miami.

Columbia issued Equal Rights in an Andy Engel design with front-cover photography by Kim Gottlieb. The cover repeats a side-profile portrait of Tosh in sunglasses and a beret across a six-panel grid.

Virgin issued “African” as an April 1977 UK single (b/w “Stepping Razor”).

Bush Doctor

Peter Tosh released his third solo studio album, Bush Doctor, in late 1978 on Rolling Stones Records.

The album extends roots reggae through one-drop placement and clipped offbeat guitar, with clavinet blocks under the lead line. Tosh and bassist Robbie Shakespeare produced the program around the rhythm section of drummer Sly Dunbar and Shakespeare. “(You Gotta Walk) Don’t Look Back” places Mick Jagger beside Tosh on a Smokey Robinson–Ronald White song. Keith Richards appears on the title track and “Stand Firm.” “Creation” stretches the side-two close through autoharp tone and a longer final cadence.

Bush Doctor contains seven Tosh compositions, the Tosh–Bob Marley song “Soon Come,” and the Smokey Robinson–Ronald White song “(You Gotta Walk) Don’t Look Back.” The core rhythm section pairs Dunbar with Shakespeare. The sessions also include guitarists Mikey “Mao” Chung, Donald Kinsey, and Richards, keyboardists Robert Lyn and Keith Sterling, percussionists Larry McDonald and Uziah “Sticky” Thompson, and saxophonist Luther François.

“(You Gotta Walk) Don’t Look Back” sways through shared lead lines and easy offbeat accents. “I’m the Toughest” lopes at a calmer gait while Tosh narrows the line into rude-boy warning. “Dem Ha Fe Get a Beatin’” hammers a blunt threat phrase over firm backbeat punctuation. “Bush Doctor” bounces through herbal cure claims and clipped title replies. “Creation” opens with scripture recitation, storm effects, and gospel-style “Hallelujah” response, then settles into a Psalmic guitar figure and sea-sound wash.

A1. “(You Gotta Walk) Don’t Look Back” (3:43) – Robinson, White
A2. “Pick Myself Up” (3:55)
A3. “I’m the Toughest” (3:48)
A4. “Soon Come” (3:54) – Tosh, Marley
A5. “Moses – The Prophet” (3:37)

B1. “Bush Doctor” (4:04)
B2. “Stand Firm” (6:10)
B3. “Dem Ha Fe Get a Beatin’” (4:11)
B4. “Creation” (6:29)

Sessions occurred in 1978 at Dynamic Sounds and Joe Gibbs Studio in Kingston and Bearsville Studios in Woodstock with Tosh and Shakespeare producing. Errol Thompson served as engineer alongside Geoffrey Chung and Lew Hahn.

The sleeve uses a front-cover photograph by Ara Gallant.

Rolling Stones lifted “(You Gotta Walk) Don’t Look Back” as a September 1978 UK single (b/w “Soon Come”) and issued the same pairing in the United States the following month. “I’m the Toughest” followed as a March 1979 UK single (b/w “Toughest Version”).

Bush Doctor reached No. 104 on the Billboard 200 chart and No. 34 on the Kent Music Report.

Mystic Man

Peter Tosh released his fourth solo studio album, Mystic Man, in June 1979 on Rolling Stones Records.

The album places personal code, Rasta declaration, and political address inside longer roots-reggae arrangements. Tosh and Word, Sound and Power produced a program of Tosh compositions with settled bass placement and organ blocks.

Mystic Man contains nine Tosh compositions. Tosh recorded the album with bassist Robbie Shakespeare, drummer Sly Dunbar, guitarist–keyboardist Mikey Chung, and keyboardist Robbie Lyn. The lineup also includes keyboardist Keith Sterling and guitarist Ed Elizalde, plus percussionists Sammy Figueroa and Uziah “Sticky” Thompson. The horn section includes reedists George Young, Howard Johnson, and Lou Marini, trombonist Barry Rogers, and trumpeter Mike Lawrence. Brenda White King, Gwen Guthrie, the Tamlins, and Yvonne Lewis provide backing vocals.

“Mystic Man” strides through tight horn figures, echo-traced organ, and a firm one-drop pattern. “Recruiting Soldiers” musters group replies around a militant call. “Jah Seh No” presses its title answer into a stark call-and-response prayer. “Buk-In-Hamm Palace” stretches a slow nocturnal chant with bubbling percussion and dub-spaced repeat figures. “The Day the Dollar Die” lightens the anti-capital line with a bright refrain and measured offbeat lift. “Crystal Ball” rattles through cuíca accents while the sung line turns city life into a bleak forecast. “Rumours of War” lists conflict zones in clipped prophetic phrases.

A1. “Mystic Man” (5:56)
A2. “Recruiting Soldiers” (4:27)
A3. “Can’t You See” (3:43)
A4. “Jah Seh No” (4:40)
A5. “Fight On” (3:21)

B1. “Buk-In-Hamm Palace” (8:49)
B2. “The Day the Dollar Die” (4:51)
B3. “Crystal Ball” (5:12)
B4. “Rumours of War” (3:30)

Sessions occurred at Dynamic Sound Studio in Kingston with Tosh and Word, Sound and Power producing. Geoffrey Chung recorded and mixed the album with assistant engineers James Nichols and Michel Sauvage.

The cover uses photography by Annie Leibovitz, whose image shows Tosh in side profile with his hands cupped against his face.

Rolling Stones lifted “Buk-In-Hamm Palace” as a June 1979 UK single (b/w “The Day the Dollar Die”). The same song appeared as a 1979 U.S. single (b/w “Recruiting Soldiers”).

Mystic Man reached No. 123 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Wanted Dread & Alive

Peter Tosh released his fifth solo studio album, Wanted Dread & Alive, in June 1981 on EMI America in the United States and Rolling Stones Records in Europe.

The album appeared in separate U.S./Jamaican and European programs; the tracklist below follows the U.S. EMI America sequence. Tosh places compact side-one pieces beside longer Rasta testimony on side two. “Nothing But Love” pairs Tosh with Gwen Guthrie over a horn-marked arrangement.

Wanted Dread & Alive contains eight Tosh compositions and the Ella Mitchell–Freddie Harris song “Nothing But Love.” Tosh recorded the album with bassist Robbie Shakespeare, drummer Sly Dunbar, guitarists Darryl Thompson and Mikey Chung, and keyboardists Keith Sterling and Robbie Lyn. The sessions also include flutist Pee Wee Walters, percussionists Noel “Scully” Simms and Uziah “Sticky” Thompson, reedist Dean Fraser, and trombonist Ronald “Nambo” Robinson. Barry Rogers, Jon Faddis, Lew Soloff, and Lou Marini appear on “Nothing But Love.”

“Coming in Hot” creeps through heat-wave boasts and gun-image phrases over a slow crawl. “Nothing But Love” glides through a polished duet and rounded reply lines. “Reggaemylitis” extends fever-wordplay into a drawn-out chant. “Oh Bumbo Klaat” turns a street-level curse into a spiritual invocation with repeated title phrases. “Rastafari Is” deepens its praise line through solemn group harmony. “Fools Die” floats over flute wisps and electric-piano haze while Tosh draws the refrain into a high, held croon.

A1. “Coming in Hot” (3:37)
A2. “Nothing But Love” (5:01) – Mitchell, Harris
A3. “Reggae-Mylitis” (6:31)
A4. “The Poor Man Feel It” (4:09)
A5. “Cold Blood” (4:37)

B1. “Wanted Dread & Alive” (4:24)
B2. “Rastafari Is” (6:14)
B3. “That’s What They Will Do” (4:35)
B4. “Fools Die” (7:36)

Tosh produced Wanted Dread & Alive from 1981 sessions at Dynamic Studios in Kingston. Geoffrey Chung recorded and mixed the album, with assistant engineers Michael Riley, Noel Hearne, James Nichols, and Julian McBrowne.

The cover uses art direction and graphics by Neville Garrick. The front image frames Tosh inside a Western-style wanted-poster design.

EMI America lifted “Nothing But Love” as a May 1981 U.S. single (b/w “Oh Bumbo Klaat”). “Reggae-Mylitis” followed as a September 1981 U.S. single (b/w “Coming in Hot”).

Wanted Dread & Alive reached No. 91 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Mama Africa

Peter Tosh released his sixth solo studio album, Mama Africa, in June 1983 on EMI America.

Mama Africa contains seven Tosh compositions, the Donald Kinsey song “Where You Gonna Run,” and the Chuck Berry song “Johnny B. Goode.” The sessions retain Shakespeare, Dunbar, Chung, Golding, Lyn, Sterling, Fraser, Robinson, Scully, and Thompson from earlier Tosh albums. The album adds bassist Leebert “Gibby” Morrison and drummer Carlton “Santa” Davis.

“Mama Africa” sways through an extended homeland address and light African-styled accents. “Glasshouse” warns with preacher-like timing and hard clipped pauses. “Not Gonna Give It Up” rallies the encouragement line with Tamlins replies and sharp lead figures. “Stop That Train” glides through a steady offbeat pattern and a slide-like line. “Johnny B. Goode” charges through intricate rhythm, brass accents, keyboard shine, and a rising electric lead. “Peace Treaty” cracks gunshots across a bright refrain and a bitter cemetery line. “Feel No Way” leans through lean offbeat backing and a plain chorus return.

A1. “Mama Africa” (7:56)
A2. “Glasshouse” (5:52)
A3. “Not Gonna Give It Up” (5:48)
A4. “Stop That Train” (4:02)

B1. “Johnny B. Goode” (4:04) – Berry
B2. “Where You Gonna Run” (4:09) – Kinsey
B3. “Peace Treaty” (4:21)
B4. “Feel No Way” (3:31)
B5. “Maga Dog” (4:30)

Tosh and Chris Kimsey produced Mama Africa, with engineers Geoffrey Chung and Lancelot “Maxie” McKenzie. Tosh and Kimsey mixed the album, and John “Jellybean” Benitez mixed “Johnny B. Goode.” For the sessions, guitarists Darryl Thompson, Donald Kinsey, and Ed Elizalde joined keyboardists Byron Allred and Peter Couch, with harmonica player Jon Paris and backing singers Audrey Hall, Betty Wright, Dorett Myers, Pam Hall, Raymond Hall, and the Tamlins.

Intel-Diplo issued Mama Africa in Jamaica. The cover places a close portrait of Tosh against a red, green, and gold title field.

EMI America lifted “Johnny B. Goode” as a 1983 single (b/w “Glasshouse”), which reached No. 84 on the Billboard Hot 100. EMI issued “Where You Gonna Run” as a 1983 UK single (b/w “Stop That Train”) and “Mama Africa” as a 1983 UK single (b/w “Not Gonna Give It Up”).

Mama Africa reached No. 59 on the Billboard 200 and No. 49 on the UK Albums Chart.

Captured Live

Peter Tosh released his first live album, Captured Live, in September 1984 on EMI America.

The album condenses an August 23, 1983, concert at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles into a seven-track live program. “Coming in Hot” opens with a direct stage tempo and clipped guitar accents. “Bush Doctor” stretches the title refrain through a longer mid-set frame. “African” and “Get Up, Stand Up” keep the call-and-answer parts close to the lead line. “Equal Rights/Downpresser Man” joins two rights-themed songs into a side-two medley, and “Rastafari Is” closes the album with extended chant placement.

Captured Live contains five Tosh compositions, the Tosh–Bob Marley song “Get Up, Stand Up,” and the Chuck Berry song “Johnny B. Goode.” Tosh performed with bassist George “Fully” Fullwood, drummer Carlton “Santa” Davis, guitarists Donald Kinsey and Steve Golding, and keyboardist Keith Sterling.

“Coming in Hot” drives the stage set with hard accents and a terse lead line. “African” answers the crowd through a direct identity chant and clipped replies. “Bush Doctor” bounces through title replies and cure claims with brisk stage diction. “Johnny B. Goode” charges through bright stage accents and a sharpened chorus return. “Equal Rights/Downpressor Man” declares a justice command before the medley drops into a stern warning line. “Get Up, Stand Up” hammers its title command into crowd-facing call-and-response. “Rastafari Is” closes with live dubbing, growled sermon passages, and long-form chant.

A1. “Coming in Hot” (3:59)
A2. “Bush Doctor” (5:21)
A3. “African” (4:34)

B1. “Get Up, Stand Up” (4:28) – Tosh, Marley
B2. “Johnny B. Goode” (4:12) – Berry
B3. “Equal Rights/Downpresser Man” (5:59)
B4. “Rastafari Is”

Michael C. Collins produced Captured Live. Dayton “Bones” Howe recorded the concert with the Record Plant Mobile Studio, and Dennis Thompson mixed the album at RAK Studios in London.

The cover uses a concert photograph of Tosh with guitar in hand against a dark stage field.

Captured Live reached No. 152 on the Billboard 200. The album also received a Best Reggae Recording nomination at the 27th Grammy Awards.

Murder and Investigation

Peter Tosh entered his final years after a long break from stage work. His last securely sourced concert appearance came at the December 1983 Pulse Superjam in Kingston. By 1987, he had returned with No Nuclear War and prepared for new touring work. He had just returned from business meetings in the United States when he reached his Barbican Road home in St Andrew.

On the evening of September 11, 1987, Tosh and Marlene Brown spent the night at the house with friends. Dennis “Leppo” Lobban entered with two armed men, ordered the room to the floor, and demanded United States currency. Tosh told Lobban he had no money in the house. The gunmen detained the group, took jewelry and personal effects, and brought arriving visitors into the same room.

Broadcaster and disc jockey Jeff “Free I” Dixon arrived before the shooting. Lobban and the other gunmen shot everyone in the room after the robbery demand failed. Tosh, Dixon, and Wilton “Doc” Brown died from the gunfire. Marlene Brown survived a gunshot wound by playing dead, while Carlton “Santa” Davis, Michael Robinson, and a woman identified as Joy also survived gunfire.

News accounts carried the murder as a Barbican home robbery and sent the case into international headlines. The early account centered on the belief that Tosh had returned from the United States with cash tied to record business. Kingston residents gathered at the University Hospital after the news reached the city.

Detective Senior Superintendent Isadore “Dick” Hibbert led the investigation. Police questioned Steve Russell, a taxi driver who said Lobban hired him near the Carib Theatre, left him waiting near the house, then returned after gunshots with two armed men. Lobban later came to Criminal Investigation Department headquarters with a Roman Catholic priest and refused to identify the two accomplices. Police charged Lobban and Russell with the murders of Tosh, Dixon, and Brown.

The Home Circuit Court tried Lobban the following June. A jury convicted him on three murder counts after brief deliberation, and the court imposed a death sentence. Russell faced charges in the case, but Lobban became the only convicted killer. Lobban maintained an alibi, pursued appeals, and later left death row after death-penalty rulings; subsequent accounts identify his punishment as life imprisonment.

The court record established the case as an armed robbery by Lobban and two unidentified gunmen. A separate street account claimed that Lobban resented Tosh over prison time, but the trial did not prove that story. Other theories pointed to Tosh’s political speech, his public criticism of state power, and his anti-apartheid stance, but the judicial record did not establish a political order behind the murders.

Tosh had planned a world tour scheduled to start in November, with longtime associates Tony Chin and George “Fully” Fullwood expected for the road. The tour became a tribute run after his death.

No Nuclear War

EMI issued Peter Tosh’s seventh and final solo studio album, No Nuclear War, on September 21, 1987.

The album places anti-nuclear protest and anti-apartheid address inside late-period reggae arrangements.

No Nuclear War contains eight Tosh compositions. The sessions include bassists Daniel “Danny AxeMan” Thompson, George “Fully” Fulwood, and Leebert “Gibby” Morrison, with drummer Carlton “Santa” Davis and guitarist Steve Golding. Keyboardists Keith Sterling and Tyrone Downie join percussionists Scully Sims and Uziah “Sticky” Thompson. The horn section includes David Madden, Dean Fraser, Junior “Chico” Chin, and Ronald “Nambo” Robinson, with backing singers Cynthia Schloss, June Lodge, Nadine Sutherland, Pam Hall, and Ruddy Thomas.

“No Nuclear War” declares its warning through a heavy, solemn arrangement and drawn-out refrain. Several tracks add a synthetic sheen beneath Tosh’s blunt topical phrases. “Fight Apartheid” states its protest over the album’s thick late-period backing. “Vampire” steadies the set with a roots-styled pattern and direct warning line. “Lessons in My Life” trudges through the same heavy arrangement profile as the title piece. “In My Song” softens the program with a plainer sung cadence.

A1. “No Nuclear War” (8:00)
A2. “Nah Goa Jail” (4:49)
A3. “Fight Apartheid” (4:58)
A4. “Vampire” (3:34)

B1. “In My Song” (4:16)
B2. “Lessons in My Life” (3:51)
B3. “Testify” (5:30)
B4. “Come Together” (4:23)

Tosh and Marlene Tosh produced No Nuclear War. Dennis Thompson and Tosh mixed the album. The cover uses illustration by Neville Garrick with photography by Adrian Boot.

Parlophone lifted “In My Song” as a July 1987 UK single (b/w “Come Together”).

No Nuclear War received the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1988.

Funeral, Mourning, and Legacy

Tosh’s funeral service took place at the National Arena in Kingston. The public ceremony placed his mother Alvira Coke, his children, musicians, and mourners inside a national space. Andrew Tosh sang “Jah Guide” and “Equal Rights,” a pair of songs that placed his father’s repertoire in a direct family line.

Jamaican mourners treated the death as another act of gun violence inside island life, while overseas newspapers framed the murder as the killing of a founding Wailer and solo bandleader. The memorial response carried the same split that had marked his public role: private grief for Winston McIntosh, public attention to Peter Tosh.

No Nuclear War won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 1988. Jamaica awarded Tosh the Order of Merit in 2012. In November 2016, museum organizers opened the Peter Tosh Museum at the Pulse complex in Kingston. South Africa later awarded him the Order of the Companions of O. R. Tambo for his anti-apartheid work.

Tosh kept the Wailers’ early harmony language in view, then carried that language into solo records built around cannabis law, police violence, African liberation, prison, and religious authority. Later reggae singers and cultural workers drew from his posture, phrase endings, guitar stance, and insistence on justice as a central word in Jamaican music.

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