Bob Marley & The Wailers ADD
Bob Marley & The Wailers Concert Posters Hit Record Highs at Auction
05/15/2023 by Jack Low
Bob Marley posters hit record highs and are recession proof. When there is a world of uncertainties from Bitcoin to the stock market. There is one thing that still remains true. It is the rarity and the strong bull market for original Bob Marley concert posters. The man who sings of freedom and truth is still one of the top performers when it comes to auctions. Recently in the Music Memorabilia & Concert Posters Signature Auction at Heritage Auctions (May 11-14, 2023) three original posters sold and hit a new auction high for Bob Marley & The Wailers concert posters.
The four-date Japan 1980 concert poster sold for $5,250.00 (with Buyers Premium). There are a few Japan 1979 tour posters out on the market today that you can find on auction sites. This Japan poster is the rarest of them all. The Japan tour of 1979 is the only time Bob Marley & The Wailers played Japan. The tour was a success and was highlighted by new instruments the band was given by Yamaha which led to a whole unique sound for this the far east leg of the Babylon By Bus tour.
The second poster to sell for $2,500.00 (with BP) was the Australia 1979 poster, which listed 5 stops in April 1979. In fact, Bob Marley & The Wailers played a total of 10 concerts in Australia from April 18th to May 1st. There was an additional date in Adelaide and 2 further dates each in Melbourne and Sydney, This tour poster has a photograph of Bob from the 1975 tour with the icon red, gold and green "Live" across the middle. This tour poster also marks the only time Bob Marley & The Wailers performed in the land from Down Under.
The last poster to sell of the lot was Turin, Italy 1980. It sold for $6,875.00 (with BP). This concert poster was the second and final show Bob Marley & The Wailers performed in Italy on the worldbreaking Uprising European tour of 1980. The poster itself has the photograph from Dennis Morris taken in London in 1974 of Bob smoking a joint and the background features the Rastafarian colors of Red, Green, and Gold.
All three of these posters are very rare and could each be a main piece in anyones Bob Marley collection.
These Bob Marley posters are just the lastest of his posters to hit auction houses and sell for top dollar. Previous posters of the Hawaii Tour in 1979 and the first show dates of the Survival tour in 1979 at the famous Apollo Theatre both sold for a price of $4,250.00 (with BP) in 2022.
See below more details on the recently auctioned posters as described by the auction house:
BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS 1979 FOUR-DATE JAPANESE TOUR/CONCERT POSTER
SOLD ON MAY 13, 2023: $5,250.00
Description:
"An original glossy-paper tour poster for Bob Marley & the Wailers' tour of Japan in April 1979. This is the real deal, a striking poster of gold & maroon that was made strictly for advertising, never reproduced commercially, and is mostly in Japanese. Great image of Marley at the mic with his fist raised and the gold sea crashing below him. This found Bob and the band in between the Kaya and Survival albums, and is a nice companion piece to the Australian tour poster we also have in this auction, although much rarer. The Japanese were known for doing very small runs with concert posters in this era, and never turning them into merch pieces.
Audiences worldwide really had high expectations for Marley's shows after the release of Babylon by Bus in 1978, a double live album that closed with a rousing "Jamming." The Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, and remains reggae music's greatest ambassador 42 years after his passing. This is arguably the reggae great's most legendary, sought-after and hardest-to-find concert poster of them all. Measures 20 1/4" x 28 1/2" and grades to Very Good condition."
BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS 1979 MULTI-DATE AUSTRALIAN CONCERT POSTER
SOLD ON MAY 13, 2023: $2,500.00
Description:
"An original large paper advertising poster for Bob Marley & the Wailers' Australian tour in April 1979, in between the Kaya and Survival albums, and is a nice companion piece to the Japanese tour poster comprising the previous lot. The dates advertised are April 18 in Brisbane, the 20th in Adelaide, the 23rd in Perth, the 25th in Melbourne and the 27th in Sydney.
Great, rasta-colored "Live!" spanning the width of this poster. Audiences worldwide really had high expectations for Marley's shows after the release of Babylon by Bus in 1978, a double live album that closed with a rousing "Jamming." The Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer has sold more than 75 million records worldwide, and remains reggae music's greatest ambassador 42 years after his passing. Measures 23 1/2" x 35" and grades to Very Good condition."
BOB MARLEY AND THE WAILERS 1980 TURIN, ITALY CONCERT POSTER
SOLD ON MAY 13, 2023: $6,875.00
Description:
"A large poster for a stadium gig featuring the reggae legend (as well as opening acts, including the Average White Band) in a soccer/football stadium on June 28, 1980. Marley would depart the physical world the following year, leaving behind a vast array of classics that still resonate. From songs of love, freedom, and solidarity, Marley's message is timeless. Measures 26 ½" x 38" and grades to Very Good condition. "
