There were three things that Bob Marley was concerned about, social justice, music and football. – On tour, there was always football with the guys during the break. As you’ve probably noticed, Ajax’s Anthem is Bob Marley’s timeless classic Three Little Birds. Exactly that happened by chance.
The link between Ajax and Bob Marley was made in 2008 during an otherwise insignificant friendly against Cardiff at Ninian Park that ended 0-0. Cardiff’s stadium announcer Ali Yassine put on the song after the game, and Ajax’s travelling supporters cheered in it, before using it as the club anthem when they returned to Amsterdam.
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Marley’s son Ky-Mani got wind of the phenomenon and has performed the song twice in the Johan Cruyff Arena, first in 2012 and again in 2018 during a Champions League match against AEK Athens that Ajax won 3-0.
“My dad was a big football fan, and football and music went hand in hand,” Ky-Mani explained. “Being able to perform the song there, feeling the energy and vibration there that day, did something to me I will never forget. Ajax, that’s my team. From now until the day my number is gone.”
Marley’s daughter Cedella said: “I am deeply moved that Ajax have taken Three Little Birds and made it their anthem. Stories like this warm my heart and show how impactful songs like Three Little Birds can be. Football was everything to my dad… And to use his own words, ‘football is freedom.'”
A dreadlock from reggae legend Bob Marley’s iconic hair is expected to be sold for a very high sum when it goes under the hammer next week.
According to British NME, the lock of hair is sold with an autograph, and it is estimated to fetch around £25,000 – about 322,000 Norwegian kroner.
The almost four-centimeter-long loop originates from Marley’s appearance on the British music program “Top of the Pops” in 1978. The man who secured this small piece of the reggae icon’s hair says that he walked up to Marley shortly after the performance.
“Me and a friend went up to the stage where he had just performed. He chuckled happily, and I asked if I could take a piece of his hair. He just kept nodding and laughing – it seemed like he thought it was funny. So I twisted off a small dreadlock. And of course, he also gave me an autograph,” says the current owner of the lock of hair.
This is the first time in over 20 years that a piece of Bob Marley’s hair is sold at auction.
Highlights of Bob Marley’s career:
- Was one of reggae’s foremost pioneers and fronted the band The Wailers.
- Release classic albums such as Catch a Fire, Rastaman Vibration, Exodus and Legend.
- His international breakthrough came with the album Exodus in 1977, which was on the world charts for over a year.
- Had a huge hit with “No Woman, No Cry” and also wrote the peaceful “One Love” and “Get Up, Stand Up”.
- Awarded the UN Peace Medal in 1978 for his work against the apartheid system.
- Was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, and his music still sells millions of copies annually.
Bob Marley and the Love for Football:
- Marley was a keen football enthusiast and played the game himself as often as he could – often on bare feet or in old sneakers.
- Football was an important leisure time for him, in the midst of touring and political tensions in Jamaica.
- He gathered friends and locals for matches in his hometown of Kingston, and football became a symbol of community, joy and freedom for him – just like music.
- In documentaries and biographies, it is highlighted that Marley often had a football with him on tour, and that he used the sport to build bridges between people and spread the same positive energy as in his songs.
Bob Marley, who was Jamaican, died of cancer in 1981, only 36 years old. However, his music and message live on – now reinforced by stories about both locks of hair, football and a life of freedom.
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