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MUSIC TO OUR EARS
(... CONTINUED FROM ISSUE 3)
ONE SONG TO UNITE US ALL
By Julián Valverde
What would you say if I told you that there’s a song that can bring us together? Well, that song exists and it is called One Love, by the music legend Bob Marley, a well-known song around the world that talks about unity and peace.
Let me begin by telling you about the story of this song, which Bob Marley composed at a time of conflict in Jamaica. The Jamaican government commissioned him to give a concert in their country in order to stop the civil war that was raging at that moment. Bob Marley accepted mainly because he was an activist of the Rastafarian movement, and so he was opposed to any kind of war and to class or race distinction.
The lyrics of the song are beautiful, especially when the chorus goes “…One love, one heart, let’s get together and feel all right…” These verses convey the message that we are all equals and that by joining our hearts we can create a better world without hate or hard feelings. Then the topic of Catholicism comes up when the lyrics go: “Let's get together to fight this Holy Armageddon (One love); So when the Man comes there will be no, no doom (One song); Have pity on those whose chances grow thinner; There ain't no hiding place from the Father of Creation”, meaning that we need to get all together in brotherhood to prevent doomsday and that God is there to guide us all and show us the way towards redemption. It is here that we feel encouraged to spread peace instead of bullets.
We can also appreciate the use of parallelism in “One love, One heart”, which creates a sense of equity and brotherhood among humans, emphasizing our most precious feeling, love. Despite these simple words, the author expresses strong feelings in a universally spoken language: music. There is also use of irony in the phrase “Holy Armageddon” The choice of Holy reverses the meaning of Armageddon since the literal meaning of this word is death and destruction of the world.
Finally, the melody is perfect, being emotive and cheerful. The synchronization of the instruments, the female trio called Third World and Bob Marley is beyond me. Listening to this song gives me a sense of complete relaxation, joy, pride and peace with my soul. Bob Marley is the best music artist of all times.
So, how can a song be so touching and persuasive at the same time? Personally, I’m certain that music is a great instrument to communicate messages and ideals, and this song stands up for the unification and peace our world needs so much. The basic message it conveys is that instead of creating wars and fighting each other for vested interests, we must unite and share the world peacefully. Bob Marley always believed in these ideas and millions of people, like me, consider him a leader. From my point of view, a song like One Love, gets your adrenaline going and arouses deep emotions. That’s why Bob Marley is a legend and this song is so important to me.
Briefly, we should all take some minutes to think about the damage we are doing to ourselves and to each other, and – why not? – relax for a while with One Love, the best reggae song ever written.