Peter Tosh was born to extremely young parents who refused to accept responsibility for him, therefore depriving him of the protection and affection that children normally demand from their parents. He was reared by his aunt in the absence of his parents, but only in the literal sense. Anyone who saw Tosh in his younger days would assume that he had raised himself. He was a competent, self-sufficient individual who battled for a variety of causes. He became a voice for individuals who were unable to speak or who lacked the tools to express their views to a global audience. Some despised Tosh, while others admired him as a renegade hero. To many, he was a savior; a saint come to physically and emotionally free the people of Jamaica through his music. He was a founding member of the band ‘The Wailers,’ which provided another notable personality and musician, Bob Marley, a head start in the world of music. ‘Catch A Fire,’ the group’s first collaboration, was born out of the group’s trials in Jamaica. Tosh utilized music as a tool to express his thoughts and ideas as the band’s lead vocalist. He had a great solo career in addition to his time with ‘The Wailers,’ which was cut short due to his terrible death.
Childhood and Adolescence
Winston Hubert McIntosh was born in Jamaica on October 19, 1944, to parents who were far too inexperienced to nurture him. Instead, he was reared in Grange Hill by his aunt. While living with his aunt, he was heavily influenced by American radio stations and acquired an early interest in singing and playing the guitar.
He went to Kingston in the early 1960s and began selling sugarcane juice. During this period, he met Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer and became friends with them. The trio began to work with Joe Higgs, their vocal coach, to polish their distinct musical abilities. They quickly achieved their ambitions and, in 1962, formed the band ‘The Wailers.’
Career of Peter Tosh
They began by performing versions of American pop tunes, and their popularity grew over time. Because he was the only self-taught pianist and guitarist among the three, Tosh was crucial to the ensemble. By the 1970s, the band had grown to include a number of new members. In 1973, the group acquired a record deal with Chris Blackwell’s Island Records Company and released their first single, “Catch A Fire.” ‘Burnin’, their second studio album, was released the same year.
In the same year, he was involved in an accident that changed his life forever. In 1974, Island Records’ Chris Blackwell declined to sign Tosh for a solo album, prompting Tosh and Bunny Wailer to leave ‘The Wailers,’ claiming Blackwell’s ‘unfair treatment’ as the cause. Under CBS Records, he released his solo first album, ‘Legalize It,’ in 1976. The title tune was a smash, and Rastafarians and reggae music fans from all over the world began to support the album’s single. He released his second solo album, ‘Equal Rights,’ the following year.
In 1976, he established the reggae band ‘Word, Sound, and Power.’ He toured for the following several years with the rest of the band. He obtained a deal with Rolling Stones Records and released ‘Bush Doctor’ in 1978. One of the album’s songs, ‘Don’t Look Back,’ a cover version he performed with Mick Jagger, cemented his reputation as one of the top reggae performers of the time.
He issued his following album, ‘Mystic Man,’ in 1979, and two years later, ‘Wanted Dread and Alive,’ on the Rolling Stones’ record label. He released the album ‘Mama Africa’ in 1983. The next year, he went into voluntary exile in Africa, seeking heavenly guidance from medicine men. When he published his last studio album, ‘No Nuclear War,’ in 1987, following a brief sabbatical, it looked that the artist was resuming his career. In the same year, this album earned a prestigious prize.
Major Projects of Peter Tosh
‘Burnin’ was his fourth studio album, released in 1973 under the Chris Blackwell and ‘The Wailers’ moniker. On Billboard’s Pop Albums and Black Albums charts, ‘Burnin’ was rated #151 and #41. The alum was also ranked #319 in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the “500 greatest albums of all time.” In 2007, the album was added to the ‘National Recording Registry’ of the Library of Congress.
Achievements & Awards
In 1987, his album “No Nuclear War” received the Grammy Award for “Best Reggae Album.” In 2012, he was posthumously granted Jamaica’s third highest accolade, the ‘Order of Merit.’
Personal History and Legacy
In 1973, while driving back to his house with his lover, Evonne, at his side, a car traveling on the wrong side of the road collided with his vehicle, killing Evonne and severely fractureing his skull. Peter Tosh had a common-law marriage with Andrea Marlene Brown, with whom he had no children, and he survived the accident. Peter, on the other hand, has ten children from prior partnerships. Five sons and five daughters are among the ten children.
He was assassinated at this Jamaican home by a gang of three men who refused to leave unless Tosh handed them money.
They refused to leave his house since he didn’t have any money and continued to abuse him. During this time, some of Tosh’s friends arrived on the scene to congratulate him on his return to Jamaica, completely oblivious of what was going on inside. One of the gang’s three members became enraged and put a gun to Tosh’s head, killing him with the first shot.
The three guys went on to kill two DJs, Doc Brown and Jeff Dixon, and badly injure others. ‘Stepping Razor – Red X,’ a documentary on the artist’s life, music, and untimely death, was published in 1991. Andrea Brown said in 2006 that she would sell his M16 guitar on eBay, however Tosh’s son Andrew confirmed in 2011 that the instrument was in the hands of a close friend.
Estimated Net Worth
At the time of his death in 1987, Peter Tosh, a Jamaican reggae artist and vocalist, had a net worth of $1 million. Peter Tosh rose to prominence as a member of the Jamaican band “The Wailers.”
Trivia
This well-known reggae musician was a big supporter of unicycling. During his presentations, he would frequently ride a unicycle forwards, backwards, and hop, amusing audiences. Bob Marley presented a talk for the legalization of marijuana during his ‘One Love Peace Concert’ in 1978, for which he was jailed and severely assaulted in prison.