6 56 Hope Road

CHAPTER 6 56 Hope Road By the mid-1970s, the Wailers were big stars. Songs from their two Island Records albums climbed the charts in the UK and the US. As a way to congratulate the band and show them he wanted to help them record more albums, Chris gave them a home he owned at 56 Hope Road.

56 Hope Road was a big white house in a wealthy neighborhood of Kingston. It became a hangout for friends of the band. Any hour of the night or day, musicians came and went. They wrote songs, played soccer, shared a meal, and talked about their Rastafari faith. By this time, Bob lived strictly by the Rasta way of life. He woke up early every morning to run. He kept a strict vegetarian diet, never eating any meat. He also

studied the Bible the way Rastas understood it. Parts of the house at 56 Hope Road were even painted the colors of the Ethiopian flag. Bob was on a mission to carry the Rasta message of harmony and goodwill to the world. 56 Hope Road was a great place for Bob to work and relax. The trouble was that his family had no place there. There was always noise and ganja smoke in the air. So Bob's family lived in an apartment far from Hope Road. Bob visited them sometimes, and Rita and the children visited him, too. Green, Gold, and Red

The flag of Ethiopia is an important Rastafarian symbol to those who live in Jamaica and other countries around the world. The green, gold, and red stripes of the flag have become symbolic colors of love and loyalty throughout the Rasta community. While on tour, Bob had children with women other than Rita. He had two sons born in 1972 to different mothers. Rita also had their second son, Stephen, in 1972. The next year, Bob had a new daughter born in England to yet another mother. Bob eventually had thirteen children, some adopted, with eight different mothers.

This was not easy for Rita. Soon, there was a rumor that Rita was dating another man. In 1974, she had her last child, Stephanie. Bob adopted Stephanie, but she wasn't his child. Through it all, Rita and Bob stayed married. Meanwhile, people were becoming very anxious about the political parties in Jamaica, as the JLP and the PNP fought for control. Some Jamaican citizens began working hard to elect one party or the other. This led to arguments over which party could provide more jobs, because most people in Jamaica were still very poor. The arguments turned violent, and many street gangs were formed. Suddenly it seemed as if everyone had guns. Bob had a lot of influence in Jamaica. Politicians knew he could get people to vote a certain way just by saying he liked one party better than the other. An old friend of his explained in that familiar Jamaican accent,

"Everyone want Bob Marley [on] their team." But Bob didn't want to get involved in politics. Just like when he was younger, Bob only fought when he had to. But he couldn't stop the fighting from showing up at his own door. On December 3, 1976, a group of men with guns approached the back door of 56 Hope Road. They began