During 1970 and 1971, Wailer, Marley and Tosh worked with renowned reggae producers Leslie Kong and Lee "Scratch" Perry.

Two additional albums were produced before Tosh and Wailer departed from the band in 1974, citing dissatisfaction with their treatment by the label and ideological disagreements.

The Wailers were a groundbreaking ska and reggae group, noted for songs such as "Simmer Down", "Trenchtown Rock", "Nice Time", "War", "Stir It Up" and "Get Up, Stand Up".

The band formed in 1963 following self-taught musician Peter Tosh (1944–1987) meeting the singers Bunny Wailer (1947–2021) and Bob Marley (1945–1981).

They also worked with renowned reggae producer Leslie Kong, who used his studio musicians, called Beverley's All-Stars (Jackie Jackson, Paul Douglas, Gladstone Anderson, Winston Wright, Rad Bryan, Hux Brown) to record the songs that would be released as an album titled The Best of The Wailers.

[5] Braithwaite left shortly after providing lead vocals for the single "It Hurts to be Alone", leaving the band consisting of the trio of Wailer, Marley and Tosh.

In 1966, they created a rocksteady record label Wail N Soul M.[6] Constantine "Dream" Walker provided backing vocals from 1966 to 1967.

[citation needed] In 1972, while in London, the Wailers asked their road manager Brent Clarke to introduce them to Chris Blackwell, who had licensed some of their Coxsone releases for his Island Records.

"[10] The Wailers returned to Jamaica to record at Harry J's in Kingston, which resulted in the foundational tracks what would make up the album Catch a Fire.

Primarily recorded on an eight-track, Catch a Fire marked the first time a reggae band had access to a state-of-the-art studio and were accorded the same care as their rock 'n' roll peers.

Tosh believed that producer Blackwell, whom he unfavorably called "Chris Whiteworst", was responsible for the bad relationship between the band members.

[citation needed] Marley continued with a new line-up, which included the Aston Barrett (bass), Carlton Barrett (drums), Junior Marvin (lead guitar), Al Anderson (lead guitar), Tyrone Downie (keyboards), Earl "Wya" Lindo (keyboards), and Alvin "Seeco" Patterson on percussion.

It featured "No Woman, No Cry", a seminal song in the Wailers' canon, along with "Lively Up Yourself" and the more political "Them Belly Full (But We Hungry)".

[15] These changes caused a major dispute between Marley and Perry, when the former saw the albums, six months after their publication, in the Half Way Road in England.

Marley was in dispute with publishing company Cayman Music and sought to avoid contractual entanglements by putting the songs in the names of his family and friends, and provide them with potential future income.

[18] Also in 1976, Bunny Wailer (Livingston) released his debut solo album Blackheart Man, with Marley and Tosh contributing backing vocals and the Barretts forming the rhythm section on some tracks.

Most of the then-current Wailers band (the Barretts, Anderson, Downie) played on the record, with Rita Marley providing backing vocals.

Exodus also featured numerous songs which would go on to be hits and iconic Bob Marley & the Wailers tunes in their own right, including "Jamming", "Waiting In Vain", a new version of 1965's "One Love/People Get Ready" and the carefree, optimistic "Three Little Birds".

Bob Marley & the Wailers toured Europe extensively in support of Kaya, resulting in the live album Babylon by Bus, also released in 1978.

Marley and the Wailers returned to Jamaica in April 1978 to play the One Love Peace Concert in Kingston, aimed at calming political tensions and violence in their home country.

[27] In 1977, following persistent pain in his right big toe, Bob Marley had been diagnosed with acral lentiginous melanoma, a rare form of skin cancer.

[28] Doctors recommended amputation of the toe, but Marley refused for religious reasons; he also feared it would hinder stage performance.

It is officially the biggest-selling reggae album ever, with an estimated 28 million copies sold globally (as of 2024) [35] Carlton Barrett and Tosh died —both of them murdered— in 1987.

[11] In March 2013, an overview of most of the music made by the Wailers prior to their signing to Island Records was published by the Roots Reggae Library.