Reggae Legend Bunny Wailer, Founding Member Of The Wailers, Dies At 73
Bunny Wailer, a founding member of The Wailers and reggae music legend, has died. He was 73.
Maxine Stowe, his manager, confirmed Wailer died on Tuesday (March 2) at the Medical Associates Hospital in Kingston, Jamaica. According to the Jamaica Observer, no cause of death was given, however he had been in and out of the hospital since suffering a second stroke in 2020.
Wailer, whose music career spanned seven decades, was born Neville Livingstone before adopting his famed name Bunny Livingstone. He was an original and founding member of the Wailers trio with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh.
While Marley and Livingstone were being mentored by “Godfather of Reggae” Joe Higgs, they met his fellow student Peter Tosh. The then-trio ventured to Kingston.
In 1965, the trio released their debut album, The Wailing Wailers. At that time, Bunny wrote and recorded one of his most famous songs, "Dreamland," which he later released on his solo album, Blackheart Man, in 1976.
The Wailers went international in 1973 with the release of "Catch a Fire" and follow-up album Burnin'. The group would subsequently split up.
In 1991, Bunny won a Grammy for Best Reggae Album for Time Will Tell: A Tribute to Bob Marley and would go on to win two more.
Bunny was the last surviving member of The Wailers.
