What happened to Bob Marley two days before the Smile Jamaica concert in December 1976?

His recording studio burned down

At the 1978 One Love Peace Concert, Marley famously joined the hands of whom on stage?

Rival political leaders Michael Manley and Edward Seaga

Two rival captains of Jamaica's football clubs

His former bandmates Bunny Wailer and Peter Tosh

Bob Marley Quiz: Reggae Songs, Wailers and Legend of Jamaica

This Bob Marley quiz explores the life of Jamaica's most famous musician, from his birth in Nine Mile to The Wailers with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer, Eric Clapton's hit cover, the 1976 shooting, the One Love Peace Concert, the album Exodus, the compilation Legend, Rastafari, Zimbabwe's independence and a 2024 biopic. Ten questions.

Start Bob Marley Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 90 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 90s

Birthplace
In which small Jamaican village was Bob Marley born in 1945?
Bands
Which two musicians founded The Wailers with Bob Marley?
Covers
Which British guitarist had a US number one hit in 1974 with a cover of I Shot the Sheriff?
Attacks
What happened to Bob Marley two days before the Smile Jamaica concert in December 1976?
Concerts
At the 1978 One Love Peace Concert, Marley famously joined the hands of whom on stage?
Albums
In 1999, Time magazine named which Bob Marley album the best album of the 20th century?
Compilations
Which 1984 Bob Marley compilation became the best-selling reggae album of all time?
Faith
Bob Marley was a devoted follower of which religious movement, founded in Jamaica in the 1930s?
Africa
In 1980, Bob Marley performed at the independence celebrations of which African nation?
Films
Which actor played Bob Marley in the 2024 biopic Bob Marley: One Love?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: In which small Jamaican village was Bob Marley born in 1945?
Answer: Nine Mile
Nine Mile is in the hills of Saint Ann Parish. Marley's mausoleum is there too, and fans visit it from around the world.
Q2: Which two musicians founded The Wailers with Bob Marley?
Answer: Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer
The trio grew up in the Trench Town area of Kingston. Tosh and Bunny left the group in the early 1970s to pursue solo careers.
Q3: Which British guitarist had a US number one hit in 1974 with a cover of I Shot the Sheriff?
Answer: Eric Clapton
Clapton's version introduced Marley's songwriting to millions of new listeners. Marley's original appeared on The Wailers' album Burnin'.
Q4: What happened to Bob Marley two days before the Smile Jamaica concert in December 1976?
Answer: He was shot at his home
Gunmen attacked his house at 56 Hope Road in Kingston, wounding Marley, his wife Rita and his manager. Marley still performed at the concert.
Q5: At the 1978 One Love Peace Concert, Marley famously joined the hands of whom on stage?
Answer: Rival political leaders Michael Manley and Edward Seaga
Jamaica was torn by political violence at the time. The gesture became one of the most famous images in Jamaican history.
Q6: In 1999, Time magazine named which Bob Marley album the best album of the 20th century?
Answer: Exodus
Exodus was recorded in London after the 1976 shooting. It includes Jamming, Three Little Birds, One Love and the title track.
Q7: Which 1984 Bob Marley compilation became the best-selling reggae album of all time?
Answer: Legend
Legend was released three years after his death. It has spent more than 15 years on the Billboard 200 chart.
Q8: Bob Marley was a devoted follower of which religious movement, founded in Jamaica in the 1930s?
Answer: Rastafari
Rastafari reveres the former Emperor of Ethiopia, Haile Selassie I. Marley's dreadlocks and many of his lyrics reflected his faith.
Q9: In 1980, Bob Marley performed at the independence celebrations of which African nation?
Answer: Zimbabwe
He had written the song Zimbabwe to support the country's freedom struggle. He paid most of the costs of bringing his band to the event himself.
Q10: Which actor played Bob Marley in the 2024 biopic Bob Marley: One Love?
Answer: Kingsley Ben-Adir
The film was produced with the support of the Marley family, including his son Ziggy and his wife Rita. It was a box-office hit worldwide.

Bob Marley Quiz – The King of Reggae

Bob Marley is the most famous reggae musician in history and one of the best-known Jamaicans of all time. His songs about love, unity, faith and resistance spread reggae music around the world. Decades after his death in 1981, his music still sells millions of copies, and his face appears on posters, murals and T-shirts across the globe.

Robert Nesta Marley was born on February 6, 1945, in Nine Mile, a village in Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica. His mother was Jamaican and his father was a white Jamaican of English descent. As a teenager, Marley moved to Trench Town in Kingston, where he formed The Wailers with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer. Their early ska and rocksteady songs became local hits.

In the 1970s, signed to Island Records, The Wailers released Catch a Fire and Burnin', and Eric Clapton's cover of I Shot the Sheriff made Marley famous. As Bob Marley and the Wailers, he released classics such as No Woman, No Cry, Exodus, Redemption Song and Three Little Birds.

Marley was a devout Rastafarian and a voice for peace. After surviving a shooting in 1976, he returned in 1978 to perform at the One Love Peace Concert, joining the hands of rival politicians. He sang at Zimbabwe's independence in 1980. He died of cancer in 1981 at just 36.

His legacy lives on through the Bob Marley Museum in Kingston, his children's music careers and the best-selling album Legend. Jamaica celebrates his birthday every February 6.

Marley's songs have been covered by countless artists and used in films, adverts and protests. He received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, and his songs are still heard on radios worldwide.

This quiz covers the life, music, faith and legacy of Bob Marley.

What This Quiz Teaches

This quiz is perfect for music fans, reggae lovers and travelers to Jamaica.

Bob Marley's birthplace and early life
The Wailers and their founding members
Eric Clapton's famous cover
The 1976 shooting and the One Love Peace Concert
Exodus, Legend and Marley's Rastafari faith
Zimbabwe and the 2024 biopic

Quick Facts About Bob Marley

Bob Marley's middle name was Nesta.
He loved football and often played between concerts.
Several of his children, including Ziggy and Damian, became Grammy winners.
His home at 56 Hope Road is now the Bob Marley Museum.
One Love was used by the Jamaica Tourist Board in a famous campaign.
Marley received Jamaica's Order of Merit in 1981.