Author(s): John Masouri (Author), Roger Steffens (Introduction), Don Letts (Foreword)
Publisher: Omnibus Press
Publication Date: May 5, 2026
Language: English
Print length: 512 pages
ISBN-10: 1917274203
ISBN-13: 9781917274203
Book Description
The very first and definitive biography of Peter Tosh, rude boy, founder member of the Wailers and a compelling recording artist in his own right —Tosh was Jamaica’s most controversial reggae star.
For the Mystic Man, music was the message. A fiery advocate of Rastafari and African nationalism as well as the legalization of marijuana, his uncompromising political stance has won him a reputation as Jamaica’s Malcolm X. One of reggae’s most extraordinary stories, the life of Peter Tosh came to an end when he was brutally murdered in 1987 amidst rumors involving the supernatural and Kingston’s criminal underworld.
In this essential biography, John Masouri—esteemed reggae journalist and author of Pressure Drop: Reggae in the Seventies – conducts hundreds of interviews with those who knew Peter Tosh best, including Bunny Wailer and other close associates. Tracing his recording career, we learn of his encounters with Eric Clapton and Joe Cocker, and volatile relationships with Bob Marley and Lee Scratch Perry. Tosh’s darker side is also revealed in tales of the singer’s fascination with the occult and in unprecedented detail, his untimely and tragic demise.
With a new foreword by legendary filmmaker, DJ and Clash affiliate Don Letts.
John Masouri is a British music journalist and author based in Cornwall, with over four decades of expertise illuminating reggae and its vibrant offshoots – roots, dub, dancehall, and lovers rock. He’s written acclaimed biographies like Wailing Blues: The Story of Bob Marley’s Wailers, Pressure Drop: Reggae in the Seventies, and Simmer Down: The Early Wailers’ Story. A longtime contributor to Echoes magazine, he has also penned album liner notes, interviews, and documentaries for BBC, VP Records, and major labels.
Don Letts is as old as rock ‘n’ roll (b. 1956) and has lived a life infused with music, style and attitude. As DJ at London’s premier punk venue The Roxy (1977) Don introduced punks to reggae, and Bob Marley to the punky-reggae party. He made his first film while working at The Roxy (The Punk Rock Movie) using a hand-held Super-8 camera. Twenty years later Don directed the most successful Jamaican movie of all time, Dancehall Queen. In 1979 he directed the video for ‘London Calling’ by The Clash, after which he became renowned as one of the world’s most prolific and successful music video directors, going on to make more than 300 promos for artists as diverse as Elvis Costello, P.i.L and Ratt. Don co-wrote four hugely successful and influential Big Audio Dynamite albums and toured the world in the 1980s, performing in front of thousands of people. The band played sell-out gigs around the world on a reunion tour in 2011.
Roger Steffens is an actor, poet, broadcaster and writer, he is one of the world’s leading reggae archivists. His oral history of Bob Marley and the Wailers, So Much Things to Say was published in 2017 by W. W. Norton & Company.
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