Peter Tosh, born Winston Hubert McIntosh (19 October 1944 – 11 September 1987), was a Jamaican reggae musician who was a core member of The Wailers who then went on to have a successful solo career as well as being a trailblazer for the Rastafari movement. Peter Tosh was born in Petersfield (Westmoreland, Jamaica) with a father and mother too young to take care of him. He grew up raised by his aunt. Nicknamed ‘Stepping Razor’, he began to sing and learn guitar at an early age, inspired by American radio stations. After an illustrious career with The Wailers and as a solo musician, he was murdered at his home during a robbery.
He often struggled in Jamaica with his group the Wailers (aka the Wailing Wailers - the group included Bunny Wailer and the world-renowned Bob Marley). Tosh joined them on a tour of England in 1972. This was to become his first step to world fame, as during this trip the group signed with Chris Blackwells’ Island Records. Their first album for this record label was the classic LP Catch A Fire. This album represented an entirely new breed of reggae, which meshed Jamaican roots riddims with American soul music and British rock.
A tour of America and Britain followed as well as several successful albums. However, tension grew within the group, especially between Peter Tosh and Bob Marley, as Tosh witnessed Marley’s persona within the group overshadow his own. Both Tosh and Bunny Wailer left in 1975 in pursuit of solo careers.
Tosh’s solo career included a series of major hits.
