One Love: Are any of Bob Marley’s songs about to re-enter the UK chart ahead of his biopic’s release?

Today marks what would have been the 79th birthday of musical legend and pioneer Bob Marley, who died in 1981 from melanoma. Fitting that one week after his birthday his long-awaited biopic, “One Love” starring Kingsley Ben-Adir as the Rastafarian icon, is set for release in UK cinemas bringing to a new generation the legend of the influential reggae artist.

Despite his widespread influence though, Marley seldom collaborated with anyone else during his lifetime. A cursory look at his discography during his lifetime shows that he never collaborated with other artists except for The Wailers, with one of his few production credits being for his wife’s debut album, “Who Feels It Knows It” by Rita Marley in 1981.

But in the realm of sampling the artist, that’s a different story altogether. According to the website Who Sampled, the works of Bob Marley have been sampled 541 times, with works such as “Get Up, Stand Up” sampled by conscientious hip-hop group The Pharcyde and one of his relatives, Damian Marley sampling “Could You Be Loved” for his single, “And Be Loved” in 2002.

So with the combined 79th birthday celebrations and the forthcoming movie about to hit cinemas, could there be a chance that some of Bob Marley’s renowned works make their way back into the UK Top 40 this week?

Could any of Bob Marley’s singles enter the UK Top 40 this week?

Though the mid-week chart has not been announced yet, it’s not looking too likely this week that Bob Marley’s singles are going to enter the Top 40 - that’s according to figures we’ve scouted on Kworb for both Spotify and iTunes sales and streams.

Currently, “Three Little Birds” is in the iTunes charts in the United Kingdom at #78, giving it possibly the best chance to break into the top 40. However, Marley’s success on the UK album chart might be a little more hopeful; “Legend – The Best of Bob Marley & The Wailers” is currently sitting at the number 44 position on Apple Music, with the greatest hits compilation inside the top 40 on the iTunes download chart at number 20.

What has been the most successful Bob Marley single in the UK chart?

Depending on if you are a purist or not, there could be two answers to this; the highest ranking single by Bob Marley is “Sun Is Shining,” which peaked at number three in the UK singles chart in 1999. However, that version was a remix by Funkstar De Luxe so ardent fans might not accept that.

Instead, we would offer the alternative being “Buffalo Solider,” released on May 17 1983, which peaked in the UK Top 40 in fourth position. In total, Bob Marley has amassed eight UK top-ten hits and 18 UK Top 40 singles.

When is “One Love” out in cinemas in the UK?

The Bob Marley biopic, “One Love,” arrives in UK cinemas on February 16 2024, with select advance screenings in some cinemas taking place on Valentine’s Day 2024.