"No Woman, No Cry" is a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

song by

Bob Marley and the Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as The Wailers, and prior to that The Wailing Rudeboys, The Wailing Wailers and The Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Robert ...

. The song was recorded in 1974 and released on the studio album '' Natty Dread''. The

live recording An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records coll ...

of this song from the 1975 album '' Live!'' was released as a single and is the best-known version; it was later included on several compilation albums, including the greatest hits compilation ''

Legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...

''. It was recorded at the Lyceum Theatre in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on 17 July 1975 as part of his '' Natty Dread Tour''. The live version of the song ranked No. 37 on ''Rolling Stone''s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Writing and composition

Although

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

is widely believed to have written the song (the lyrics are highly personalised and mention Georgie making cornmeal porridge, Marley's favourite dish), or at least the melody, a songwriter credit was given to Vincent Ford, a friend of Marley's who ran a soup kitchen in Trenchtown, the

ghetto A ghetto, often called ''the'' ghetto, is a part of a city in which members of a minority group live, especially as a result of political, social, legal, environmental or economic pressure. Ghettos are often known for being more impoverished t ...

of Kingston, Jamaica, where Marley grew up. The royalty payments received by Ford ensured his efforts would continue. The original studio version of the song used a drum machine.

Jean Roussel Jean Alain Roussel (born 1951 in Port Louis, Mauritius) is a Musician, Composer, Record Producer, Arranger, Educator and 'Music and Life Coach'. He is best known for keyboard work from the 1970s through today, playing regularly with Cat Stev ...

provided the arrangement and Hammond organ parts for this recording, and this uptempo version used a drum machine for the percussion. The title and main refrain, "No Woman, No Cry", means "Woman, don't cry". The lyric is sometimes misunderstood outside Jamaica to mean "if there is no woman, there is no reason to cry". The lyric is rendered "No, woman, nuh cry" in

Jamaican patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with West African influences, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican diaspora. A majority of the non-English ...

. The "nuh" is pronounced with a short schwa vowel (a "mumbled" vowel, often represented as "uh" in spelling) and represents a clitic ("weakened") form of "no". Marley mentions the Government Yards of Trench Town, a public housing project in Kingston where he grew up. The lyrics also mention cornmeal porridge, a popular breakfast in Jamaica.

Charts

Certifications

Fugees version

"No Woman, No Cry" was covered by American hip hop group

Fugees Fugees (; sometimes The Fugees) is an American hip hop group formed in the early 1990s. Deriving its name from a shortening of the word "refugees", the group consists of Wyclef Jean, Pras Michel, and Lauryn Hill. The group rose to fame with i ...

. It was released in November 1996 as the fourth single from their second studio album, '' The Score'' (1996). The song was produced by

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...

and

Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...

. Fugees' version of the track features Jean on lead vocals and changes the lyric "in a government yard in Trenchtown" to "in a government yard in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

". An official remix of the track, featuring Stephen Marley, was included on the group's third release, '' Bootleg Versions''. Jean later recorded a solo version of the track for his 2003 anthology ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

''. Fugees' version was successful worldwide, peaking atop the New Zealand Singles Chart for two weeks, reaching number-two in the United Kingdom and becoming a top 40 hit in 13 additional countries. It did not chart on the US '' Billboard'' Hot 100 due to not receiving a physical release in the US, which at the time was a requirement for songs to appear on the Hot 100. It instead charted on the ''Billboard''

Hot 100 Airplay The Radio Songs chart (previously named Hot 100 Airplay until 2014 and Top 40 Radio Monitor until 1991) is released weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and measures the airplay of songs being played on radio stations throughout the United States acro ...

chart, peaking at number 38.

Critical reception

Larry Flick from '' Billboard'' wrote, "Fugees continue to offer the hip-hop masses a thorough musical history—this time targeting

's classic

hit "No Woman, No Cry". Steve Marley's heartwarming vocal similarity to his dad and Wyclef's present-day

, N.Y.- project-sensitive lyrics successfully bind new jacks to danceball's reggae origins. The video for the single continues the legacy:

gets her unique vocal swerve on with the Melody Makers in scenes reminiscent of Rita, Judy, and Marcia's I-Three days, and early Wailers footage interspersed with the collaborators' studio time supplies an overall tear-jerking, historic experience."

Track listings

* UK CD1 # "No Woman, No Cry" (LP version) - 4:03 # "No Woman, No Cry" (Remix) - 3:55 # "No Woman, No Cry" (Remix instrumental) - 3:55 # "Killing Me Softly" (Live) - 4:25 * UK CD2 # "Don't Cry, Dry Your Eyes" - 5:03 # "Don't Cry, Dry Your Eyes" (Instrumental) - 5:03 # "No Woman, No Cry" (LP version) - 4:03 # "A Change Is Gonna Come" (Live) - 6:04

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Tems version

"No Woman, No Cry" was covered by

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

singer,

Tems Temilade Openiyi (born 11 June 1995), known professionally as Tems, is a Nigerian singer. She rose to prominence after she was featured on Wizkid's 2020 single "Essence," which reached the top ten of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 after the releas ...

and Marvel Music for the soundtrack of the

Marvel Cinematic Universe The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...

(MCU) film '' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever''. It was produced by Ludwig Göransson and released on 25 July 2022 as the lead single off the EP. It received generally positive receptions from fans who viewed the teaser trailer and on debuted at number one on the Billboard ''

World Digital Song Sales The World Digital Song Sales chart (formerly World Digital Songs) is a weekly record chart compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by ''Billboard'' magazine. Established in 2010—with the issue dated January 23—as one of 21 genre-specific so ...

'' chart.

Charts

References

External links

* {{authority control 1974 singles 1996 singles 2022 singles Bob Marley songs Joan Baez songs Fugees songs Tems (singer) songs Number-one singles in New Zealand Song recordings produced by Salaam Remi Songs about poverty Songs about Jamaica Song recordings produced by Frank Farian Spunge songs 1973 songs Quotations from music 1974 neologisms Island Records singles Ruffhouse Records singles Hollywood Records singles