The Bob Marley biopic Bob Marley: One Love will open in theaters next Friday, but for now, you can check out the film’s soundtrack, which functions as a greatest hits, of sorts, from Bob and The Wailers. Meanwhile, the film’s release will be accompanied by Bob Marley: One Love (Music Inspired By The Film), a seven-song EP featuring contemporary artists like Kacey Musgraves and Daniel Caesar covering the reggae icon’s classic songs. The latest single from the upcoming release is the best so far, with Leon Bridges covering the ultimate track from 1980’s Uprising, “Redemption Song.”
As Bridges is an accomplished guitarist in his own right and has a honeyed whiskey vocal tone, the warmth of his cover could melt even the coldest heart. While it’s not a straightforward cover, the song’s nature as a clean guitar ballad means Bridges’ take is both familiar enough to evoke nostalgia for the original but unique enough to stand on its own.
Bridges is a few years removed from his most recent full-length album, 2021’s Gold-Diggers Sound, but has stayed busy since then, recording two EPs with Texas psych-soul band Khruangbin in 2020 and 2022, and collaborating with Miranda Lambert on “If You Were Mine” in 2023. If “Redemption Song” is the first sign of a possible new release from Bridges in 2024, we’ll take it.
Listen to “Redemption Song” above.
Bob Marley: One Love (Music Inspired By The Film) is out on 2/14 through Tuff Gong/ Island Records.
