From ladowntownnews.com:

Ziggy Marley stood by his father’s guitar on a recent weekday morning and smiled broadly as he touched the strings on the brown Les Paul classic. It was one of the few guitars the reggae legend ever used on stage.

Ziggy paid tribute to his father, the late Bob Marley, who died three decades ago, by playing it himself at shows. While Ziggy admitted that he would like to play it again someday, he seemed comfortable putting it on display at the Grammy Museum in Downtown Los Angeles. The Les Paul is one of the highlights in the newly opened exhibit Bob Marley, Messenger.

“That was his weapon. He poured his sweat into that wood, into that guitar,” Ziggy said in a soft, almost whisper-like voice. “That was his baby.”

As Marley’s music played in the background, anthems like “Redemption Song” and “Could You Be Loved,” Ziggy helped open the show that includes more than 90 items. The exhibit, which runs through Oct. 2 at the South Park facility, contains candid photographs and personal items like his guitar, pictures provided by his family and some clothes.

It also showcases his impact on music, with video testimonials from stars he influenced. The theme, however, is encompassed in the word in the show’s title: The exhibit is intended to spread Marley’s message of hope and unity.

“Always underneath his music was this message of one world, one love, one heart and unity and also a sense of aspiring to a higher plane,” said Bob Santelli, the museum’s executive director. “He was the messenger, and it’s a good message to have in the exhibit on the 30th anniversary of his passing.”

Ziggy Marley came to the Downtown venue on May 11, exactly 30 years to the day after Marley died in a Miami hospital at the age of 36 of cancer. The time he spent making music — about two decades — has now been well eclipsed by the time he has influenced others. He brought reggae to the forefront with more than a dozen albums and his impact on popular culture has been compared to music icons such as John Lennon and Bob Dylan.

“The music is still relevant because of the message,” Ziggy said, his long dreadlocks tucked under a white tam hat (essentially a big beanie), and wearing a long-sleeved green army shirt and faded jeans. “The message is timeless and the person behind the message also is something special. Bob as a person was someone who had a light, an energy.”

Read the whole story at ladowntownnews.com

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