Iconic reggae performer Peter Tosh brought his incredible backing band to Switzerland on July 16, 1979 for an impressive set at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Tosh’s performance was part of the event’s first ever night dedicated to reggae which also featured sets from Dennis Brown and Steel Pulse. Professionally-shot video of Peter Tosh & Co.’s Montreux Jazz ’79 set was broadcast on TV and thankfully can be viewed on YouTube below.
Peter Tosh was touring in support of Mystic Man and the former Wailers guitarist was leading a group that featured the dynamic rhythm section of drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespere. Up first in the set is “400 Years,” a song Tosh wrote for inclusion on Bob Marley & The Wailers’ 1973 album “Catch A Fire.” A highlight comes next in Peter’s always show-stopping rendition of “Steeping Razor.”
The set rolls on with “African” as well as a fiery version of the beloved classic “Get Up, Stand Up” and a cover of “Don’t Look Back” by The Temptations. Peter Tosh’s 1978 album Bush Doctor is then represented by “I’m The Toughest” and the LP’s title track. Mystic Man material forms most of the rest of the set in the form of “The Day The Dollar Die,” “Buk-In-Ham Palace” and the title track. Tosh’s Montreux ’79 performance also contains takes on “Burial” and “Pick Myself Up.”
Watch Peter Tosh play Casino de Montreux on this date in 1979:
Setlist
Peter Tosh at Casino de Montreux
- 400 Years
- Stepping Razor
- African
- Get Up, Stand Up
- Don't Look Back
- I'm the Toughest
- Bush Doctor
- The Day the Dollar Die
- Burial
- Buk-In-Ham Palace
- Mystic Man
- Pick Myself Up
