Dennis Morris: ‘I bunked off school and became Bob Marley’s photographer’

On a chilly morning in 1973, a 14-year-old Dennis Morris made a decision that would change his life forever.

“Bob Marley was coming over to do his first tour of England and I decided I wanted to photograph him, so I bunked off school to go to the club where he was doing the first date in London.

“As he walked towards me, I said ‘can I take your picture?’ and he said ‘yeah man, come in’.”

During breaks in the soundcheck, Marley began chatting to the schoolboy about growing up in England, while Morris questioned him about his life in Jamaica.

“And then he told me about the tour and he asked me if I’d like to come along. So next morning I packed my bag, as if I was doing sports, went to the hotel and we were off.”