Marley schreef ‘Get Up, Stand Up’ samen met Peter Tosh toen beiden nog deel uitmaakten van The Wailers. Tosh en Marley waren na een tour door Haïti diep onder de indruk geraakt van de schrijnende armoede op het buureiland. Als Jamaïcanen waren ze wel wat gewend, maar Haïti overtrof echt alles. Marley was destijds nog geen superster en de single deed buiten Jamaïca helemaal niks. Later werd ‘Get Up, Stand Up’ natuurlijk hét verzetsanthem. Marley zou er tot zijn dood vrijwel elk concert mee afsluiten.
Get Up, Stand Up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, don’t give up the fight
Preacher man don’t tell me heaven is under the earth
I know you don’t know what life is really worth
Is not all that glitters in gold and
Half the story has never been told
So now you see the light, aay
Stand up for your right. Come on
Get Up, Stand Up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, don’t give up the fight
(Repeat)
Most people think great God will come from the sky
Take away ev’rything, and make ev’rybody feel high
But if you know what life is worth
You would look for yours on earth
And now you see the light
You stand up for your right, yeah!
Get Up, Stand Up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, don’t give up the fight
Get Up, Stand Up. Life is your right
So we can’t give up the fight
Stand up for your right, Lord, Lord
Get up, stand up. Keep on struggling on
Don’t give up the fight
We’re sick and tired of your ism and skism game
Die and go to heaven in Jesus’ name, Lord
We know when we understand
Almighty God is a living man
You can fool some people sometimes
But you can’t fool all the people all of the time
So now we see the light
We gonna stand up for our right
So you’d better get up, stand up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, don’t give up the fight
Get Up, Stand Up, stand up for your right
Get Up, Stand Up, don’t give up the fight
