1978 · Behind the Songs
On the mellowest album of his career, Marley asked the simplest question in the sweetest way.
Kaya, the 1978 follow-up to Exodus, found Marley in a gentler mood — and “Is This Love” is its centerpiece, a love song built on one of the warmest grooves reggae ever produced. The rhythm sways rather than pushes; the melody seems to smile.
The song’s arrangement is a study in softness: the organ sighs, the guitar skanks lightly, and Marley’s voice — usually a preacher’s instrument — turns tender. It is a love song with no edge, and that was precisely its daring.
Released as a single, it became a substantial hit in Britain and a quiet classic in America, where its warmth made it a wedding favorite for decades. The song proved Marley could seduce as surely as he could incite.
In a catalog full of anthems and prophecies, “Is This Love” stands apart as pure feeling — the sound of a man at peace, inviting the world to feel the same.