(It's not Marley, yet is full-on Reggae)

I've never thought of that Toots and the Maytals as full-on reggae. I don't have the vocab to explain why, though.

There's an assload of reggae that's not Bob. He's only the most famous. Not the most prolific, or even, probably the most innovative. He just worked out how to get his message out.

I saw Toots and the Maytalls at a Gathering of the Vibes festival in '92 or thereabouts. It was a very Vegas Elvis-ish performance. Kind of surreal.

So I caved and downloaded Redemption Song since I couldn't recall hearing it. Yep, I've heard it which is not surprising, just didn't remember. I don't seek out reggae, but hear it often in my surroundings. Very little is sing-a-longable for me. It is comfy and enjoyable music for me since I tend to associate it with my loved ones that have it on all the time.

Were I Michael I would have been surprised that Sawyer knew the lyrics.

It's interesting to me that everyone seems to think that it's natural for Michael to know Bob Marley. Is it mostly a race assumption, or because he's an artist, or was before he started doing construction?

Michael hasn't been painted as a music fan, let alone a reggae fan, as far as I know. and it seems to me Sawyer may have had more chances to get exposed to different kind of music than Michael.

I don't think so much that it's natural for Michael, just that it's more likely than he'll know Bob than your average person (i'd put educated black folk not quite as high as hippie backpacker, but higher than most Americans).

I also think that Sawyer is less likely than average because it's so outside his portrayed character -- I don't see where you're getting the "more chances" thing.

It seems to me that Sawyer has done a lot more traveling than Michael has, and mixed with more different kinds of people, which to me can mean exposure to different music.

Also, maybe it's my misconception, but it seems like a con man would make an effort to know a little bit about a lot of different things, in case in came it handy.

I've found that Marley is required listening for the group with which I associate Michael - part of standard diaspora exploration.

Of course, I was surprised to get to the end of the thread after watching the ep so late and see the slave ship misconceptions standing - so I adjusted my Sawyer expectations a bit downwards.

There is a difference between how Sawyer has shown himself to Michael and how he has been shown to us. It surprises me less that Sawyer may enjoy a variety of music than it might Michael.

Also - I think if Michael had liked Sawyer all along, he'd have been less surprised. Just because.