Interview with photographer Cookie Kinkead
(by Marco Virgona - DEC 2006)

I love the pic in the back cover of Catch a Fire album: it was taken by photographer Cookie Kinkead in 1972. Bob has his famous "screw face" expression and his sever look. They are musicians but they look like jungle guerillas.

Cookie Kinkead: "It was my first photography job! I got paid what is now equivalent of US $ 1.00!!! (in those days it was about 50 US). I drove around Kingston for 3 days traying to "gather" them all into the little mini moke. Finally, the second day, I had located them all and they were all in the vehicle. Then one of them spotted some lady (a baby moddah) and out he jumped when we were at a stop sign (not many traffic lights then). So it took another day to find him! These were the days before cell phones so one could not easily find out where anyone else was. But it was quite hilarious, although time-consuming. Most people thought I was creazy to be driving all over Kingston with these "weird radical musicians" but there was something about their energy that i was very appealing to me"

Marco Virgona: "Can you reveal the venues of those photo sessions? It was Kingston?"
Cookie Kinkead: "The session was up in Gordon Town, a few miles out of Kingston, in the hills. After taking three days to get them all together, they only had enough time for about half an hour of shooting! More time was spent building the spliffs that were consumed before and during the photo shoot, than on the shoot itself"

Marco Virgona: " In the famous photo of the Catch a Fire back cover, Bob and the Wailers stand on a flight of steps: do you remember the place exactly?
Cookie Kinkead: "Dickie Jobsons riverside home in Gordon Town"

Marco Virgona: "What about them?"
Cookie Kinkead: "They were certainly more carefree than now. We had fun and laughed a lot. And everyone sort of "jelled" easily

Marco Virgona: "They were polite or embarassed during that photo sessuon?
Cookie Kinkead: "They were very sure of themselves (but in an innocent way)... and I can recall Bob telling me emphatically that day that his music was going to impact and change the world

Marco Virgona: "Do you have any other photos from that session?"
Cookie Kinkead: All the photos I took that day were given to Island/Chris Blackwell so should be in the U.K. archives that Adrian Boot manages

Marco Virgona: Have you ever any further contact or meeting with Bob?
Cookie Kinkead: "I saw Bob quite a bit in the years to follow. Especially in New York as would go to his concerts and when he performed at Max's Kansas City etc... the small club.
The last time I saw him we were both crossing Park Avenue in New York (not a regular crosswalk) and we met on the median... and we smiled at each other and he said "Yuh memba? (which means: do you remember?)... and all I thought of then was back to the first day when he told me his music would impact and change the world. And we smiled again... and walked on...

please pay a visit to Cookie's web site at www.cookiekinkead.com

Born in Kingston Jamaica, Cookie?s first official assignment was in the early 70?s with Bob Marley and the Wailers for their album ?Catch a Fire?. She spent three memorable days roaming the capital in a little jeep trying to round up the members of the group in an era when Bob sported an afro. She has been working and traveling the world ever since and her work can be seen in a host of top flight magazines including Elle D?cor, Vogue, Travel & Leisure, National Geographic, Conde Nast Traveler and The World of Interiors. Some of her regular clients include Chris Blackwell, Coral Sands, The Landing and Tiamo resorts in the Bahamas. Cookie uses very little equipment and prefers to make use of the best natural light. Inspired and innovative, her low-key approach and infectious vitality bring out the best in her subjects whether she is photographing people, travel or interiors/style. She has also photographed many celebrities including Ralph Lauren, Naomi Campbell, Bono, Quincy Jones, and Bob Marley, and her work has been featured most recently in ?Eat Caribbean? as well as in Diane Von Furstenburg?s ?Bathrooms? and Terence Conrans? ?Essential House Book

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Money is numbers and numbers never end. If it takes money to be happy, your search for happiness will never end (bob marley)