In 1973, Bob Marley, who had yet to become a global superstar, performed at the Speakeasy Club in London. A 13-year-old boy, Dennis Morris, passionate about music—and especially Marley’s—skipped school on purpose to see his idol. “I played truant to go see him, and it changed my life,” he recalls.
Their first encounter took place at the entrance of the venue, as the band was about to start rehearsing. Intrigued by the young boy with a camera, Marley invited him into his van. “Are you ready, Dennis?” he asked with a smile. That very moment is immortalized in one of the iconic photographs displayed at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris. But beyond this single image, this chance meeting marked the beginning of a lasting collaboration between the photographer and the reggae legend. Morris would become Marley’s official photographer, following him throughout his career.
Several photographs show the singer in an intimate light, far from the usual clichés of the “rasta prophet.” One of the most famous images in the exhibition captures Marley tuning his guitar—an instant caught between focus and release. The section of the exhibition dedicated to Bob Marley also reveals a lesser-known side of the artist: his kindness, his generosity, and his humor. The viewer discovers candid backstage moments, rehearsal shots, and glimpses of his quiet moments away from the stage and the fervor of the crowds. For Dennis Morris, this meeting was just as important personally as it was professionally, as he was also searching for his own place in society. “He taught me how to be a man, how to be Black, how to be proud,” explains the photographer.
Born in 1960 in Kingston, Jamaica, Dennis Morris grew up in London after his family emigrated. From an early age, he was drawn to photography. “I knew I wanted to be a photographer when I was nine years old,” he says. By the time he was 11, he had already sold his first photo to the Daily Mirror.
Later, in 1977, as the punk movement was exploding in the UK, Dennis Morris was offered a unique opportunity: to follow the Sex Pistols. The band’s manager, Malcolm McLaren, admired his work and invited him to document the behind-the-scenes of their tour. At the time, the band was at the height of provocation, embodying a rebellious youth rejecting the establishment.
One of the most striking photographs from this period shows Sid Vicious shirtless, his eyes filled with defiance. Another, taken in a run-down hotel, captures the raw chaos of their world, with Johnny Rotten sprawled across an unmade bed. “With them, it was total chaos—but a fascinating kind of chaos,” Morris recalls. The exhibition conveys this raw energy well, these moments when music history was at a pivotal point. Dennis Morris’s photographs capture the very essence of punk—an explosion of attitude, style, and restrained fury, accompanied by portraits that bring these moments to life.
Dennis Morris’s story is also that of a man who dared to follow his instincts. After his collaborations with Marley and the Sex Pistols, he became the official photographer for Public Image Ltd., the band Johnny Rotten founded after the Pistols split. His artistic approach evolved, yet it retained a unique spontaneity.
Beyond music, Dennis Morris has also turned his lens toward London’s Black communities. His photographs from the 1970s and 1980s paint a vivid portrait of Afro-Caribbean immigration in Britain. These images document the daily lives of those who helped shape the country’s multicultural identity during a time marked by the struggle for integration and racial tensions. “I was invited into homes where people would pose in their best light to show their families back home that they had succeeded in England,” says the photographer. “I’ve always wanted to capture the essence of things, what lies beneath appearances.”
In the 1980s, he distanced himself from music reportage to explore new horizons. He photographed London’s youth in all its diversity, from the ska culture to the first hip-hop influences, from the clubs of Brixton to the warehouses of Manchester. “I wanted to capture the streets, the moment, without staging anything,” he explains. His work became a testament to a transforming London, where music and urban identity were constantly being redefined. Among the many stars who posed for his camera: poet Linton Kwesi Johnson, the Britpop band Oasis, and the late Marianne Faithfull.
For Dennis Morris, however, Jamaica has never been far away. He recalls a powerful moment: “One day, I went back to Kingston and saw a kid with a camera. He was just like me, years earlier. I told him, ‘Never let anyone tell you that you can’t make it.’” Another anecdote takes us back to a London studio with Bob Marley. “We had spent the day working, and Bob asked me to put on some music. I played a John Coltrane record, and he gave me the biggest smile. He said, ‘That’s it, Dennis, the real vibration.’”
To this day, Dennis Morris continues to photograph, exploring new subjects while meticulously revisiting his archives. “My photos are not just memories. They are proof, pieces of history that I had the chance to witness with my own eyes,” he says. “Music + Life” in Paris thus offers an essential perspective on multiple generations, rooted in British collective memory—but reaching far beyond.
“Music + Life”, by Dennis Morris, is on view at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie (MEP), in Paris, until May 18, 2025.
