The stereotypical reggae crowd changed into a melting pot ofpeople at Caesar’s Palace in Tahoe last Wednesday night.Young hipsters mixed smoothly with the older dreadlocked crowd andthe whole harmonious lot blended together by the sweet sounds ofreggae.

The Roots, Rock, Reggae Festival tour wound down its summeraction at Caesar’s Palace with a final, mind-blowing finishto an appreciative crowd. Toots Hibbert and the Maytals opened upthe set, while the Marley Brothers, five of Bob Marley’ssons, filled out the concert in legendary style.

Toots Hibbert and the Maytals, powerful yet underlying forces inreggae, warmed up the midweek crowd with an evocative style andprofound lyrics. Hibbert has been a part of the reggae scene since1962, when he helped form the original Maytals. Since then,Hibbert’s contributions to the evolution of reggae have beenformidable, even to the point of being credited with coining thefirst published version of the word “reggay.’

Hibbert began with gospel music and progressed through all thechanges of the Jamaican musical movement that resulted in reggae.He played ska, soul, rock-steady and reggae at different points inhis career. At the height of his musical power, Hibbert wasimprisoned for marijuana use and incarcerated for 18 months. Heclaimed innocence, and some of his fans have implied that he wasjailed because he became too popular, and his free-thinking styledidn’t agree with people in power at the time. Whatever thecircumstances, his imprisonment resulted in one of his most popularsongs, “54-46 (That’s my number).”

On Wednesday, Hibbert came onstage amid raucous cheers. Hestarted his set with a mellow feel, quickly moving toward moreenergetic beats. He incorporated old and new favorites, singingsongs from his new album, “True Love” and tunes fromprevious recordings. His call-and-respond style got the crowd intoit early. Later, he pulled out some impressive dance moves, withsome of the Maytals backup singers coming out to join him in ahip-shaking routine that got the crowd undulating like crazy.

Ziggy, Stephen, Julian, Damien, and Ky-Mani stepped onto thestage with a demonstration that showed they haven’t forgottentheir father’s legend. The five came together for this tour,putting their own individual efforts on hold to pay tribute toreggae and the amazing man they called “dad.’

Led by Bob Marley carbon-copy Ziggy, (the resemblance makes youswear it’s Marley himself), the brothers charged out withwaist-length dreadlocks flying and a Jamaican flag waving. Theyproceeded to open with a Bob Marley tribute, and then worked theirway outward to more collaborative efforts, with old reggaefavorites mixed in. Though the crowd was a little hazy, theycouldn’t stop grooving to the Marleys’ awesome talentand musical solidarity.

Front man Ziggy Marley is reportedly the brother who got thewhole thing together8212;in keeping with the Bob Marley legacy,the Roots Rock and Reggae tour has been moving throughout thecountry for about 16 years, under various titles. No reggae tourhas ever had a collaborative Marley family effort involved, andthis tour is actually the first time that all five brothers haveperformed together. They each have successful individual reggaecareers and chart-topping hits in the reggae scene. The result is aclean alliance with strong irie roots that show inspiration anddepth, while honoring an icon.

For more information on Bob Marley’s Roots, Rock, andReggae Festival visit www.rootsrockreggae.com.