Jimmy cliff in Reggae Music

"Wonderful World, Beautiful People" (08/06/1991) Reggae Cliff, Jimmy, A&M Records (USA)Recorded in Jamaica. Includes liner notes by Bob Garcia. Personnel: Jimmy Cliff (vocals). Liner Note Author: Bob Garcia. Recording information: Jamaica. Photographer: Richard Polak. Arranger: Larry Fallon. Arguably the first Jimmy Cliff album to feature the singer as a bona fide international reggae star, WONDERFUL WORLD, BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE is a set brimming with confidence. Besides the pop-reggae staples of "Time Will Tell" and the title track, there are social themes in songs such as the anti-war "Viet Nam" and the outwardly cheerful "Sufferin' in the Land." The album also includes a nod to Cliff's three-year sojourn in the UK on the prog-influenced, organ-heavy "That's the Way Life Goes." The rootsy feel and lyrics of "My Ancestors" show that Cliff is no pop dilettante, while his melodic and socially conscious sides combine in the irresistibly catchy sufferer's song "Hard Road to Travel." "Wonderful World, Beautiful People" is no mere chirpy feel-good anthem either--underneath the poppy arrangement, there's a Curtis Mayfield-type message of political reconciliation (early '70s world leaders Richard Nixon and Alexei Kosygin are name-checked in the outro) that's all the more potent in its subtlety. With stellar session playing from the same Jamaican musicians later used by Paul Simon for his first solo effort, WONDERFUL WORLD is a great introduction to the work of a unique Jamaican artist.

"Follow My Mind" (05/31/2005) Reggae Cliff, Jimmy, Wounded Bird RecordsPerhaps more than any other Jamaican singer, Jimmy Cliff always had his sights set on the international market, and while he obviously works from a reggae base, his sound -- featuring full productions often cushioned with strings -- completely defines what has come to be known as reggae-pop. Ironically, given that it was his contemporary Bob Marley who broke through to become reggae's icon, Cliff may not have sounded, in the end, Jamaican enough. Follow My Mind originally came out in 1975 on the heels of the U.S. release of the Harder They Come soundtrack (which featured a quartet of Cliff's finest songs, including the magnificent "Many Rivers to Cross"), and rode Harder's wake onto the lower reaches of the pop charts. But Follow My Mind was a smooth, polished album, with few of the charming rough edges that characterized Cliff's previous work with producer Leslie Kong (who died in 1971, shortly after the Harder soundtrack was completed), and while it definitely had a Jamaican lilt, it sounded as much like Marvin Gaye as it did Marley, and ultimately it was the ragged, gospel-fueled songs of The Harder They Come that ended up sticking in the public's memory. Not that Follow My Mind lacked solid performances. "The News" was Cliff at his persecuted, paranoid best, while his version of Marley's "No Woman, No Cry" brought out the wounded regret inherent in the song even better than Marley did in his various versions. The set closer, "You're the Only One," was a great, classic love song, and "If I Follow My Mind" projected the confident hope that was Cliff's stock-in-trade, pulled along by a great melody and smooth as silk production. Cliff seemed poised to become a major star in the States, but it wasn't to happen, and in retrospect, as much as Follow My Mind was initially helped by the popularity of the Harder They Come soundtrack, it was also hurt by it, since nothing on the new album was as strong as the Kong-produced tracks. Smooth and melodic, Follow My Mind was hardly a creative failure, but by reaching so hard for an international pop sound, Cliff may have ironically overlooked the strong roots base that might have actually delivered the mass audience he deserved. ~ Steve Leggett

"Best of Jimmy Cliff [EMI]" (12/02/2003) R&B Cliff, Jimmy, EMI Music DistributionThe yang to Bob Marley's yin, reggae master Jimmy Cliff wasn't as accessible as Marley, but that didn't mean his music wasn't equally potent and meaningful. This greatest hits set features 20 tracks, including "Give A LIttle Take A Little," "Actions Speak Louder Than Words," and "Vietnam." A gifted songwriter and charismatic performer, Jimmy Cliff was one of Jamaica's first international stars. His strongest material comes from his early years with legendary producer Leslie Kong, a pairing that ended only with Kong's death in 1971. In Jamaica, where musical alliances seem to always be shifting, Cliff and Kong's association is unique. Unfortunately, only a handful of those great early songs ("Vietnam," "Many Rivers to Cross," "Wonderful World, Beautiful People") appear on this collection, and since all of them are easily available elsewhere, it is difficult to recommend getting them in this package. ~ Steve Leggett

"The Harder They Come [Deluxe Edition] [Remaster]" (08/05/2003) Reggae Original Soundtrack, Hip-O RecordsThe 2003 Deluxe Edition of THE HARDER THEY COME includes a bonus CD of early reggae tracks recorded between 1968 & 1972, rare photos and original artwork. Producers: Jimmy Cliff, Derrick Harriot, Leslie Kong, Byron Lee. Originally released on Mango SMSAS (7400). Includes liner notes by David Katz. Producers: Jimmy Cliff, Derrick Harriot, Leslie Kong, Byron Lee, Guilly Bright. Personnel: Jimmy Cliff (vocals); Winston Grennan (drums). Liner Note Authors: Chris Blackwell; David Katz; Perry Henzell; Paul Simonon. The soundtrack to the groundbreaking film about Jamaican subcultures, this superb selection is also a synthesis of late 60s and early 70s reggae. Recordings by Jimmy Cliff, the movie's star, form the album's core and his contributions, notably 'Many Rivers To Cross', show his understated power to great effect. An important figure in the development of reggae, Cliff at last secured deserved acclaim with this collection. His work is ably supported by 'Pressure Drop', one of the finest songs the Maytals ever recorded, while the Melodians and Slickers prove equally strong. The latter's 'Johnny Too Bad' perfectly encapsulates the film's plot, one that helped launch reggae into the international arena. The soundtrack to the groundbreaking film about Jamaican subcultures, this superb selection is also a synthesis of late '60s and early '70s reggae. Recordings by Jimmy Cliff, the movie's star, form the album's core, and his contributions, notably "Many Rivers To Cross," show his understated power to great effect. An important figure in the development of reggae, Cliff at last secured deserved acclaim with this collection. His work is ably supported by "Pressure Drop," one of the finest songs the Maytals ever recorded, while the Melodians and Slickers prove equally strong. The latter's "Johnny Too Bad" perfectly encapsulates the film's plot, one that helped launch reggae into the international arena. Some liberal interpretation of what can constitute the bonus material of a deluxe edition went into this two-CD edition of The Harder They Come, which in its original release was both a classic reggae album and a classic soundtrack. The additional material on the second disc is not outtakes from the soundtrack or some such intimately related work, but 18 high-grade vintage reggae tracks from the late '60s and early '70s. Admittedly some of the newly added songs are by artists who also contributed to the soundtrack, those being Jimmy Cliff, the Maytals, Desmond Dekker, and the Melodians. Then, however, there are a bunch of tunes by artists not involved in the soundtrack at all, like the Uniques, Dave & Ansel Collins, Johnny Nash, and Eric Donaldson. But -- and this is a big but -- the excellence of the additional cuts, along with how they fit well with the music on the original The Harder They Come soundtrack, makes such inconsistencies moot. The original The Harder They Come, comprising all of disc one, remains one of the great reggae albums, crossing over to a non-Jamaican audience more than almost any other reggae release of the era, perhaps because there was so much soul (both literally and figuratively) in the melodies and vocals. The 18 songs on disc two include some core reggae classics, among them some of the biggest reggae-pop crossovers of 1968-1972, including Dekker's "Israelites," Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" (yes, Nash was American, but this was recorded in Jamaica), Dave & Ansel Collins' zany instrumental "Double Barrel," and Cliff's "Wonderful World, Beautiful People." These are spiced with somewhat lesser-known delights like the Maytals' "Do the Reggay," Cliff's "Viet Nam" [sic], and Donaldson's "Cherry Oh Baby," famously covered by the Rolling Stones on their Black and Blue album. The additional disc, though strictly speaking not directly related to the soundtrack, does what the bonus material on deluxe editions should do and doesn't always successfully pull off: it makes a classic album better. And for those who want at least a little extra content tied to the film itself, the liner notes include essays

"Wonderful World, Beautiful People" (03/23/2000) Reggae Cliff, Jimmy, Brilliant (Netherlands)Recorded in Jamaica. Includes liner notes by Bob Garcia. Arguably the first Jimmy Cliff album to feature the singer as a bona fide international reggae star, WONDERFUL WORLD, BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE is a set brimming with confidence. Besides the pop-reggae staples of "Time Will Tell" and the title track, there are social themes in songs such as the anti-war "Viet Nam" and the outwardly cheerful "Sufferin' in the Land." The album also includes a nod to Cliff's three-year sojourn in the UK on the prog-influenced, organ-heavy "That's the Way Life Goes." The rootsy feel and lyrics of "My Ancestors" show that Cliff is no pop dilettante, while his melodic and socially conscious sides combine in the irresistibly catchy sufferer's song "Hard Road to Travel." "Wonderful World, Beautiful People" is no mere chirpy feel-good anthem either--underneath the poppy arrangement, there's a Curtis Mayfield-type message of political reconciliation (early '70s world leaders Richard Nixon and Alexei Kosygin are name-checked in the outro) that's all the more potent in its subtlety. With stellar session playing from the same Jamaican musicians later used by Paul Simon for his first solo effort, WONDERFUL WORLD is a great introduction to the work of a unique Jamaican artist.

"The Harder They Come: The Definitive Collection" (09/20/2005) Reggae Cliff, Jimmy, Trojan (Cityhall)An enlightening if somewhat disappointing set that neither lives up to its title nor to this normally excellent series' reputation. Still, The Harder They Come: The Definitive Collection breaks new ground in the Jimmy Cliff stakes, finally putting the artist's early work in perspective. Few of the artist's best-of sets bother with Cliff's recordings prior to his breakthrough in the late '60s. Earlier in the decade, though, the singer unleashed a stream of Jamaican hit singles that also rocked the British reggae scene. This two-CD set dedicates the first half of disc one exclusively to a roundup of Cliff's ska 45s, presented chronologically. Leapfrogging to 1968's "Waterfall," a Brazilian number one, the set shifts into the early reggae age. The first half of disc two follows Cliff to world renown, with the release of the movie The Harder They Come in the U.K. and a clutch of international hits. Then, in August, 1971, his mentor/producer, Leslie Kong, died, and with the Island label turning its attention to Bob Marley, Cliff was left to struggle on his own. Although the chart hits dried up, the singer continued releasing strong albums, some of which were nominated or won Grammys. But Cliff's post-Kong career is dispensed with in half a disc, suggesting his golden years were gone, a far from accurate assessment. For devoting so much space to the ska years, this compilation rights many past wrongs, but by so abbreviating Cliff's past 30-plus years, it commits new ones. Perhaps there's just no winning with a canon so long and varied, but in the end this set is far from definitive. ~ Jo-Ann Greene

"Give Thanx" (05/31/2005) Reggae Cliff, Jimmy, Wounded Bird RecordsPersonnel: Jimmy Cliff (vocals); Earl "Chinna" Smith, Ernest Ranglin (guitar); Paul "Scooby" Smith, Keith Sterling, Ansel Collins (keyboards); Ronnie Murphy (drums); Rebop Kwaku Baah (congas, percussion); Uziah "Sticky" Thompson (percussion); The Meditations (background vocals). Recording information: Aquarius Recording, Kingston, Jamaica. Many of the great reggae singers who emerged in the '60s and '70s were Rastafarians, but Jimmy Cliff is an exception. Cliff is a Muslim, which is why you won't find references to "Jah Rastafarai," "I-tal food" or "ganja" in any of his material. While the absence of Rastafarian terminology in Cliff's songs is one of the things that sets him apart from other reggae artists, his message of Black liberation has been well received by Rastas. Cliff proves that you don't have to be a Rastafarian to be a reggae star, and he also proves that a reggae artist doesn't have to perform reggae 100% of the time. 1978's Give Thanx, in fact, has as much to do with R&B as it does with reggae. While "Stand Up and Fight Back" and "Wanted Man" are reggae gems, "You Left Me Standing At The Door" and "She Is A Woman" are southern-style soul treasures that would have fit right in on a Stax/Volt release. And "Meeting in Africa" is the type of English-language African pop one would expect to come from a South African artist rather than a Jamaican reggae singer. Cliff's eclectic nature proves to be an asset throughout this fine LP. ~ Alex Henderson