Jimmy Cliff

Born in St. James, Jamaica, on July 30, 1944, James Chambers was known professionally as Jimmy Cliff. A legendary figure in Jamaican music, Jimmy Cliff's influence on reggae is massive, but extends more widely into more mainstream pop culture courtesy of his two most famous songs, "Many Rivers to Cross" and "The Harder They Come" - also the title song of the 1972 cult hit movie. Still at primary school when he first started writing songs, Jimmy Cliff was soon entering local talent contests and had his first hit "Hurricane Hattie" at 14, produced by Leslie Kong. Cliff was to work and record with him until Kong's death in 1971, resulting in further hits like "Miss Jamaica", "King of Kings" and "Pride and Passion". Signed by Island Records, Cliff moved to the UK and released his international breakthrough album Hard Road to Travel and later had hits with "Wonderful World Beautiful People", "Vietnam" and the Cat Stevens song "Wild World". Based on the life of real life Jamaican gangster Rhyging, The Harder They Come movie transformed Jimmy Cliff into a major international star and dramatically accelerated the popularity of reggae all over the world. He had another major hit the same year with his cover of Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now", featured in the movie Cool Runnings and in 2002 released another successful album Fantastic Plastic People, featuring collaborations with Joe Strummer, Annie Lennox and Sting. His 1970 track "You Can Get It If You Really Want It" was used in the 2003 film Something's Gotta Give and despite a brief flirtation with electronica, Jimmy Cliff's popularity has endured - winning a Grammy Award in 2013 for the album Rebirth. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, Jimmy Cliff died from pneumonia on November 24, 2025, at the age of 81.