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Jimmy Cliff

The GRAMMY® Award-winning Rock and Roll Hall of Fame® Inductee, musician, actor, singer, songwriter, producer, and humanitarian attributes it to something befitting of tales passed down through the ages—yet all too ignored today—“Magic.”

“I feel like there’s something magical about everything,” he smiles. “When my mother was pregnant, she had such a huge stomach that everyone thought she was carrying triplets! That’s why people initially said I was special. In school, I was already doing magic tricks. I don’t know how I learned them. I could also read palms. Nobody taught me how to do that either. There are so many stories like that in my life. The fact that I came out of that hurricane felt significant to me.”

Nowadays, his impact remains inescapable. You have undoubtedly sung along to his immortal anthems like “I Can See Clearly Now,” “Wonderful World, Beautiful People,” “You Can Get It If You Really Want,” “The Harder They Come,” and many more. In addition to receiving his country’s highest honor “The Order of Merit,” he holds the distinction of being one of two Jamaican Rock and Roll Hall of Fame® Inductees—in good company with Bob Marley. Everyone from the Rolling Stones and Elvis Costello to Annie Lennox and Paul Simon has sought him out for collaborations, while Bruce Springsteen, Willie Nelson, Cher, New Order, and Fiona Apple have recorded notable covers. Springsteen’s “Trapped” even graced the tracklisting of We Are The World. Bob Dylan famously proclaimed “Vietnam,” “the greatest protest song ever written.” An inimitable screen presence, he also starred in and figured prominently on the soundtrack of the 1972 classic The Harder They Come, which drew an international spotlight to reggae. Other film appearances include Club Paradise, Muscle Shoals, Marked For Death, and more.

2012 marked another watershed moment for Cliff with the album Rebirth. Produced by Rancid and Operation Ivy punk stalwart Tim Armstrong, the record earned the GRAMMY® Award for “Best Reggae Album” and graced Rolling Stone’s “50 Best Albums of 2012” as he delivered show-stopping performances at Coachella, Bonnaroo, and beyond. The momentum didn’t relent as he embarked on his next creative chapter the long-awaited sequel to The Harder They Come, Many Rivers To Cross, and two 2018 EPs—Free For All and Love For All—co-produced by Linkey Marsden.

“Now, I feel I have not completed what I’m here on this planet to do,” he admits. “I have to say what I have to say and do what I have to do via music and films. Every morning I wake up, that keeps me going.”

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Film Review

The Harder They Come Collector's Edition

Read "The Harder They Come Collector's Edition" reviewed by Doug Collette


Jimmy Cliff The Harder They Come Collector's Edition Shout! Factory 2019 With the inclusion of six hours of bonus content in addition to its initial release in high-definition, The Harder They Come in its Collector's Edition may be even more enlightening on a cultural level now than it was when originally released in 1972. Yet the plethora of interviews, technical documentaries, film trailers, etc. can't wholly remove the exotic mystery inherent in director Perry Henzell's ...

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Performance / Tour

Widespread Panic Cover Jimmy Cliff on Wood Tour

Widespread Panic Cover Jimmy Cliff on Wood Tour

Source: JamBase

ANOTHER CHOICE COVER FROM ACOUSTIC WOOD TOUR Widespread Panic are currently in the midst of their Panic en la Playa shows in Puerto Morelos, Mexico, but that doesn't mean we can't bring you another highlight from the first phase of the Wood Tour. Below, check out the guys performing the Jimmy Cliff classic “Many Rivers to Cross" on January 28 at The Tabernacle in Atlanta, GA. The band will pick up the second part of the all-acoustic Wood Tour on ...

141

Performance / Tour

Hollywood Bowl Reggae Night: Jimmy Cliff; Sly and Robbie

Hollywood Bowl Reggae Night: Jimmy Cliff; Sly and Robbie

Source: JamBase

REGGAE UNDER THE STARS RETURNS TO HOLLYWOOD BOWL JULY 25

Reggae Night IX returns to the Hollywood Bowl on July 25 for reggae under the stars with roots legend Jimmy Cliff and his hits “Wild World" and “Many Rivers To Cross," plus the irrepressible rhythms of Sly & Robbie, and upcoming reggae sensation Tarrus Riley. Click here for tickets.

Event Line Up:

Jimmy Cliff Sly & Robbie and The Taxi Gang Tarrus Riley Jeremy ...

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Performance / Tour

Jimmy Cliff Unplugged at NPR Tiny Desk Concert, to Break Loose at Woodland Park Zoo Concert

Jimmy Cliff Unplugged at NPR Tiny Desk Concert, to Break Loose at Woodland Park Zoo Concert

Source: JamaicaMusic Offbeat

Jimmy Cliff, Jamaican reggae legend with a big stage presence, is all gentleness as he appeared eleven minutes unplugged on the Tiny Desk Concert at the National Public Radio (NPR) Music office in Washington, DC.Cliff, who brought reggae music to millions worldwide, revered for his legendary songs on the soundtrack to the 1972 hit film The Harder They Come, who received an Order of Merit (Hon. Jimmy Cliff) from the Jamaica Government and this year inducted into the ...

140

Event

Jimmy Cliff, Joss Stone, W. Colon Join Weir, Roots for Earth Day

Jimmy Cliff, Joss Stone, W. Colon Join Weir, Roots for Earth Day

Source: JamBase

JIMMY CLIFF, JOSS STONE, WILLIE COLON TO JOIN BOB WEIR, STING, JOHN LEGEND, THE ROOTS & OTHERS FOR EARTH DAY 2010 CLIMATE RALLY ON THE NATIONAL MALL ON 4/25

Jimmy Cliff Earth Day Network has announced today that Jimmy Cliff, Joss Stone, Robert Randolph, Willie Colon, Honor Society and Tao Rodriguez-Seeger will join the list of distinguished and diverse talent already confirmed to perform at The Climate Rally on The National Mall in Washington, DC on Sunday, April ...

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Festival

Jimmy Cliff & Lee Scratch Perry Headline Boss Sounds Reggae Festival

Jimmy Cliff & Lee Scratch Perry Headline Boss Sounds Reggae Festival

Source: All About Jazz

This year's biggest Reggae music festival, The Boss Sounds Reggae Festival will take place in NewcastleGateshead at the University of Northumbria from November 18 - 19th.

The festival will include the biggest names in Reggae music - Jimmy Cliff, Prince Buster, Lee “Scratch" Perry, Horace Andy, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Janet Kay, Dennis Bovell's Dub Band Trojan Sound System, Pama International + DJ Don Letts.

Boss Sounds is promoted by the Jumpin' Hot Club in association with Trojan Records and forms ...

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