This month we were in the mood for some Jimmy Cliff.
Don't like it? You know what to do! SHUT IT OFF! Otherwise... enjoy!
JIMMY CLIFF BIO
Jimmy Cliff, OM (born James Chambers on 1 April 1948) is a Jamaican musician, singer and actor. He is the only currently living musician to hold the Order of Merit, the highest honour that can be granted by the Jamaican government for achievement in the arts and sciences.
Cliff is best known among mainstream audiences for songs such as "Sitting in Limbo", "You Can Get It If You Really Want" and "Many Rivers to Cross" from the soundtrack to The Harder They Come, which helped popularize reggae across the world; and his covers of Cat Stevens' "Wild World" and Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" from the film Cool Runnings. Outside of the reggae world, he is probably best known for his film appearance in The Harder They Come. Cliff was one of five performers inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
Jimmy Cliff was born in Somerton District, St. James, Jamaica. He began writing songs while still at primary school in St. James, listening to a neighbour's sound system. In 1962 his father took him to Kingston to go to Kingston Technical school, where he ended up sharing his cousin's one rented room in East Kingston.
Cliff sought out many producers while still going to school, trying to get his songs recorded without success. He also entered talent contests. "One night I was walking past a record store and restaurant as they were closing, pushed myself in and convinced one of them, Leslie Kong, to go into the recording business, starting with me," he writes in his own website biography. After two singles that failed to make much impression, his career took off when his "Hurricane Hattie" became a hit, while he was aged 14. It was produced by Kong, with whom Cliff remained until Kong's death from a heart attack in 1971.
The Jamaican government under P.J. Patterson honoured Cliff on 20 October 2003, by awarding him The Order of Merit, the nation's third-highest honour, in recognition of his contributions to the film and music of Jamaica. He and Mervyn Morris are the only currently living figures from the arts to hold this distinction and he is the only living musician to do so.
Cliff was also an inaugural member of the Independent Music Awards' judging panel to support independent artists. More recently, Cliff appeared on the Jazz World Stage at the Glastonbury Festival in 2008 and again at Glastonbury in 2011.
Cliff's recording of "You Can Get It If You Really Want" was used as a campaign anthem by the Sandinista National Liberation Front in the 1990 election in Nicaragua. It was also adopted by the British Conservative Party during their annual conference in October 2007. It is unclear whether Cliff endorsed either political party.
In September 2009, Cliff was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, following a campaign on his behalf by the American, Charles Earle. Cliff reacted to the news by saying, "This is good for Cliff, good for Jamaican music and good for my country." On December 15, 2009, Cliff was officially announced as an inductee and was inducted on March 15, 2010 by Wyclef Jean.
Source:
Wikipedia