Jamaica and the world of reggae mourn the death of legendary musician Jimmy Cliff.
San Juan, Nov. 24 (EFE)
Jamaican President Andrew Holness, along with artists such as UB40 and Johan Marley, one of Bob Marley’s sons, expressed their condolences Monday for the death of legendary reggae musician Jimmy Cliff, who died at age 81 from complications of pneumonia.
“Today, Jamaica pauses to honor the life of the Honorable Jimmy Cliff, UK Order of Merit, a great cultural giant whose music carried the hearts of our nation to the world,” Holness wrote on his Twitter account.
Cliff, whose birth name was James Chambers and who was born on July 30, 1944, in Saint James, Jamaica, was announced by his wife, Latifa Chambers, on social media.
Holness also highlighted that Cliff’s songs like ‘Many Rivers to Cross’, ‘The Harder They Come’, ‘You Can Get It If You Really Want’, and ‘Sitting in Limbo’ led the musician to “tell our story with soul and honesty.”
“His music lifted people up during difficult times, inspired generations, and helped shape the worldwide respect that Jamaican culture enjoys today,” he emphasized.
Meanwhile, the English reggae group UB40 also mourned Cliff’s passing through X, describing him as “an icon in music and an original reggae superstar.”
“Finally, Jimmy crossed the last river,” the group mentioned, referring to the many times the singer spoke of “the many rivers” that people cross in their lives.
“Rest in peace, Jimmy, your music will live on forever,” the group added, whose singer, Ali Campbell, also expressed his condolences for Cliff’s death.
“I am utterly devastated to learn of the passing of reggae’s father, Jimmy Cliff,” Campbell told X.
Campbell also described Cliff as “a great founder and pillar of our music, and one of the first to bring reggae to the world.”
“Rest in peace, king. We have many rivers to cross. With much love, Ali,” Campbell added about the veteran musician.
Rohan Marley, one of Bob Marley’s many children, expressed on his Instagram account that he was “thankful to life for a great man” like Cliff, whom he also considered his “brother and legend.”
“Safe travels, maestro. You gave us an exciting extension of being among the very best. Cherish our legends,” he wrote.
Cliff began participating in music competitions at a young age, and at 17 his career took off with “Hurricane Hattie” after convincing the Chinese-born producer Leslie Kong to record his first tracks.
His breakthrough came in 1969 with his self-titled album, which contains classics such as ‘Many Rivers to Cross’,’Vietnam’ y ‘Wonderful World, Beautiful People’.
He moved to the UK and became a star of reggae and ska. So much so that he is one of only two Jamaican members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, alongside Bob Marley.
He was also a film actor and starred in a seminal Jamaican film, ‘The Harder They Come’ (1972), for which he also composed the soundtrack and which is credited with introducing reggae to the United States.
In 2012, he won a Grammy for Best Reggae Album for ‘Rebirth’, and in recent years he worked with Ghanaian producer Kwame Yeboah, with whom he returned to a purer form of reggae.
