Jimmy Cliff: Reggae singer and actor dies

Jimmy Cliff, a musical artist who helped bring reggae to an international audience, has died aged 81.

Known for hits including You Can Get It If You Really Want, The Harder They Come, and Many Rivers To Cross, his career spanned six decades.

His wife, Latifa Chambers wrote on Instagram: "It's with profound sadness that I share that my husband, Jimmy Cliff, has crossed over due to a seizure followed by pneumonia.

"I am thankful for his family, friends, fellow artists and coworkers who have shared his journey with him.

"To all his fans around the world, please know that your support was his strength throughout his whole career. He really appreciated each and every fan for their love."

Thanking the medical staff who helped during his illness, she added: "Jimmy, my darling, may you rest in peace. I will follow your wishes."

Signed by his wife, and two of his children, Latifa and Lilty, the statement concluded, "We see you Legend".

Tributes to the singer included UB40 star Ali Campbell, who covered Cliff's song Many Rivers To Cross in 1983, said he was "absolutely heartbroken to hear about the passing of a Reggae forefather" in a post on X.

He also called Cliff "a pillar of our music, and one of the first to carry reggae out into the world".

A legend of music and screen

A two-time Grammy-winning artist, Cliff was awarded the Jamaican Order of Merit in 2003 - the highest honour in the arts and sciences, from the Jamaican government.

Over the years, he would work with stars including the Rolling Stones, Sting, Elvis Costello, Annie Lennox, Paul Simon and Wyclef Jean.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

A prolific writer, frequently expressing his humanitarian views through his work, his 1969 track Vietnam was reportedly described by Bob Dylan as "the best protest song" he had ever heard.

Cliff was also well known for cover versions of songs, including Johnny Nash's I Can See Clearly Now, which appeared on the soundtrack of the 1993 movie Cool Runnings, and Cat Stevens' Wild World.

An actor and a musician, as well as singing the title track of 1972 cult classic The Harder They Come, Cliff also starred in it.

One of the first major commercial releases to come out of Jamaica, the movie is credited with bringing reggae to the world, as well as showing a grittier and more realistic side to the country.

During this time, Cliff's fame rivalled Bob Marley as the reggae's most prominent artist.

The storyline, which revolved around Cliff's character, Ivan, moving to Kingston, Jamaica, to make it as a musical superstar, had parallels with his own.

'Hurricane Hattie'

Born James Chambers on 30 July 1944 during a hurricane in St James Parish, northwestern Jamaica, he moved in the 1950s from the family farm to Kingston with his father, determined to succeed in the music industry.

He began writing as Jamaica was gaining its independence from Britain, and as the early sounds of reggae - first called ska - were being developed.

At just 14, he became nationally famous for his song Hurricane Hattie.

He would go on to record over 30 albums and perform all over the world, including in Paris, in Brazil and at the World's Fair, an international exhibition held in New York in 1964.

The following year, Island Records' Chris Blackwell, the producer who launched Bob Marley and the Wailers, invited Cliff to work in the UK.

'I still have many rivers to cross!'

Speaking about his burning passion for life during a 2019 interview, when the star had begun losing his sight, Cliff said: "When I've achieved all my ambitions, then I guess that I will have done it and I can just say 'great'.

"But I'm still hungry. I want it. I've still got the burning fire that burns brightly inside of me - like I just said to you. I still have many rivers to cross!"

Cliff's last studio album, Refugees, was released in 2022, and the singer said he wrote the title track "due to emotional feelings towards freedom taken away from human beings".

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