One of Reggae’s greatest known artists, Jimmy Cliff, passed away yesterday. The author of Many Rivers to Cross, I can see Clearly Now, or The Harder They Come, or Vietnam, and many more, has joined the ancestors… they must be all singing today. My favorite of Cliff’s songs has always been “I can See Clearly Now”, for it is a deep message of hope and renewal; it was the cover of the 1993 movie Cool Runnings soundrack.

Jimmy Cliff was born James Chambers in 1944 in St James parish in Jamaica in a family of nine children; he was the eighth child. In terms of music, he was self-taught, started singing at age 6 in the church choir, later started writing his own songs, and wrote his first song, I Need a Fiancée, on a guitar made with bamboo. By the age of 14, he moved to Kingston, the capital, and took the surname Cliff to express the heights he intended on reaching. In 1965, he moved to London, where it took a while for his music to take off, until his 1969 single Wonderful World, Beautiful People, and then the politically charged Vietnam, which Bob Dylan called “the best protest song ever written.” In 1986, he told Reggae archivist Roger Steffens, “The essence of my music is struggle. What gives it the icing is the hope of love.”

Over the years, Cliff has collaborated with some of the greatest artists of this earth, from Bob Marley, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Elton John, UB40, Kool & the Gang, Elvis Costello, Wyclef Jean, and countless others. He is the only other Jamaican, after Bob Marley, to have been inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Throughout his career, Cliff expressed his deep love for Africa which he described as his ancestral home, and his music inspired generations of musicians in Africa and beyond. His themes of liberation, struggle, and hope mirrored African struggles against colonialism and apartheid. He also always valued African culture singing on stage and showcasing African clothing with style.

Below are the lyrics of my favorite, I can see clearly now

I can see clearly now the rain is gone

I can see all obstacles in my way

Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind

It’s gonna be a bright (bright) 

Bright (bright) sunshiny day

It’s gonna be a bright (bright)

…

Oh, yes, I can make it now the pain is gone

All of the bad feelings have disappeared

Here is the rainbow I’ve been praying for

It’s gonna be a bright (bright)

Bright (bright) sunshiny day

(Ooh) Look all around, there’s nothing but blue skies

Look straight ahead, there’s nothing but blue skies