Jimmy Cliff is dead: reggae pioneer became famous with “You Can Get It If You Really Want”

There are those songs whose title you just have to read and the catchy tune is there – “You Can Get It If You Really Want” is certainly one of them. The song was written by reggae legend Jimmy Cliff. The Jamaican has now died at the age of 81, his family announced.

Cliff contributed to the worldwide popularity of reggae. Bob Dylan is said to have once said about one of his songs that it was the best protest song ever written. The two-time Grammy winner is also considered the discoverer of Bob Marley.

Cliff became known worldwide with the film “The Harder They Come” and the accompanying soundtrack. The 1972 work is considered the first Jamaican feature film. In addition to starring, Cliff also provided several songs, including the iconic title track and “You Can Get It If You Really Want.”

Cliff plays a young musician who moves from the countryside to the Jamaican capital of Kingston, dreams of a career but slips into crime. The role has autobiographical traits. The film is now a classic and ensured that reggae found an audience outside of Jamaica in the 1970s. His realistic portrayal of black Jamaicans was groundbreaking. In reality, the story turned out much better for Cliff, who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

“Hurricane Hattie” as the first hit

When Jimmy Cliff first topped the Jamaican charts with “Hurricane Hattie,” no one knew the word reggae. The year is 1962: Jamaica becomes independent, Cliff turns 18 – and his career takes off.

Four years earlier, James Chambers, who was born, had moved to Kingston. He gave himself the stage name Cliff – inspired by the cliffs of his home St. James in the northwest of the Caribbean island.

The title “Hurricane Hattie” refers to the severe hurricane of October 1961. The song reflects Cliff’s own beginnings: According to his website, he was born during a hurricane – in a house that the storm destroyed afterwards.

Cliff was the discoverer and supporter of Bob Marley

Musically, “Hurricane Hattie” was still a ska piece – reggae later developed from this sound. Cliff wasn’t just important for the global reggae boom of the 1970s with his own songs. Young Bob Marley, then a welder, showed up at Cliff’s rehearsal room one day, as Cliff recounted on the radio show “A Breath of Fresh Air.” Cliff recognized a poetic talent in him, took him into the studio and produced Marley’s first three songs.

A few years later, Cliff indirectly helped Marley again. In 1972, Marley and his band, the Wailers, were stuck in London with no money and sought out Chris Blackwell of Island Records. “Good timing. Jimmy Cliff had left me a week before,” Blackwell wrote in his memoirs. He signed the Wailers – their international breakthrough followed shortly afterwards.

Jimmy Cliff experienced racism in London

The Jamaican moved to London to pursue his career. But he found the capital of Great Britain difficult. A landlady wanted to talk to him with the words “Don’t you know that black people are not tolerated here?” throw out. It was only when she later saw him on “Top of the Pops” that she changed her attitude, as Cliff told the Canadian broadcaster CBC.

Cliff’s song “Many Rivers to Cross” deals with this time – and also the story of his ancestors, who once had to make the crossing across the Atlantic as slaves. The title was covered by Cher, Joe Cocker and Harry Nilsson with John Lennon, among others. Cliff’s original version is part of the soundtrack to “The Harder They Come”. Cliff’s influence on other artists was great: from reggae stars to pop and rock musicians, he was seen as a musical role model. He worked with greats such as Sting and Wyclef Jean throughout his career. His last studio album “Refugees” was released in 2022.