He was the soundtrack to everything I did with my dad.
That's the greatest compliment and most direct reason for my love and appreciation for Jimmy Cliff. While his music is beautiful, his lyrics evoked art, poetry, humanity, and justice, and his impact on the sound of reggae was groundbreaking - Jimmy Cliff will always be the sound on the radio in the car, at home, or simply from the humming voice of my dad.
Until his very last day on earth, my dad loved Cliff's Cliff Hanger album from 1985. It was one of his favorites. For many years, from a young kid well into my teen years, I listened to that album (among others), memorably through that single cassette tape he owned of that album, and the occasional skips and hiccups it had from its overuse.
Many times, Jimmy Cliff's tunes and soothing voice reigned supreme from the speakers of his 1975 Chevrolet Nova. Our trips to JFK airport in NYC are forever memorable - a core memory, if you will, as we ventured to pick up the latest family member or close friend visiting from the Caribbean.
Take a look at the worldAnd the state that it's in todayI am sure you'll agreeWe all could make it a better wayWith our love put togetherEverybody learn to love each other- Wonderful World, Beautiful People - Jimmy Cliff
Those trips were our time. I sat in the backseat - eventually making my way to the front seat as I aged - cruising and listening to Jimmy Cliff. Just him and me.
Wonderful world... beautiful people!
Today, my son joined me as I drove to Brooklyn, NY, to take my mother home after the Thanksgiving holiday. On our way back, just him and me, en route to New Jersey, Jimmy Cliff shuffled his amazing vibes to my car speakers via my Spotify account.
Then I heard the humming from the back seat, with the occasional hook being sung...
yeaaaaaaahhhh, wonderful world, beautiful people...hmmm mmmmm!
I smiled.
And I internally anticipated every part of the song that hiccuped from that old cassette tape as my son hummed along in the back seat.
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Jimmy Cliff is an icon. You can get that bio and history from anywhere on the internet, especially after his passing earlier this week. For me, Jimmy Cliff was one of my favorites because of what he brought to music and what he meant for people from the Caribbean. Bob Marley gets the marquee, but before Marley, there was Jimmy.
Beyond his music, Jimmy Cliff was intertwined in the fabric of my relationship with my dad - obviously. And because of Jimmy Cliff's acting career, he had ties to movies (Harder They Come & Marked For Death) that I frequently shared texts, GIFS, and memes of with one of my closest friends, who also passed away the same year that my father did.
The news of Jimmy Cliff's recent passing hurt tremendously. It's been a thorn all week. There is a part of me that feels like more is just gone from what I once knew and loved, but another that appreciates the impact on the soul that all of this brought into my life. The songs. The memories. The impact.
Rest in Peace, Jimmy Cliff.