James 'Jimmy Cliff' Chambers
Barbara Ellington, Contributor
IT IS mid-morning the day after he walked proudly up to the Governor-General, dressed in regal African garments, to collect his nation's fourth highest honour. Shorts, T-shirt and bare feet have replaced the regal garments of National Heroes Day and, having completed his morning exercise ritual, he settles down for his first (and only) in-depth interview in the aftermath of the award.
James 'Jimmy Cliff' Chambers has come a long way since his boyhood days, when calypso and jonkanoo stirred his musical sensibilities. His pioneering work in Jamaica's musical development has been overshadowed by others, but he continues to improve and increase his body of work. He speaks from the heart and it soon becomes obvious that Cliff still has many rivers to cross.
His body language betrays the pride he takes in the Order of Merit; he browses the pages of the ceremony's programme a sign that it will be a treasured keepsake. "It's good to be honoured and respected by your own," he says, almost sotto voce.
But how does a successful singer/songwriter/actor feel the morning after kudos have been heaped upon him?
"I have done well, but on the last tour I learnt more about myself," he said. He has just completed a three-month tour of Europe and North America. "I am learning about my voice and body and there is much more for me to do performance-wise. I will do more recording and writing, but I don't think I've done my best work yet."
Of the work he has done so far, the visionary singer revealed that there were some "sleepers" that later turned out to be hits. The record company did not consider the hauntingly beautiful Many Rivers to Cross to be very good and it was only thrown in to make up the album.
He chuckles as he relives the irony of the song's rediscovery by filmmaker Perry Henzel. It was included on the memorable soundtrack of the cult classic film The Harder They Come and the rest is history.
Other sleepers were Beyond Boundaries, Give Thanks and All for Love. The first caught the attention of Santana, who thought it was excellent social commentary, at the second Woodstock Festival.
Jimmy Cliff will launch a new album, Fantastic Plastic People, in February 2004. In his characteristic no holds barred style, Cliff addresses implants, tattoos, piercings and cosmetic surgery in a melodious way on the title track. He obliges a request for a few lines and the subtle humour of the lyrics is immediately appreciated. Two versions were recorded, one in Jamaica the other in London, but Cliff prefers the local version because it reflects the new wave of rhythms making an impact on music.
The other songs reflect current Jamaican rhythms and there are duets featuring Annie Lennox, Dave Stewart, Sting and the late Joe Strummer of the English group The Clash. The project has been in the making since 2001, but Cliff wrote the songs in four months. He performed some of them on the just concluded tour and the response was positive.
A VIBE IN THE STUDIO
How does Cliff know when he has a hit song? "You just have a feeling, you play it for people, see their reaction and you get a vibe in the studio. On the new CD Terror, a song about the 9/11 tragedy, and I Want, I Do, I Get are evoking that feeling."
Cliff is now writing material for his next album and wants to take his art to a higher level. As for other aspirations, acting was his first love as a boy growing up in Somerton, St. James. "I was always eager to go on stage," he said. To this end, Cliff who describes himself as a fast learner, plans to take acting lessons before embarking on his next film project. He also plans to write a musical.
Another bend in the river is a sequel to The Harder They Come, which captured the imagination of people worldwide. "The film's socio-political angle gave it the impact so I think the sequel should be set in the present, because although times change there is currently no big ideological divide in the country. People just want to survive and we can make a film for our times," he said.
In the wake of the film's impact, when Cliff first performed at Carnegie Hall he was surprised by the number of famous people who came to see him.
Of his collaboration with international singers, Cliff said Bruce Springsteen first heard Trapped in an airport and liked it so much he recorded it. Desmond Decker recorded You Can Get it if You Really Want, The Pioneers did over Let Your Yea be Yea and Percy Sledge covered Many Rivers To Cross. Cliff put his other talents to work and played bongo drums for Johnny Nash on I Can See Clearly Now. He liked the clear, positive and optimistic message of the song so much he later recorded it himself.
The Sunday Gleaner wanted to know when the singing rebel would do his often talked about big concert in Jamaica for the youth. Without missing a beat he replied: "I am no Johnny-come-lately or yesterday's man. I need a current hit that the current generation will identify with before I do such a concert."
BOOKS AND BRAZIL
Also in the works are three books Cliff's autobiography, a collection of his interviews and articles and The True Story of Reggae. He regards himself as an authority on reggae, having been there at the start, and many will concur since he had his first local hit in his early teens. Jimmy Cliff credits Derrick Morgan as his inspiration, but says he saw how things developed from before ska. "I saw the development of the dances and watched reggae evolve into dancehall, he said.
An avid reader of history, religious literature and autobiographical works, Cliff plans to write his own in a way that others can learn from it. "I have read about the lives of Mahatma Gandhi, Malcolm X, Nat Turner, Chairman Mao and many more," he said. He credits his late father for teaching him to love reading.
"My father was a farmer aand tailor who was influential in swaying the minds of those around him which way to vote. That caused me to me grow up disliking politicians even though he had never been on a platform. People should be able to decide for themselves," he said.
With awareness of the importance of being in control of the business aspect of entertainment growing, The Sunday Gleaner asked Cliff if he owns the rights to his work. Although there were legal struggles initially, he does.
"We inherited both the African tradition of passing things down orally and the Egyptian way of writing things on scrolls. We are learning to do things the correct way," he said.
Jimmy Cliff says he no longer has homes in Brazil or Africa, but lives in Jamaica when he's not on the road.
TRAVELLED THE WORLD
"I have travelled the world and I have respect for the value of money and business, but I am not a slave to money, it's the other way around. When I was a boy my father taught me the value of money by letting me earn from selling The Gleaner and STAR. I used to sing out the headlines to attract customers. But when time came to check the money, if it was short even a penny I had to account for it because I was accountable to someone else," he said.
From that early discipline Cliff learnt to save and recalls the pride he felt on opening his first account at the post office. He bought his first house in 1969 after returning from Brazil with "a whole heap of money". He still maintains that home in St. James, as well as his base in St. Andrew.
The name Jimmy Cliff came from two childhood sources. When he was a good boy his father called him Jimmy, but "...when I was bad it was James. I also loved to see the cliffs of Somerton and thought it would make a good combination, because cliff for me signified height. I first tried the name at 4-H Club camp and later in Kingston, after several attempts it caught the attention of Mr. Johns at the Vere Johns Opportunity Hour," he said.
SPIRITUALITY, SUBSTANCE
Drugs and show business are enmeshed, but apart from an early courtship with marijuana Cliff has avoided the temptation. "I was never tempted to do hard drugs. Even from the days before Back'O-Wall became Tivoli Gardens I had many opportunities, but I found out early that when you take a spiritual path anything you need externally you already have deep inside so you only need to tap into it," he said.
And on the subject of spirituality, does the singer believe in a higher power? The answer is a firm "no, I don't believe in anything because religions are all faith-based and you can't prove them. I want to know the root of it all. I have done research into all religions and they lead back to Africa. In Egypt I explored the Pyramids and temples all in my quest to find out who I am and how I came to be on planet earth. I don't need organised religions; they were my classroom and I have graduated."
Like many singers from his generation, Cliff is sad that many of the young musicians are not learning to play instruments. Technology is the order of the day, observed Cliff who plays piano, guitar and bongo drums.
"There will be a big void soon if everyone is a DJ or rapper. These forms are not new; they existed in ancient cultures so what will we do when the next stage comes around? I encourage young musicians to see as far as they can," he said.
Cliff left the island later on Tuesday for Paris, where he will do a recording with former tennis star turned platinum selling artiste, Yannick Noah. And he left a simple, unsung message.
"Thanks, Jamaica, for this honour."
