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Jimmy Cliff

Acting Born Jul 30, 1944 Somerton district of St. James, Jamaica 24 credits

Biography

The Honourable Jimmy Cliff, OM (30 July 1944 – 24 November 2025), known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, was a Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae and soul musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer and actor. At the time of his death, he was the only living reggae musician to hold the Order of Merit, the highest honour that can be granted by the Jamaican government for achievements in the arts and sciences. He is best known among mainstream audiences for songs such as "Sitting in Limbo," "You Can Get It If You Really Want," and "Many Rivers to Cross" from the soundtrack to The Harder They Come, which helped popularize reggae across the world; and his covers of Cat Stevens' "Wild World" and Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" from the film Cool Runnings. Outside of the reggae world, he is probably best known for his film appearance in The Harder They Come. Jimmy Cliff was one of five performers inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.

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Known for

Saturday Night Live

as Self - Musical Guest

Champs-Elysées

as Self

Sacrée soirée

as Self

Space Ghost Coast to Coast

1994
Film

The Long Goodbye

as Self

TOTP2

as Self

Full filmography

  • Saturday Night Live (1975) as Self - Musical Guest
  • Champs-Elysées (1982) as Self
  • Sacrée soirée (1987) as Self
  • Space Ghost Coast to Coast (1994)
  • Never Mind the Buzzcocks (1996) as Self
  • Le monde est à vous (1987) as Self
  • 4-3-2-1 Hot and Sweet (1966) as Self
  • Partido Alto (1984) as Self
  • TOTP2 (1994) as Self
  • Rockpalast (1974)
  • Rock Concert (1973) as Self
  • Marked for Death (1990) as Himself
  • Grandes Nomes (1980) as Self
  • Spotlight (1968) as self
  • Club Paradise (1986) as Ernest Reed
  • Lennon or McCartney (2014) as Self
  • Marley (2012) as Self
  • Muscle Shoals (2013) as Self
  • The Harder They Come (1972) as Ivanhoe "Ivan" Martin
  • Ôrí (1989) as Self
  • Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell (2021) as Self (archive footage)
  • O Melhor do Flash Back - 92 Clipes Para Recordar (2009) as Self (archive footage)
  • ReMastered: Who Shot the Sheriff (2018) as Himself
  • One Love: The Bob Marley All-Star Tribute (1999) as Self - Perfomer