Editing Jimmy Cliff (section)

===1960s and 1970s===
Cliff sought out many producers while still going to school, trying to get his songs recorded without success. He also entered talent contests. "One night I was walking past a record store and restaurant as they were closing, pushed myself in and convinced one of them, [[Leslie Kong]], to go into the recording business, starting with me," he writes in his own website biography.<ref name="Larkin"/> After two singles that failed to make much impression, his career took off when "Hurricane Hattie" became a hit while he was aged 17.<ref name="AMG">{{cite web |first= Jo-Ann| last= Greene |url= http://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-cliff-mn0000295276/biography |title=Jimmy Cliff Biography |publisher=AllMusic|access-date= 2012-12-23 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130914060404/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/jimmy-cliff-mn0000295276/biography |archive-date=14 September 2013}}</ref> It was produced by Kong, with whom Cliff remained until Kong's death from a heart attack in 1971.{{cn|date=May 2022}}

Cliff's later local hit singles included "King of Kings", "Dearest Beverley", "Miss Jamaica", and "Pride and Passion". In 1964, Cliff was chosen as one of Jamaica's representatives at the [[1964 New York World's Fair|World's Fair]] in New York; and in the same year Cliff was featured in a program called "This is [[Ska]]!" alongside [[Prince Buster]], [[Toots and the Maytals]], and [[Byron Lee and the Dragonaires]].<ref>Jw31209. "This Is Ska! (2/4) 1964 Jimmy Cliff/Prince Buster/Toots & The Maytals and More..." YouTube. YouTube, 5 Feb. 2010. Web. <{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB2elK7PVFg |title=This is Ska! (2/4) 1964 Jimmy Cliff/Prince Buster/Toots & the Maytals and more... - YouTube |website=[[YouTube]] |date=5 February 2010 |access-date=2016-12-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160501072504/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB2elK7PVFg |archive-date=1 May 2016}}> 2 December 2016.</ref> 

He soon signed to [[Island Records]] and moved to the United Kingdom.<ref name="AMG"/> Island Records initially (and unsuccessfully) tried to sell Cliff to the [[rock music|rock]] audience, but his career took off in the late 1960s.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Steve Barrow |author2=Peter Dalton |title=Reggae: The Rough Guide |year=1997 |publisher=Rough Guides |isbn=1-85828-247-0 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/reggaeroughguide00barro }}</ref> His international debut album was ''Hard Road to Travel'', released in 1967. It received excellent reviews and included "Waterfall" (composed by [[Nirvana (British band)|Nirvana]]'s Alex Spyropoulos and [[Patrick Campbell-Lyons]]), which became a hit in Brazil and won the International Song Festival.<ref name="AMG"/>

"Waterfall" was followed in 1969 by "[[Wonderful World, Beautiful People]]" and "[[Vietnam (song)|Vietnam]]" in 1970, both popular throughout most of the world. [[Bob Dylan]] called "Vietnam" the best [[protest song]] he had ever heard.<ref name="Larkin"/> Also during this period, Cliff released a [[cover version|cover]] of [[Cat Stevens]]' "[[Wild World (song)|Wild World]]" as a single, but it was not included on his ''[[Wonderful World, Beautiful People (album)|Wonderful World, Beautiful People]]'' album.{{cn|date=May 2022}}

In 1972, Cliff starred as Ivanhoe "Ivan" Martin in the classic reggae film, ''[[The Harder They Come]]'', directed by [[Perry Henzell]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0070155/ |title=The Harder They Come (1972) |publisher=IMDb |access-date=2012-12-23 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222040855/http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0070155/ |archive-date=22 February 2012}}</ref> As the film tells Martin's story, he is a young man without funds. Arriving in Kingston from the country, he tries to make it in the recording business, but without success. Eventually, he turns to a life of crime. The [[The Harder They Come (soundtrack)|soundtrack album]] of the film was a huge success that sold well around the world, bringing reggae to an international audience for the first time. It remains one of the most internationally significant films to have come out of Jamaica since independence. The film made its debut at London's [[Gaumont Film Company|Gaumont]] cinema in [[Notting Hill]] on 1 September 1972.<ref name="NME Rock 'N' Roll Years 1">{{cite book| first= John| last= Tobler| year= 1992| title= NME Rock 'N' Roll Years| edition= 1st| publisher= Reed International Books Ltd| location= London| page= 242| id= CN 5585}}</ref> 

In 1976, Cliff sang on the [[Saturday Night Live (season 1)|first season]] of ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'', episode 12, hosted by [[Dick Cavett]]. After a series of albums, Cliff took a break and traveled to Africa (the Nigeria-based Jamaican writer [[Lindsay Barrett]] was instrumental in Cliff's first trip there),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thecaribzone.com/entertainment.php |title=Jimmy Cliff planning sequel to The Harder They Come |work=The Caribzone |publisher=thecaribzone.com |date=2009-11-24 |access-date=2014-04-24 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502001942/http://www.thecaribzone.com/entertainment.php |archive-date=2 May 2014}}</ref> and subsequently converted to [[Islam]], taking the name of El Hadj Naïm Bachir.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lastfm.fr/music/Jimmy+Cliff |title=Jimmy Cliff – Découvrez de la musique, des vidéos, des concerts, des stats, & des photos sur Last.fm |publisher=lastfm.fr |access-date=2012-08-13 |language=fr |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120913194645/http://www.lastfm.fr/music/Jimmy+Cliff |archive-date=13 September 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.purepeople.com/people/jimmy-cliff_p1302#biography |title=Jimmy Cliff - Toute l'actu ! |website= PurePeople.com |access-date=2012-08-13 |language=fr |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121020000946/http://www.purepeople.com/people/jimmy-cliff_p1302#biography |archive-date=20 October 2012}}</ref> In a 2021 interview, Cliff expressed a strong affinity with the religious and intellectual knowledge of ancient Egypt, scepticism of government handling of the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], and denied his earlier conversion to Islam, claiming it "didn't satisfy my soul."<ref>{{Cite news |last=L. |first=S. |date=June 11, 2021 |title=Trip to Egypt helped Jimmy Cliff to see clearly |url=https://jamaica-star.com/article/entertainment/20210611/trip-egypt-helped-jimmy-cliff-see-clearly |work=The Star}}</ref>