The Harder They Come (soundtrack)

The Harder They Come

Soundtrack album by Jimmy Cliff
Released	July 7, 1972
Recorded	1967–1972
Genre	Rocksteady, ska, reggae
Length	39:55
Label	Island
Producer	Various

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
Robert Christgau	(A)^[2]
The Rolling Stone Record Guide	^[3]

The Harder They Come is the soundtrack album to the iconic film of the same name, released in 1972 in the United Kingdom as Island Records ILPS 9202. It was issued in February 1973 in North America as Mango Records SMAS-7400.^[4] It peaked at #140 on the Billboard 200.

Content

The heart of the soundtrack comes from performances by the film's star, reggae singer Jimmy Cliff. Only the title track "The Harder They Come" was recorded by Cliff specifically for the soundtrack, with three earlier songs by Cliff added.^[5] The remainder of the album is a compilation of singles released in Jamaica from the period of 1967 through 1972, assembled by the The Harder They Come director and co-writer, Perry Henzell, from songs by favored reggae singers.^[6] In addition to Cliff, these artists include The Melodians, The Slickers, DJ Scotty, and seminal early reggae stars Desmond Dekker and Toots and the Maytals.

The soundtrack album played a major part in popularizing reggae in the United States and the world beyond, the film itself preventing the genre from remaining an isolated phenomenon in Jamaica.^[7] In 2003, the album was ranked number 119 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The album also appears on greatest albums lists from Time and Blender, and was named the 97th best album of the 1970s by Pitchfork Media.

On August 5, 2003, Universal Music Group issued a Deluxe Edition of the album, with the original remastered and reissued on one disc. A bonus disc continued the idea of the original soundtrack itself, compiling additional singles from the early days of reggae, entitled Reggae Hit the Town: Crucial Reggae 1968-1972.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Performer(s)	Length
1.	"You Can Get It If You Really Want"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	2:40
2.	"Draw Your Brakes"	Derrick Harriott, Texas Dixon, Keith Rowe	Scotty	2:57
3.	"Rivers of Babylon"	Brent Dowe, James McNaughton	The Melodians	4:16
4.	"Many Rivers to Cross"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	3:02
5.	"Sweet and Dandy"	Frederick Hibbert	The Maytals	3:01
6.	"The Harder They Come"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	3:41
7.	"Johnny Too Bad"	Trevor Wilson, Winston Bailey, Hylton Beckford, Derrick Crooks	The Slickers	3:04
8.	"007 (Shanty Town)"	Desmond Dekker	Desmond Dekker	2:43
9.	"Pressure Drop"	Frederick Hibbert	The Maytals	3:44
10.	"Sitting in Limbo"	Jimmy Cliff, Guillermo Bright-Plummer	Jimmy Cliff	4:57
11.	"You Can Get It If You Really Want"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	2:43
12.	"The Harder They Come"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	3:07

2003 reissue bonus disc
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Performer(s)	Length
1.	"Israelites"	Desmond Dacres, Leslie Kong	Desmond Dekker and The Aces	2:37
2.	"My Conversation"	Keith Smith, Edward Lee	The Uniques	2:41
3.	"Do the Reggay"	Frederick Hibbert	The Maytals	3:18
4.	"Viet Nam"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	4:53
5.	"I Can See Clearly Now"	Johnny Nash	Johnny Nash	2:42
6.	"Reggae Hit the Town"	Leonard Dillon	The Ethiopians	2:24
7.	"Double Barrel"	Winston Riley	Dave and Ansel Collins	2:50
8.	"It Mek"	Desmond Dacres, Leslie Kong	Desmond Dekker and The Aces	2:32
9.	"Sweet Sensation"	Renford Cogle	The Melodians	3:42
10.	"Let Your Yeah Be Yeah"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	3:05
11.	"Cherry Oh Baby"	Eric Donaldson	Eric Donaldson	3:02
12.	"Monkey Spanner"	Winston Riley, Ansel Collins	Dave and Ansel Collins	2:45
13.	"54-46 (That's My Number)"	Frederick Hibbert	The Maytals	2:58
14.	"It's My Delight"	Brent Dowe, Trevor McNaughton	The Melodians	3:14
15.	"Wonderful World, Beautiful People"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	3:15
16.	"Pomp and Pride"	Frederick Hibbert	The Maytals	4:28
17.	"Guava Jelly"	Bob Marley	Johnny Nash	3:15
18.	"The Bigger They Come the Harder They Fall"	Jimmy Cliff	Jimmy Cliff	3:12

Personnel

Jimmy Cliff - vocals
Dave and Ansel Collins - vocals reissue tracks
Desmond Dekker - vocals
Eric Donaldson - vocals reissue tracks
The Ethiopians - vocals reissue tracks
The Maytals - vocals
The Melodians - vocals
Johnny Nash - vocals reissue tracks
Scotty - vocals
The Slickers - vocals
The Uniques - vocals reissue tracks
Jackie Jackson - bass
Winston Grennan - drums
Beverley's All-Stars - instruments

Gully Bright - producer
Jimmy Cliff - producer
Tommy Cowan - producer reissue tracks
Larry Fallon - producer reissue tracks
Derrick Harriott - producer
Leslie Kong - producer
Bunny Lee - producer reissue tracks
Byron Lee - producer
Warwick Lyn - producer reissue tracks
Johnny Nash - producer reissue tracks
Winston Riley - producer reissue tracks

Reissue personnel

Dana Smart - supervisor
Pat Lawrence - executive producer
Vartan - reissue art director
John Bryant - cover illustrator
Gavin Larsen - digital mastering

References

↑ Allmusic review
↑ Robert Christgau review
↑ Marsh, Dave; Swenson, John (Editors). The Rolling Stone Record Guide, 1st edition, Random House/Rolling Stone Press, 1979, p. 569.
↑ The Harder They Come. UMG 440 089 495-2, 2003, liner notes, p. 26.
↑ Katz, David. UMG liner notes, p. 12.
↑ Henzell, Perry. UMG liner notes, p. 3.
↑ Miller, Jim, ed. The Rolling Stone Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. New York: Random House, 1980, p. 447.

Jimmy Cliff

Studio albums	Jimmy Cliff (1969) Another Cycle (1971) Give Thankx (1978) Cliff Hanger (1985) Humanitarian (1999) Rebirth (2012)

Compilation albums	Reggae Night (2004)

Soundtrack albums	The Harder They Come (1972)

Songs	"Many Rivers to Cross" "The Harder They Come" "Reggae Night" "I Can See Clearly Now"

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