''Rebirth'' is an album by

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

artist

Jimmy Cliff James Chambers, Jamaican Order of Merit, OM (born 30 July 1944), known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, is a Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae and soul musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and actor. He is the only living reggae musician to hol ...

released in July 2012. It won the

Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album The Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards for quality works in the reggae genre. Originally called the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Recording, the honor was presented to artists for eligible songs or albums. ...

and was included in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''s '50 Best Albums of 2012'.

Recording and release

''Rebirth'' was Cliff's first new album in eight years.Lanham, Tom (2012)
Rebirth for Jimmy Cliff
, ''

San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and has been published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst and the flagship of the He ...

'', 23 September 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 The album was recorded at The Sound Factory and Canyon Hut in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, and produced by

Tim Armstrong Timothy Ross Armstrong (born November 25, 1965) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid (band), Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup T ...

of Rancid and featured backing band The Engine Room.Reed, James (2012)
Jamaican legend Jimmy Cliff renewed on ‘Rebirth’
, ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

'', 8 December 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012McLeod, Erin (2012)
Jimmy Cliff Rebirth
,

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...

, 26 July 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 Some of the songs were written by Cliff before the recordings sessions, while others were written by Cliff and Armstrong in the studio. ''Rebirth'' also includes

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s of

The Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

's "

Guns of Brixton "The Guns of Brixton" is a song by the English punk rock band the Clash, originally released on their 1979 album ''London Calling''. It was written and sung by bassist Paul Simonon, who grew up in Brixton, South London. The song has a strong reg ...

" (the lyric of which refers to Cliff's role in '' The Harder They Come''),

Joe Higgs Joseph Benjamin Higgs (3 June 1940 – 18 December 1999) was a reggae musician from Jamaica. In the late 1950s and 1960s he was part of the duo Higgs and Wilson together with Roy Wilson. He was a popular artist in Jamaica for four decades and i ...

' "World Upside Down", and Rancid's " Ruby Soho".Shedden, Iain (2012)
Rebirth (Jimmy Cliff)
, ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...

'', 18 August 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 The album was mastered by

Joe LaPorta Joseph J. LaPorta (born January 19, 1980) is an American mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in Edgewater, New Jersey. Career LaPorta was born in New York and grew up there; he graduated from New York University with a bachelor's degree in ...

. ''Rebirth'' was released in July 2012.Campbell-Livingston, Cecelia (2012)
Cliff’s Rebirth makes 2012 50 best list
, ''

Jamaica Observer The ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by ...

'', 25 December 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 Cliff said of the album: "It is a rebirth of my career at this time. I have goals yet to accomplish, and I think this album is the stepping stone toward those goals.". He also said that the title referred to the rebirth of the planet.Jimmy Cliff On Career 'Rebirth' And The Nature Of Success
,

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

, 3 August 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 It also reflected a return to the music from earlier in his career, with Cliff saying:

"As a rebirth one has to go back to point zero to move forward again. We recorded the music with the same instruments that we had used back in the days, the same style that we used to record, which is everyone recording at the same time."

Critical reception

'' gave the album four stars out of five, with Will Hermes describing it as "the strongest case for the vitality of West Indian roots music that anyone has made in decades" and calling it "the sound of history circling in wondrous ways".Hermes, Will (2012)
Jimmy Cliff Rebirth
, ''

'', 13 July 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 The

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

commented on his return to the sound of his recordings from the 1960s and 1970s, describing the album as "remarkably consistent".Whitelaw, Paul (2012)
Jimmy Cliff Rebirth Review
,

, 11 July 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 ''

Alternative Press Alternative press may refer to: Individual publications * ''Alternative Press'' (magazine), an American music magazine Alternative journalism * Alternative media ** Alternative media (U.S. political left) ** Alternative media (U.S. political r ...

'' gave it 4.5/5, picking out "Cry No More" and "Children's Bread" as sounding like "lost classic of late-'60s/early-'70s Jamaica", going on to call it "a flawless album".Heller, Jason (2012)
Rebirth from Jimmy Cliff
, ''

''. Retrieved 25 December 2012 ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' gave it four stars out of five, saying "the spirit of the music is vivid".Coleman, Nick (2012)
Album: Jimmy Cliff - Rebirth
, ''

'', 15 July 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' rated the album 7.5 out of 10, with reviewer Erin McLeod describing it as "predominantly a pitch-perfect versioning of 1970s reggae". ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'' gave it 9 out of 10, describing it as "the sound of a man finally getting back to living life to its fullest".McGuire, Colin (2012)
Jimmy Cliff: Rebirth
,

, 18 July 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's David Jeffries gave it 5 stars out of 5, calling it "a return to form".Jeffries, David (2012)
''Rebirth'' - Jimmy Cliff
,

. Retrieved 18 November 2019 The album won a Grammy Award in the 'Best Reggae Album' category.Jimmy Cliff's Rebirth nominated for Reggae Grammy album
, ''

'', 6 December 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 ''Rebirth'' was listed at number 12 in ''Rolling Stone''s '50 Best Albums of 2012', the album described as a "warm, wondrous album that plays like a guided tour of the island's musical past, as well as Cliff's own".50 Best Albums of 2012: 12 - Jimmy Cliff, 'Rebirth'
, ''

''. Retrieved 25 December 2012 It was also included at number 48 in a similar list from

ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to: * ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation * ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company ABC News may a ...

Charts and sales

''Rebirth'' reached number one on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Top Reggae Albums chart and number 76 on the ''Billboard'' 200.Walters, Hasani (2012)
Jimmy Cliff's 'Rebirth'
, ''

Jamaica Gleaner ''The Gleaner'' is an English-language, morning daily newspaper founded by two brothers, Jacob and Joshua de Cordova on 13 September 1834 in Kingston, Jamaica. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper in the Western Hemisphere. Original ...

'', 30 August 2012. Retrieved 25 December 2012 It peaked at number 83 in the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

.Rebirth
, Chart Archive. Retrieved 25 December 2012 By December 2012 the album had sold 33,000 copies in the United States.

Track listing

#"World Upside Down" (Cliff,

) – 3:10 #"One More" (Cliff) – 3:26 #"Cry No More" (Cliff,

) – 3:18 #"Children's Bread" (Cliff, Tim Armstrong) – 4:16 #"Bang" (Cliff) – 4:43 #"

" (

Paul Simonon Paul Gustave Simonon (; born 15 December 1955) is an English musician and artist best known as the bassist for the Clash. More recent work includes his involvement in the supergroup the Good, the Bad & the Queen and playing on the Gorillaz alb ...

) – 3:38 #"Reggae Music" (Cliff, Tim Armstrong) – 3:55 #"Outsider" (Cliff, Tim Armstrong) – 2:58 #"Rebel Rebel" (Cliff) – 3:03 #" Ruby Soho" (

Lars Frederiksen Lars Erik Frederiksen (born Lars Erik Dapello, August 30, 1971) is an American musician and record producer best known as a guitarist and vocalist for the punk rock band Rancid, as well as the frontman of Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and ...

Matt Freeman Roger Matthew Freeman, also known as Matt McCall, (born April 23, 1966) is an American musician best known as the bassist of punk rock band Rancid. After forming several bands with guitarist and vocalist Tim Armstrong in the late 1980s and e ...

, Tim Armstrong) – 2:53 #"Blessed Love" (Cliff) – 4:18 #"Ship is Sailing" (Cliff) – 3:06 #"One More" (Alternative version) (Cliff) – 3:31

Personnel

*Jimmy Cliff – vocals, percussion * Aimee Allen, Ashli Haynes, Dash Hutton, Jean McClain, Jordis Unga, Nicki Bonner, Tim Hutton – backing vocals *James King – baritone saxophone, tenor saxophone, flute *J Bonner – bass guitar *Scott Abels – drums *

– lead guitar, rhythm guitar *Dan Boer – organ *Kevin Bivona – piano, guitar *David Moyer, Liam Philpot – saxophone *Jordan Katz, Michael Bolger – trumpet, trombone Technical *

– mastering

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2012 albums Jimmy Cliff albums