Cliff moved to Kingston in 1962. After he released two singles that failed to make much of an impression, his career took off when his "Hurricane Hattie" became a hit, while he was aged just 14; it was produced by Leslie Kong, with whom Cliff would remain until Kong's death. Later local hit singles included "King of Kings", "Dearest Beverley" and "Pride and Passion". In 1964, Cliff was chosen as one of the Jamaican representatives at the World's Fair, and Cliff soon signed to Island Records and moved to Britain. Island initially (and unsuccessfully) tried to sell Cliff to the rock audience, but his career took off in the late 1960s. His international debut album was Hard Road to Travel, which received excellent reviews and included "Waterfall", a Brazilian hit that won the International Song Festival.
"Waterfall" was followed in 1969 by "Wonderful World, Beautiful People" and "Vietnam" in 1970, both popular throughout most of the world. Folk rock singer-songwriter Bob Dylan even called "Vietnam" the best protest song he'd ever heard. Wonderful World included a cover of Cat Stevens' "Wild World", which was a success in 1970.
Leslie Kong died of a heart attack in 1971. The soundtrack to the reggae film The Harder They Come was a huge success that sold well across the world, but did not break Cliff into the mainstream. After a series of albums, Cliff took a break and traveled to Africa, exploring his newfound Muslim spirituality. He quickly returned to music, touring for several years before he recorded with Kool & the Gang for Power & the Glory (1983). (During the 1981 River Tour, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band added Cliff's little-known "Trapped" to their live set; it achieved great prominence when included on 1985's We Are the World benefit album.) The follow-up, Cliff Hanger (1985) won a Grammy Award, though it was his last major success in the U.S. until 1993. He continued to sell well in Jamaica and, to a lesser extent, the UK, returning to the mainstream pop charts in the U.S. and elsewhere with a version of Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" on the Cool Runnings film soundtrack in 1993 .
In 2002, Cliff released his new album, Fantastic Plastic People in Europe, after first providing free downloads using Delacove's People Music Media p2p software. This album featured collaborations with Joe Strummer, Annie Lennox, and Sting as well as new songs that were very reminiscent of Cliff's original hits. In 2004 Cliff completely reworked the songs, dropping the traditional reggae in favor of an electronica sound, for inclusion in Black Magic.
Cliff has also covered the famous African song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight".
His recording of 'You Can Get It If You Really Want' was used as a campaign anthem by the Sandinista National Liberation Front in the 1990 election in Nicaragua (they lost). It was also adopted by the British Conservative Party during their annual conference in October, 2007. It is unclear whether Mr Cliff endorsed either party. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame March 15,2010.
Love Is All
Jimmy Cliff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Open up your window
Open up your shadow
Let the love come burnin'
Loving you is the best thing I can do
You loving me, well, you know you set me free
Set me free, yeah
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Will to fly was a thing
Money could buy
Then you know the rich would live
And the poor would die
Still I love the rich
But they're yet so lonely
And I love the poor
‘Cause there stood so many
Stood so many, yeah
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes, baby
I can give you what I got [What I got, what I got]
Oh, your mind think a lot
I will take just what you got
If you say that's what you got
I know some day no matter what they say
Money will come, money will come our way
In a million billion ways
Zillion ways, no, no
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I have to give
To give and take
Love is all I got to give
To give and take
Oh, yes, oh, yes
It's so good when you dub it up, dub it up
‘Cause all I got to give and what I got to give is blood
I'll give it to you
Love is all I got to give
To give and take
The song "Love Is All" by Jimmy Cliff is a powerful declaration of the value and importance of love for every human being. The lyrics emphasize the idea that love is the only thing one can truly give to others and receive in return. Throughout the song, Cliff repeats the phrase "Love is all I have to give" to underscore his message. He encourages listeners to open up their hearts to love and let it shine through.
The first verse of the song highlights the importance of reciprocity in any love relationship. Cliff sings about the need to give and take love equally. He suggests that only by doing so can one truly experience the transformative power of love. In the second verse, Cliff speaks to the idea that material possessions cannot buy love or happiness. Instead, love is what truly matters in life. He suggests that money can never replace the value of loving relationships.
The song goes on to suggest that love can overcome all obstacles, even those put in place by society. Cliff seems to suggest that love will ultimately triumph over any differences such as class or wealth. By placing love at the center of his message, he makes the point that love is universal and can be experienced by anyone, no matter their background or circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
Love is all I have to give
The only thing I can offer is my love
To give and take
To love and receive love in return
Open up your window
Be receptive to love
Let the love come shinin'
Allow love to illuminate your life
Open up your shadow
Embrace the darker parts of yourself and let love shine into them
Let the love come burnin'
Allow yourself to feel the heat and passion of love
Loving you is the best thing I can do
I am happiest when I love you
You loving me, well, you know you set me free
Your love brings me freedom and liberation
Love is all I have to give
The only thing I can offer is my love
Will to fly was a thing
The desire to achieve greatness was once a valubale thing
Money could buy
Wealthy people had easier access to opportunities to succeed
Then you know the rich would live
The wealthy would reap the benefits of opportunities and success
And the poor would die
The poor would suffer and struggle without the same opportunities
Still I love the rich
I have no resentment towards the wealthy
But they're yet so lonely
The wealthy may still be lonely despite their material possessions
And I love the poor
I feel empathy and compassion towards those who struggle
'Cause there stood so many
So many people struggle to make ends meet
Love is all I have to give
The only thing I can offer is my love
Oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes, baby
Expressing enthusiasm and passion for love
I can give you what I got [What I got, what I got]
I can offer you what I have, regardless of how much or how little that may be
Oh, your mind think a lot
You are a thoughtful and deep person
I will take just what you got
I will appreciate and value whatever you can offer me
If you say that's what you got
Whatever you can give is enough for me, as long as it comes from a loving place
I know some day no matter what they say
I have faith that one day we will overcome obstacles and achieve our dreams
Money will come, money will come our way
We will receive financial prosperity eventually
In a million billion ways, zillion ways, no, no
There are countless ways in which we may find financial abundance
Love is all I have to give
The only thing I can offer is my love
Oh, yes, oh, yes
Expressing enthusiasm and passion for love
It's so good when you dub it up, dub it up
It's amazing when you express love and share it with others
'Cause all I got to give and what I got to give is blood
The only thing I can offer is my life force and my love
Love is all I got to give
The only thing I can offer is my love
Lyrics © TAMMI MUSIC LTD., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JIMMY CLIFF
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
RastasNevaDie
Love this song makes u wanna dance right away just positive energy one hundred percent
Se Liga Brasil
Music of the 70's, 80's, and little bit of the 90's. Those were true MUSIC.
Musicas dos 70's, 80's e um pouco dos 90's. São verdadeiras Musicas.
Jimmy Cliff was among the best on his category.
Jimmy Cliff esta entre os melhores na categoria.
HADI NDIF The Moroccan King's Cousin
100%
Analê Santiago
Simplesmente amo esse som!!! Obrigada Jimmy!!!!!
兵動・小籔おしゃべり一本勝負
Fantastic! I managed to secure a very rare CD of this album many years ago! Friends in college used to ask if they could borrow my LP Album for Dances.... Still Wonderful All These Years Later!
Emmanuel obeng donkor
My sweetheart would always be singing this song, that was way back in 1982, nice piece, kudos Mr Jimmy Cliff
Emmanuel Obeng-donkor
this is a masterpiece from the master himself
Im Felixto
who else again in this planet will sing like JIMMY. kudos
hope stephen
great music from Jimmy Cliff
peter ogodo
this is marvellouse. it cheers up always.