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.
Synthetic World
Jimmy Cliff Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
For a moments of my youth
I know deep down inside me
You've always shared the truth
But life is brief and fickle
And all that starts must end
So la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
We've seen a lot together
Sometimes good but mostly bad
Through every change of weather
You're the only one I've had
But life is brief and fickle
And all that starts must end
So la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
The dream that we all live in
The plans we try to make
The treasures we are giving
Are more than we can take
But life is brief and fickle
And all that starts must end
So la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
But life is brief and fickle
And all that starts must end
So la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
In "Synthetic World," Jimmy Cliff sings about a love that he cannot live without in a world that is fleeting and unstable. He begins the song with the repetition of "la la la" to create a melodic mood for the listener. He then pleads to his lover that he cannot live without them, emphasizing the importance of their presence in his life. Cliff recognizes that their journey together has been filled with happy memories and hardships, but through it all, they have remained loyal to one another. He acknowledges that life is brief and uncertain, and thus he wants to make the most of his time with his lover. Ultimately, he ends the song with a somber reminder that everything must come to an end, and he repeats the chorus to drive that message home.
Line by Line Meaning
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Refrain, expressing the importance of the subject
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
The subject is necessary for the singer to have a fulfilling life.
You've always been beside me
For a moments of my youth
I know deep down inside me
You've always shared the truth
The subject has been a loyal and trustworthy companion to the singer.
We've seen a lot together
Sometimes good but mostly bad
Through every change of weather
You're the only one I've had
The subject has been with the artist through thick and thin.
The dream that we all live in
The plans we try to make
The treasures we are giving
Are more than we can take
The things we strive for in life cannot compare to the value of the subject.
But life is brief and fickle
And all that starts must end
However, life is unpredictable and fleeting, and all good things must come to an end.
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
The subject is once again reiterated as an essential component of the singer's wellbeing.
But life is brief and fickle
And all that starts must end
The reality of mortality and impermanence is acknowledged once again.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la
Refrain, emphasizing the importance of the subject.
Baby, I can't live without you
Life is nothing without you
Don't you know?
The song ends with a final plea to the subject's importance in the artist's life.
Contributed by Tyler A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@koffiremi3098
Hey you, I am up from the bayou
Where wildlife runs free
You could say that I’m country
But let me tell you what I see
Your world is plastic
Can see through to the other side
Your cities are made with of wood
Antiques are what you’ve got inside
Houses are paper but folks don’t hear a word you say
Friendship’s like acid
Its burns, burns, burns as it slides away
So you see, my patience is growin thin
With the synthetic world we’re living in
@AustraliaRealEstateMobi
Top 1000 Songs Of All Time. Jimmy is great. Lyrics below, but the lines 'The word imitation is goin' cross the nation' and 'Spray to clear the air and its filled with spray' and 'Maybe it has, replaced can' are incorrect. Does anyone know the correct lyrics for those 3 lines?
Hey you, I'm up from the bayou
Where wildlife runs free
You could say that I'm country
But let me tell you what I see
Your world is plastic
Can see through to the other side
Your cities are made of wood
Antiques are what you've got inside
Houses are paper but folks don't hear a word you say
Friendship's like acid
It burns, burns, burns as it slides away
So you see, my patience is growin' thin
With this synthetic world we're livin' in
The word imitation is goin' cross the nation
What's real has become a freak
Someone's tryin' to make me weak
Strange initials to keep me blind
Psychedelic music to blow my mind
So you see, my patience is growin' thin
With this synthetic world we're livin' in
Spray to clear the air and its filled with spray
Makin' people die every day
Now I find I'm out of place
If I only have one face
All my friends have more than two
No longer must you be you
They found out how to transplant
Maybe it has, replaced can
So you see, my patience is growin' thin
With this synthetic world we're livin' in
@bogup
Hey you, I'm up from the bayou
Where wildlife runs free
You could say that I'm country
But let me tell you what I see
Your world is plastic
Can see through to the other side
Your cities are made of wood
Antiques are what you've got inside
Houses are paper but folks don't hear a word you say
Friendship's like acid
It burns, burns, burns as it slides away
So you see, my patience is growin' thin
With this synthetic world we're livin' in
The word imitation is goin' cross the nation
What's real has become a freak
Someone's tryin' to make me weak
Strange initials to keep me blind
Psychedelic music to blow my mind
So you see, my patience is growin' thin
With this synthetic world we're livin' in
Spray to clear the air and its filled with spray
Makin' people die every day
Now I find I'm out of place
If I only have one face
All my friends have more than two
No longer must you be you
They found out how to transplant
Maybe it has, replaced can
So you see, my patience is growin' thin
With this synthetic world we're livin' in
Na na na nee na na na na..
@relaxpayourincometax
I was in single figures when playing this on an Alba record player system. I recall this being the ‘b’ side of a reggae ‘a’ side. Records were like toys then - we had them all out of their sleeves all over the floor. Loved this.
@achoojike375
Timeless Cliff. Yet to be accorded his rightful place in the annals of music history. Can't understand why he's so underrated. Has one of the best Male voice in the industry. The world should give a deserved ovation to this timeless hero.
@richardswanson1712
"Vietnam" is one of the best folk songs ever written and sung, according to Bob Dylan.
@EnduroRacer18
Him and Toots both.
@ccmma1844
Greatest philosopher of all time. A rare gem. My main man. Awesome
@vincentb5119
This gives me goose bumps. I love, love ❤ this.
@estherwilliams5316
A beautiful song to reflect on. He is timeless.
@shulestuff
Takes me back to 1970s - Nairobi, listening to Jimmy Cliff with my friend J. Kinyua
@atsumanasamuel8722
I used to listen to this song in the late sixties and is still fresh as composed today
@dovercliffs9455
Memories of those days that will never come back.