The Harder They Come (1973 Film)

 (52 customer reviews)

Your search ends here, folks.As a fan of the Jamaican forms of music for most of my life, I can assure you that in very few, if any, places, will one find a better cross-section of rocksteady, vocal trio, rude boy, and reggae music than on this classic film soundtrack.The music of the legends- Desmond Dekker, the king of rocksteady; Toots and the Maytals, masters of Ska, rocksteady and reggae; the Melodians, one of the premier rocksteady vocal trios of all time; and Jimmy Cliff, the master himself- spearheaded the film, and the careers of the players on this disc.Bob Marley fans will argue that Marley is the most influential reggae master of all time. This may very well be true, but this soundtrack is the master of all reggae cds. The blend of styles perfect, the muisc tight and groovy, the vocals exquisite- Jamaican music from this period at its best.If you own one representative of Jamaican music, this would have to be it, but hopefully this soundtrack will...Read more

I'm one of those relatively few people who prefer Jimmy Cliff to Bob Marley...and this CD is one of the primary reasons. I'm not a huge reggae fan, but this soundtrack is simply one of the best CDs I've ever heard. Every song is a classic. Four of Jimmy's best songs are one this one - "You Can Get It," "Many Rivers to Cross," "Sitting in Limbo," and "The Harder They Come." Even non-reggae fans are likely to recognize "Many Rivers to Cross," which I think is one of the most beautiful songs ever recorded. In addition to Jimmy's incredible contributions, several other important reggae acts make an appearance. Scotty scores with "Draw Your Brakes," which has the memorable chorus "stop that train, I want to get off." Desmond Dekker (who had the first ever US reggae hit single with "Israelites") has a song as does the Slickers ("Johnny Too Bad," which was later covered by UB40). This CD is widely credited with popularizing reggae in the United States, and for that distinction...Read more

This 1973 release has probably introduced far more Americans to Reggae than any other ten Reggae discs put together. It's also one of the very best compilation albums, of any genre, I've ever heard.Anchoring the disc are several Jimmy Cliff gems: "You Can Get it if You Really Want" (in two versions, one without the vocals on the verses), "The Harder They Come" (two different versions), the soulful, gospel-influenced "Many Rivers to Cross", and a great pop track, "Sitting In Limbo."Also included are Scotty's slow Reggae-train rhythm of "Draw Your Brakes", The Melodians harmony laden "Rivers of Babylon", The Maytals' "Sweet and Dandy" and their incredible version of "Pressure Drop" (the only problem with which is that it isn't about 40 minutes longer), The Slickers' "Johnny Too Bad" (with those great wails that always made me think the Jordanaires were vacationing in Jamaica and...Read more