Rebirth

I want Jimmy Cliff’s song, “Many Rivers to Cross,” played at my funeral, even if I’m the only person who shows up. That song is a secular prayer, one of those hymns to the human spirit for those who have trouble finding solace in churches. Cliff was on my radar before I ever heard of Bob Marley, and it’s good to hear him again on this appropriately titled album that addresses the rebirth of the human spirit we all seem to hunger for these days. The album also represents the rebirth of Cliff himself. Working with Rancid’s Tim Armstrong as producer, this is Cliff’s first studio album in more than seven years and is a reassertion of his place in the reggae hierarchy. Alas, there’s no song here as soaring or as powerful as “Many Rivers to Cross,” but then songs like that are near miracles for any artist. Still, reggae lovers will know they’re on solid footing from the lively first track—"World Upside Down"—which will join the canon of songs central to the reggae soul. A few songs, like “Outsider,” are more R&B than reggae, but all in all, this is, indeed, a rebirth of a legendary reggae pioneer.