Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
The second of Jimmy Cliff's three albums for Reprise in the mid-'70s, Music Maker has on the surface all of the ingredients that went into Cliff's wonderful late-'60s work with producer Leslie Kong. The songs are melodic and wise while the production yields a bright pop sound with subtle reggae rhythms that are implied more than they are front and center, and floating over the top of everything is Cliff's distinctive, expressive tenor. But something intangible is missing, and while it is tempting to suggest that what's absent is Kong's input (Kong died in 1971, shortly after The Harder They Come was completed), the truth is that Cliff's songwriting sounds a bit labored here. Not that there isn't strong material on Music Maker. "Foolish Pride" is a lovely song, for instance, while "I've Been Dead for 400 Years" carries the kind of historical and political commitment that made Bob Marley an international icon. But nothing on Music Maker has the kind of easy universality that earlier Cliff songs like "Many Rivers to Cross" or "The Harder They Come" exhibited. Another problem with this album, at least in retrospect, is the heavy use of the Moog synthesizer, which gives the whole enterprise a kind of dated feel, while the Kong-produced material, by contrast, comes across as wonderfully timeless. Still, Cliff is too good a singer and writer to ever put out a completely bad album, and his obvious well-meaning sincerity comes close to making this one work. The best of Jimmy Cliff's work on Reprise has been collected on The EMI Years 1973-1975, and that may be the best way to sample this time period in the singer's career. [The British edition has entirely different artwork and was titled House of Exile.]
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From $10.83/month
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, Writer, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Parlophone Records Ltd, a Warner Music Group Company
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Producer, Vocals, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Jackie Jackson, Bass - Jimmy Cliff, Composer, Producer, Vocals, Writer, MainArtist - Tommy McCook, Saxophone - Gladstone Anderson, Piano - Bobby Ellis, Trumpet - Winston Wright, Keyboards - Hux Brown, Guitar - Dad Bryan, Guitar
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Reprise Records
Album review
The second of Jimmy Cliff's three albums for Reprise in the mid-'70s, Music Maker has on the surface all of the ingredients that went into Cliff's wonderful late-'60s work with producer Leslie Kong. The songs are melodic and wise while the production yields a bright pop sound with subtle reggae rhythms that are implied more than they are front and center, and floating over the top of everything is Cliff's distinctive, expressive tenor. But something intangible is missing, and while it is tempting to suggest that what's absent is Kong's input (Kong died in 1971, shortly after The Harder They Come was completed), the truth is that Cliff's songwriting sounds a bit labored here. Not that there isn't strong material on Music Maker. "Foolish Pride" is a lovely song, for instance, while "I've Been Dead for 400 Years" carries the kind of historical and political commitment that made Bob Marley an international icon. But nothing on Music Maker has the kind of easy universality that earlier Cliff songs like "Many Rivers to Cross" or "The Harder They Come" exhibited. Another problem with this album, at least in retrospect, is the heavy use of the Moog synthesizer, which gives the whole enterprise a kind of dated feel, while the Kong-produced material, by contrast, comes across as wonderfully timeless. Still, Cliff is too good a singer and writer to ever put out a completely bad album, and his obvious well-meaning sincerity comes close to making this one work. The best of Jimmy Cliff's work on Reprise has been collected on The EMI Years 1973-1975, and that may be the best way to sample this time period in the singer's career. [The British edition has entirely different artwork and was titled House of Exile.]
© Steve Leggett /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 12 track(s)
- Total length: 00:43:58
- Main artists: Jimmy Cliff
- Composer: Jimmy Cliff
- Label: Rhino - Warner Records
- Genre: World Reggae
© 1974 Warner Records Inc. ℗ 1974 Warner Records Inc. Marketed Rhino Entertainment Company, a Warner Music Group Company.
Improve album information
Why buy on Qobuz?
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalog with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets, and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.