Tune du Jour: “The Harder They Come” – Jimmy Cliff
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes: Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros vs. Keith Richards vs. Joe Jackson vs. Rancid vs. Barnyard Fury vs. Madness feat. Paul Weller
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Pull up a chair and get comfortable. This will be a long post … as is befitting of a Monster Icon like Jimmy Cliff … R.I.P.
The Original
Jimmy Cliff:
Vietnam, Mother and Child Reunion, The Harder They Come
Jimmy Cliff and Paul Simon … November 27, 2011 … New Jersey Performing Arts Center:
THE CLASH of Cover Tunes
Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros vs. Keith Richards vs. Joe Jackson vs. Rancid vs. Barnyard Fury vs. Madness feat. Paul Weller
Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros:
Keith Richards:
Joe Jackson:
Rancid:
Barnyard Fury:
Madness feat. Paul Weller:
SPACE
Oh the disharmony! Much like Harlan County there are no neutrals here. It is your solemn responsibility to decide which cover song prevails. In other words … Which Side Are You On!??!
Disclaimer: Votes cast from Florida may or may not be counted.
cover me impressed 
Hey there — apologies for my recent vanishing act. I’m bouncing between Argentina and Brazil at the moment, and I figured I’d spend a quick morning catching up on the site. This one post swallowed the entire morning, but an icon like Jimmy Cliff deserves no less.
Like everyone here, I was sad to hear of his passing. The Harder They Come was a huge album for me growing up — the record that taught me just how varied and interesting reggae could be. I still think it’s the greatest reggae soundtrack ever assembled, with Rockers a close second.
That Paul Simon/Jimmy Cliff medley is sublime. If you haven’t seen it, there’s a terrific Paul Simon documentary on Amazon Prime where he talks about Cliff’s influence — even heading to Jamaica to chase that reggae sound for “Mother and Child Reunion.” And ending the medley with The Harder They Come was a total delight.
Your selection of the covers was impressive. Joe Strummer was the obvious fit — he lived and breathed reggae — and his version is solid, if not earth-shattering. Keith Richards dragged it out, a touch too slow for me; then, Rancid blasted through a little too fast. Madness felt a bit bland. Barnyard Fury really surprised me — that was my runner-up. But Joe Jackson got my vote. I can’t explain it… his voice just hooked me, whether you could consider this reggae or not.
Anyway, after this marathon of Harder They Come interpretations, I think I’ve reached my quota for a while. Very cool post — totally worth losing my morning to. And now… off to Rio de Janeiro!
Wow! I liked all six. I love Strummer and I wish I had witnessed the Mescaleros. Keith waa in fine fettle. Joe Jackson picked up the tempo and went with more emphatic than laid back vocals. Rancid also upped the energy and benefited from a fun, active video. The Barnyard Swedes weren’t furious but they were credible and Madness backing Weller was fun if unspectacular. I voted Joe Jackson in a close call over Rancid. Extra note: when The Stones were tax vagabonds, after recording Exile in France they went to Jamaica to work on Goat’s Head Soup and Keith fell in love with the island. He bought a home there and met musicians in the hills. Before they would accept Keith into their clan they put him through some rituals such as smoking so much herb that he might pass out, quit, get sick or expire. Rather than tgat Richards took the ganja as power-ups and actually became the godfather of Iron Man competition- he swam around half the island, came ashore and ran back up into the hills and jammed for twelve hours.
Everyone and their brother covered this song at some time, pretty much always live. And why not? The perfect rousing encore for any evening. The problem is that no one, and I mean no one, could sing it like Jimmy!
Love Keith but that guy has done some pretty poor covers in his time. This one is nothing to get excited about.
I really saw it as a sprint among the last three contestants. Rancid is just plain fun and would have won this thing if only they could have convinced a few monks to slam around on stage. Barnyard Fury came out of nowhere to deliver the most fun and different cover. But Madness and Weller won it by a nose with their professional energy and musicianship.
I expected Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros to win this easily. That looked like a very loose impromptu version, perhaps excessively so.
After listening to all, I wanted to vote Paul Simon, before remembering his version couldn’t receive votes because he shared the stage with Jimmy Cliff.