The Harder They Come (song)

"The Harder They Come"
Single by Jimmy Cliff
from the album The Harder They Come
B-side	"Many Rivers to Cross"
Released	1972
Format	7" vinyl
Genre	Reggae
Length	3:05
Label	Island
Writer(s)	Jimmy Cliff
Producer(s)	Jimmy Cliff

"The Harder They Come" is a reggae song by the Jamaican singer Jimmy Cliff. It was first recorded for the soundtrack of the 1972 movie of the same name, in which it is supposed to have been written by the film's main character, Ivanhoe Martin.

"The Harder They Come" has been covered by many artists and was ranked #350 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "500 Greatest Songs of All Time".^[1]

The song is the entrance music for heavyweight boxer Samuel Peter and was played live by Jimmy Cliff on an episode of The Colbert Report.

Joe Jackson version

"The Harder They Come"

Single by Joe Jackson Band

B-side

"Out of Style"
"Tilt"

Released

June 1980

Format

7" vinyl, 12" vinyl

Genre

Reggae, rock

Length

3:50

A&M

Joe Jackson Band singles chronology

"Kinda Kute"
(1980)

"The Harder They Come"
(1980)

"Mad at You"
(1980)

Joe Jackson recorded "The Harder They Come" with his band and released it as a single in 1980. It did not chart in the UK.

Track listing

Side one
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Harder They Come"	Jimmy Cliff	3:50

Side two
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
2.	"Out of Style"	Joe Jackson	2:55
3.	"Tilt"	Jackson	2:41

Chart performance

Chart (1980)	Peak position
Dutch GfK chart^[2]	34
Dutch Top 40^[3]	35
Swedish Singles Chart^[4]	18

Rockers Revenge version

"The Harder They Come"

Single by Rockers Revenge featuring Donnie Calvin
Released	1983
Format	7" vinyl, 12" vinyl
Genre	Electro
Length	3:37
Label	London
Writer(s)	Jimmy Cliff
Producer(s)	Arthur Baker

Chart performance

Chart (1983)	Peak position
US Billboard Club Play Singles^[5]	13
Irish Singles Chart^[6]	30
UK Singles Chart^[7]	30

Madness version

"The Harder They Come"

Single by Madness

from the album Madstock!

Released

1992

Format

Recorded

1992

Genre

Pop/Ska

Length

3:27

Clive Langer
Alan Winstanley

Madness singles chronology

"My Girl"
(1992, reissue)

"The Harder They Come"
(1992)

"Night Boat to Cairo"
(1993, reissue)

"The Harder They Come" was released as a single by the band Madness in 1992 after a successful reunion concert held at London's Finsbury Park. The single was recorded live at the event along with its B-sides. Although in 1992 Madness had success with reissues of "It Must Be Love" and "My Girl", their version of "The Harder They Come" failed to make the top 40 in the UK Singles Chart; it peaked at #44.^[8]

Track listing

CD Single No. 1
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Harder They Come"	Jimmy Cliff	3:27
2.	"Land of Hope and Glory" (Live)	Chris Foreman, Lee Thompson	3:33
3.	"Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)" (Live)	Mike Barson, Carl Smyth	3:23
4.	"Take It or Leave It" (Live)	Barson, Thompson	3:51

CD Single No. 2
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Harder They Come"	Cliff	3:27
2.	"Embarrassment" (Live)	Barson, Thompson	3:12
3.	"Grey Day" (Live)	Barson	4:53
4.	"Baggy Trousers" (Live)	Graham McPherson, Foreman	2:42

Chart performance

Chart (1992)	Peak position	Total weeks
UK Singles Chart^[9]	44	3

Other cover versions

"The Harder They Come" has also been covered by:

Jerry Garcia Band, on After Midnight: Kean College, 2/28/80, released in 2004
Merl Saunders / Jerry Garcia / John Kahn / Bill Vitt, on Live at Keystone (1973)
Cher, entitled "The Bigger They Come, The Harder They Fall" on Stars (1975)
Keith Richards, as the B-side to his single "Run Rudolph Run" (1978)
Titãs released a version in Portuguese entitled "Querem Meu Sangue" on Titãs (1984). Cliff would then perform a medley version with them on live album "Acústico MTV" (1997).
Rancid, live on Tibetan Freedom Concert (1997)
Kahimi Karie, on K.K.K.K.K. (1998)
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, on Warped Tour 2003 Tour Compilation (2003)
Wayne Kramer has released two slightly different versions of the song, on the 2000 compilation "Cocaine Blues" and the "Dodge Main" album, with Deniz Tek and Scott Morgan
moe., on Warts and All: Volume 4 (2005)
Willie Nelson, on Countryman (2005)
Pat MacDonald, on Bridging the Distance: a Portland, OR covers compilation (2007)
Guster, on the Everwood soundtrack

References

↑ "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 7 April 2011. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
↑ "dutchcharts.nl - Joe Jackson Band - The Harder They Come (in Dutch)". Retrieved 6 June 2009.
↑ "Nederlandse Top 40, week 34, 1980 (in Dutch)". Retrieved 6 June 2009.
↑ "swedishcharts.com - Joe Jackson Band - The Harder They Come". Retrieved 6 June 2009.
↑ "allmusic ((( Rockers Revenge > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles )))". Retrieved 6 June 2009 (2009-06-06). Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
↑ "irishcharts.ie search results". Retrieved 6 June 2009.
↑ "Chart Stats - Rocker's Revenge Featuring Donnie Calvin - The Harder They Come". Retrieved 6 June 2009.
↑ "Chart Stats - Madness - The Harder They Come". Retrieved 6 June 2009.
↑ Madness at Official Charts Company Retrieved 21 June 2013

External links

Review of "The Harder They Come" by Jimmy Cliff at Allmusic

Joe Jackson

Studio albums	Look Sharp! I'm the Man Beat Crazy Jumpin' Jive Night and Day Body and Soul Blaze of Glory Laughter & Lust Night and Day II Volume 4 Rain The Duke Fast Forward

Classical albums	Will Power Night Music Heaven & Hell Symphony No. 1

Soundtrack albums	Mike's Murder Tucker

Live albums	Big World Live 1980/86 Live in New York: Summer in the City Two Rainy Nights Afterlife Live Music - Europe 2010

Compilation albums	Stepping Out: The Very Best of Joe Jackson This Is It! (The A&M Years 1979-1989)

Notable singles	"Is She Really Going Out with Him?" "Sunday Papers" "One More Time" "I'm the Man" "It's Different for Girls" "The Harder They Come" "Beat Crazy" "Jumpin' Jive" "Steppin' Out" "You Can't Get What You Want (Till You Know What You Want)" "Home Town"

Other songs	"Got the Time" "Come On"

Book:Joe Jackson

Madness

Chris Foreman Mike Barson Lee Thompson Suggs Dan Woodgate Mark Bedford Chas Smash

Studio albums	One Step Beyond... Absolutely 7 The Rise & Fall Keep Moving Mad Not Mad The Madness Wonderful The Dangermen Sessions Vol. 1 The Liberty of Norton Folgate Oui Oui, Si Si, Ja Ja, Da Da Can't Touch Us Now

Compilation albums	Complete Madness Madness Utter Madness It's... Madness It's... Madness Too Divine Madness The Business Total Madness (1997) Our House Total Madness (2009) Ultimate Madness A Guided Tour of Madness Forever Young: The Ska Collection

Live albums	Madstock! Universal Madness Madness Live: To the Edge of the Universe and Beyond

Box sets	The Business The Lot The Singles Box: Vol. 1 A Guided Tour of Madness

Singles	"The Prince" "One Step Beyond" "My Girl" "Work Rest and Play EP" "Baggy Trousers" "Embarrassment" "The Return of the Los Palmas 7" "Grey Day" "Shut Up" "It Must Be Love" "Cardiac Arrest" "House of Fun" "Driving in My Car" "Our House" "Tomorrow's (Just Another Day)" / "Madness (Is All in the Mind)" "Wings of a Dove" "The Sun and the Rain" "Michael Caine" "One Better Day" "Yesterday's Men" "Uncle Sam" "Sweetest Girl" "(Waiting For) The Ghost Train" "Night Boat to Cairo" "The Harder They Come" "Lovestruck" "Johnny the Horse" "Drip Fed Fred" "Shame & Scandal" "Girl Why Don't You" "Sorry" "NW5" "Dust Devil" "Sugar and Spice" "Forever Young" "My Girl 2" "Never Knew Your Name"

Related articles	Discography Lucky 7 Records Dikran Tulaine Our House the Musical 2 Tone Zarjazz Records Starvation/Tam Tam Pour L'Ethiopie The Madness Take It or Leave It The Lee Thompson Ska Orchestra Boring (The Young Ones) Sick (The Young Ones)

Willie Nelson singles discography

1950s
and
1960s

1957	"No Place For Me" / "Lumberjack"

1959	"Man With the Blues" / "The Storm Has Just Begun"

1960	"What a Way to Live" / "Misery Mansion" "Nite Life" / "Rainy Day Blues"

1961	"The Part Where I Cry" / "Mr. Record Man"

1962	"Willingly" / "Chain of Love" "Touch Me" / "Where My House Lives" "Wake Me When It's Over" / "There's Gonna Be Love In My House" "You Dream About Me" / "Is This My Destiny"

1963	"Half a Man" / "The Last Letter" "Take My Word" / "Feed it a Memory"

1964	"How Long is Forever" / "You Took My Happy Away" "Am I Blue" / "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight" "River Boy" / "Opportunity to Cry" "I Never Cared For You" / "You Left Me (A Long Time Ago)" "Pretty Paper" / "What A Merry Christmas This Could Be"

1965	"She's Not For You" / "Permanently Lonely" "Healing Hands of Time" / "One Day at the Time" "I Just Can't Let You Say Goodbye" / "And So Will You, My Love"

1966	"One In A Row" / "San Antonio Rose" "Colombus Stockade Blues" / "He Sits at my Table" "I'm Still Not Over You"/ "I Love You Because"

1967	"The Party's Over" / "Make Way for a Better Man" "Blackjack County Chain" / "Some Other World" "San Antonio" / "To Make a Long Story Short"

1968	"Little Things" / " Sweet Memories" "Good Times" / "Where Do You Stand" "Johnny One Time" / "She's Still Gone"

1969	"Bring Me Sunshine" / "Don't Say Love or Nothing" "I Hope So" / "Right or Wrong"

1970s

1970	"Once More With Feeling" / "Who Do I Know in Dallas" "Laying My Burdens Down" / "Truth Number One"

1971	"I'm a Memory" / "Fire and Rain" "Yesterday's Wine" / "Me and Paul"

1972	"Words Don't Fit the Picture" / "A Moment"

1973	"Shotgun Willie" (mono) / "Sad Songs and Waltzes" "Stay All Night (Stay a Little Longer)" / "Devil in a Sleepin' Bag"

1974	"I Still Can't Believe You're Gone" / "Heaven and Hell" "Bloody Mary Morning" / "After the Fire is Gone"(with Tracy Nelson) "Sister's Comin' Home" (mono) / "Pick Up The Tempo"

1975	"Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" / "Bandera"

1976	"Remember Me (When the Candle Lights Are Gleaming)" / "Time of the Preacher" "I'd Have to Be Crazy" (mono) / "Amazing Grace" "If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time" / "The Sound in Your Mind"

1977	"Uncloudy Day" / "Precious Memories" "I Love You A Thousand Ways" / "Mom and Dad's Waltz"

1978	"Georgia on My Mind" / "On The Sunny Side Of The Street" "Blue Skies" / "Moonlight in Vermont" "All of Me" / "Unchained Melody"

1979	"Whiskey River" / "Under the Double Eagle" "September Song" / "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" "White Christmas" / "Blue Christmas"

1980s

1980	"Help Me Make It Through the Night" / "The Pilgrim, Chapter 33" "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys" / "Rising Stars" "Midnight Rider" / "So You Think You're A Cowboy" "On the Road Again"/ "Jumpin' Cotton Eyed Joe"(performed by Johnny Gimble)

1981	"Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground" / "I Guess I've Come to Live Here in Your Eyes" "Mona Lisa" / "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" / "Over the Rainbow" "Heartaches of a Fool" / "Uncloudy Day"

1982	"Always on My Mind" / "The Party's Over" "Let It Be Me" / "Permanently Lonely" "Last Thing I Needed First Thing This Morning" / "Old Fords and a Natural Stone"

1983	"Little Old Fashioned Karma" / "Beer Barrel Polka" "Why Do I Have to Choose" / "Would You Lay with Me (In a Field of Stone)" "Take It to the Limit" / "Till I Gain Control Again" "Without a Song"

1984	"City of New Orleans (Unedited version)" / "Why Are You Pickin' On Me"

1985	"Forgiving You Was Easy" / "You Wouldn't Cross the Street" "Me and Paul" / "I Let My Mind Wander"

1986	"Living in the Promiseland" / "Bach Minuet in G" "I'm Not Trying to Forget You" / "I've Got the Craziest Feeling"

1987	"Partners After All" / "Home Away From Home" "Heart of Gold" / "So Much Like My Dad" "Island in the Sea" / "There is no Easy Way"

1988	"Nobody There But Me" / "Wake Me When It's Over" "Spanish Eyes" (with Julio Iglesias) / "Ole Buttermilk Sky" "Twilight Time" / "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive"

1989	"Nothing I Can Do About It Now" / "If I Were a Painting" "There You Are" / "Spirit" "Is The Better Part Over" / "Mr. Record Man"

1990s

1990	"The Highway" / "Spirit" "Ain't Necessarily So" / "I Never Cared For You" ("Ain't Necessarily So" also on CD Single)

1991	"The Piper Came Today" / "(I Don't Have a Reason) To Go To California Anymore" ("The Piper Came Today" also on CD Single) "Ten With a Two" / "You Decide"

1993	"Graceland" "Still is Still Moving to Me" / "Valentine"

1995	"Turn Me Loose and Let Me Swing"

1998	"I Never Cared for You"

2000s
and
2010s

2002	"Mendocino County Line" (with Lee Ann Womack) / "Maria (Shut Up and Kiss Me)" (Both single tracks released on CD and 7" record)

2003	"Wurlitzer Prize" (with Norah Jones) "Beer for My Horses" (with Toby Keith)

2005	"I'm a Worried Man" (with Toots Hibbert) "The Harder They Come"

2006	"You Don't Know Me" "Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other"

2008	"Gravedigger" "You Don't Think I'm Funny Anymore"

2011	"The Scientist"

2012	"Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die" "Just Breathe" "Come On Back Jesus"

2013	"From Here to the Moon and Back" (with Dolly Parton) "Grandma's Hands" (with Mavis Staples) "It Won't Be Long" (with The Secret Sisters) "Somewhere Between" (with Loretta Lynn)

2014	"The Wall" "Bring It On" "Laws of Nature" "Who'll Buy My Memories"

2015	"It's All Going to Pot"

Book:Willie Nelson
Category:Willie Nelson

Jimmy Cliff

Studio albums	Jimmy Cliff (1969) Another Cycle (1971) Give Thankx (1978) Cliff Hanger (1985) Humanitarian (1999) Rebirth (2012)

Compilation albums	Reggae Night (2004)

Soundtrack albums	The Harder They Come (1972)

Songs	"Many Rivers to Cross" "The Harder They Come" "Reggae Night" "I Can See Clearly Now"

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