The soundtrack became a breakthrough for reggae music in the U.S., introducing many listeners to the distinctive sound for the fist time. And from that point on, the film’s music also began to take off. About a year later, however, it became more popular with audiences in midnight showings. And in the U.S., too, at least with its initial release in February 1973, the film did not receive much notice. “ The Harder They Come is the most important movie ever to come out of the Caribbean,” says iTunes, “and its soundtrack helped put reggae, in all its variants, on the world map.” The effusive iTunes praise for the film may be a bit of a stretch, but the part about the music is right on the money.įirst released in the U.K in 1972, the film was slow to capture much attention. In 1972-73, The Harder They Come, a Jamaican film about a poor country boy who becomes a music star and then a criminal, arrived at the box office with a very upbeat and powerful soundtrack of Jamaican reggae music. Original album cover for Jimmy Cliff’s “The Harder They Come” soundtrack, July 1972, Island Records.

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