Johnny Nash had been singing quite a while when his single “I Can See Clearly Now”, which had been moving slowly up the charts for about a month, shot to the top in two weeks in 1972.
Around this time he was producing future reggae icons Bob Marley and Peter Tosh.
The Wailers were the backing band on the original recording in London, although it appears the single may have been made with members of The Average White Band.
“I Can See Clearly Now” has been used in a number of films, including a Jimmy Cliff remake in 1993 for “Cool Runnings”.
Johnny Nash, who wrote it himself, reached No. 1 in the U.S. and No. 5 in the UK with “I Can See Clearly Now”:
In 1975 Johnny Nash had his only No. 1 hit in the UK with “Tears On My Pillow, which has definite reggae undertones:
This one’s OK, but “I Can See Clearly” remains a classic.
Paul