The profound cultural impact of reggae legend Jimmy Cliff, who passed away in November at age 81, is powerfully illustrated through the transformative experience of American veteran Roger Steffens. A new tribute series, ‘Jimmy Cliff: Stories Of A Bongo Man,’ highlights this remarkable connection in its third installment.
In the summer of 1973, Steffens—a Vietnam War veteran—entered a Los Angeles cinema and encountered Cliff’s groundbreaking film ‘The Harder They Come.’ The raw depiction of Jamaican urban life and Cliff’s compelling portrayal of the character Ivan proved immediately overwhelming. Steffens, then residing in Berkeley, had serendipitously encountered a Rolling Stone article by Michael Thomas that introduced reggae and Rastafarian culture to American audiences just days before. He subsequently purchased The Wailers’ seminal ‘Catch A Fire’ album before attending the screening.
Steffens recalled the immersive theater experience in a 2017 interview: ‘During the chalice scene, everyone in the hall lit up and the screen became obscured by the giant cloud of spliff smoke.’ The immediate purchase of the film’s soundtrack at Tower Records marked what he described as a permanent life transformation.
Their paths converged physically three years later when Steffens first visited Jamaica during a declared State of Emergency. Despite an initial pickpocket attempt in Kingston, a stranger’s intervention led to an extraordinary invitation to Cliff’s home. There, Steffens and his wife spent an afternoon with reggae royalty including Joe Higgs, Ernest Ranglin, and Chinna Smith.
This encounter blossomed into a professional relationship, with Steffens conducting multiple interviews with Cliff for radio and television, plus emceeing his performances at events like Reggae On The River. Originally a rock music enthusiast from Brooklyn, Steffens evolved into one of reggae’s foremost archivists, amassing an extensive collection of memorabilia at his Los Angeles residence. His expertise expanded to include authored books and recorded interviews with iconic figures like Bob Marley, whom he met during the artist’s 1979 California tour.
Steffens remembers Cliff as ‘one of the very last major figures who introduced reggae to the world,’ characterizing him as ‘always a gentleman, a deep thinker, a writer of anthems, a fine actor, and a constant seeker of enlightenment.’ The indelible impression Cliff made—both through cinematic artistry and personal interaction—cements his legacy as one of Jah Music’s most influential exponents.