"Wonderful World, Beautiful People" is a single by Jimmy Cliff. Released in October 1969, it became a top-ten hit in the UK. It was a hit in other countries as well.
Background "Wonderful World, Beautiful People" was released by Trojan Records on October 24, 1969.Second Hand Songs - SINGLE, Wonderful World, Beautiful People by Jimmy Cliff
The song was composed by Jimmy Cliff and produced by Leslie Kong. The song is about what the world could be. Politicians Harold Wilson, Richard Nixon, Georges Pompidou and Alexei Kosygin are mentioned in the song.Lyrics - Wonderful World, Beautiful People, Jimmy Cliff It was a first hit for the Trojan label. It was originally recorded in the West Indies. Jimmy Cliff wasn't satisfied with the orchestral backing so in order to get the strings right, he flew to New York in early October and spent three hours in a twelve track studio re-recording the orchestral parts.New Musical Express, November 1, 1969 - Page 17 NEW to the charts, Three new entries give reggae (all on TROJAN) strong hold on the chart
Charts The single made its debut at no. 20 in the NME Top 30 for week ending November 1, 1969.New Musical Express, November 1, 1969 - Page 9 NME TOP 30, LAST WEEK •, THIS WEEK 20, WONDERFUL WORLD. BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE Jimmy Cliff (Trojan), WEEKS ON CHART 1 Having been in the NME Top 30 chart for four weeks, it peaked at no. 6 on the week ending November 22.New Musical Express, November 22, 1969 - Page 7 LAST WEEK 8, THIS WEEK 6, WONDERFUL WORLD. BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE Jimmy Cliff (Trojan), WEEKS ON CHART 4New Musical Express, November 29, 1969 - Page 7 LAST WEEK 6, THIS WEEK 7, WONDERFUL WORLD. BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE Jimmy Cliff (Trojan), WEEKS ON CHART 5 It peaked at no. 25 in the US.MusicVF.com - Wonderful World, Beautiful People By: Jimmy Cliff In Canada the song reached No. 13.
Performances The song was performed for the first time in public at the Caribbean Music Festival which was held in Wembley in 1969.New Musical Express, November 1, 1969 - Page 17 NEW to the charts, Three new entries give reggae (all on TROJAN) strong hold on the chart
Other versions American singer Chuck Bennett recorded a version of the song in German. It was released in 1970 as "Schön Ist Die Welt".Who Sampled - Cover Version, Chuck Bennett Wann Wird Die Menschheit Klug?, Jimmy Cliff Sufferin' in the Land It was the B-side to another Jimmy Cliff song, "Wann Wird Die Menschheit Klug?" ("Sufferin' in the Land") which was a minor hit for him in Germany.(Rock'n'Roll Schallplatten Forum)The Stars and Stripes, Wednesday January 12, 1972 - Page 10 Left Army Awhile to Tour With 'Hair', Soulful Supply Sgt. Cuts Discs By RICH KRAHAM
Kai Warner included the song on his 1980 album, It's Reggae Time.hitparade.ch - Orchestra Kai Warner – It's Reggae Time, Album, Tracks
Amazulu had a hit in the UK with it in 1987. Their version reached No. 97 during a single week on the chart.Official Charts - WONDERFUL WORLD BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE by AMAZULU
References
External links Jimmy Cliff channel - Wonderful World, Beautiful People (audio) Beat-Boys & Schlager-Jungs - Artists A to E channel - Chuck Bennett - Schön ist die Welt (Wonderful World, Beautiful People) by Chuck Bennett (audio) CGS 097 channel - Kai Warner Wonderful World, Beautiful People Scrap TV channel - Amazulu - Wonderful World, Beautiful People - (Official Video) 1987 Various Artists - Topic channel - Wonderful World Beautiful People (radio) by Unity Nabby Clifford - Topic channel - Wonderful World, Beautiful People by Nabby Clifford