Legendary singer-songwriter, Johnny Nash, has died at the age of 80.
Mr Nash, whose most famous song, the anthem ‘I Can See Clearly Now’ still gets regular radio play around the world, died of natural causes at his home in Houston, his son Johnny Nash Jnr confirmed today.
Reportedly written by Nash while recovering from eye cataract surgery, I Can See Clearly Now was a song about overcoming hard times, with a pop-reggae groove he was famous for, and the promise of a “bright, bright sunshiny day”.
Rock writer, Robert Christgau would call the song, which Nash also produced, “two minutes and 48 seconds of undiluted inspiration”.
“I feel that music is universal. Music is for the ears and not the age,” Mr Nash said in an interview in 1973.
“There are some people who say that they hate music. I’ve run into a few, but I’m not sure I believe them.”
His final album, Here Again, was released in 1986, shortly before he all but disappeared from the music scene.
In recent years he was reportedly digitising his old work, some of which was lost in a fire at Universal Studios in 2008.
Nash was married three times and had two children.
He is survived by his son, his daughter, Monica, and his wife, Carli Nash.
