R.I.P.: Johnny Nash, '60s -'70s Reggae Singer

 

Johnny Nash, known for his hit song "I Can See Clearly Now," has died. He was 80.

Nash passed away on Tuesday of natural causes in his home in Houston, Texas, his son John confirmed to Fox News.

Nash got his start in pop music in the 1950s covering standards before launching the JAD label in New York in 1965 and the 1972 debut of the chart-topping hit, "I Can See Clearly Now."

The star's JAD label was home to Bob Marley's band The Wailers for a time. According to the star's website, he was also "one of the first non-Jamaican singers to record reggae music in Kingston, Jamaica."

"I Can See Clearly Now" was also the name of an album of Nash's, which included four songs written by Marley.

The musician also enjoyed success in the reggae genre with songs like "Stir It Up" and "Hold Me Tight."  Nash's last album, “Here Again,” came out in 1986, although in recent years he was reportedly digitizing his old work, some of which was lost in a 2008 fire at Universal Studios in Los Angeles.

Nash was married three times, and had two children. He loved riding horses since childhood and as an adult lived with his family on a ranch in Houston, where for years, he also managed rodeo shows at the Johnny Nash Indoor Arena.

In addition to his son, he is survived by daughter Monica and wife Carli Nash.

After the 1980s, Nash became a mystery to fans and former colleagues as he stopped recording and performing and rarely spoke to the press or anyone in the music industry. In 1973, he told Cameron Crowe, then writing for Zoo World Magazine, that he anticipated years of hard work: “What I want to do is be a part of this business and to express myself and get some kind of acceptance by making people happy.”