Johnny Nash
{{Short description|American singer (1940–2020)}}
{{About|the singer-songwriter}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Johnny Nash
| image = Johnny Nash.png
| caption = Nash in 1965
| background = solo_singer
| birth_name = John Lester Nash Jr.
| alias =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1940|8|19}}
| birth_place = Houston, Texas, U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|10|6|1940|8|19}}
| death_place = Houston, Texas, U.S.
| origin =
| genre = {{hlist|Pop{{cite web|url=https://www.texasobserver.org/why-the-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame-needs-texan-johnny-nash/|title=Why the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Needs Texan Johnny Nash|author=Lomax, John Nova|date=December 29, 2021|publisher=Texas Observer|accessdate=January 24, 2025}}|jazz|soul|reggae}}
| occupation = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter|actor}}
| years_active = 1956–2020
| label = {{hlist|Epic|JAD|Cayman Music}}
| website = {{URL|johnnynash.com}}
}}
John Lester Nash Jr. (August 19, 1940{{spnd}}October 6, 2020){{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/oct/08/johnny-nash-obituary|title=Johnny Nash obituary|access-date=8 October 2020 |work=The Guardian |first=Peter |last=Mason |date=8 October 2020}} was an American singer and songwriter, best known in the United States for his 1972 hit "I Can See Clearly Now".{{cite book|title=The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music |editor=Colin Larkin |editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer) |publisher=Virgin Books |date=1997|edition=Concise|isbn=1-85227-745-9|page=889}} Primarily a reggae and pop singer, he was one of the first non-Jamaican artists to record reggae music in Kingston.{{cite book |last1=Marley |first1=Rita |last2=Jones |first2=Hettie |title=No Woman No Cry |date=August 19, 2011 |publisher=Pan Macmillan |isbn=978-0-330-54174-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f0yjnVzkuPAC |language=en}}
Early life
Nash was born on August 19, 1940, in Houston, Texas, the son of Eliza (Armstrong) and John Lester Nash.{{Cite web|url=https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VDGP-CXM|title=FamilySearch: Sign In|website=FamilySearch }} He sang in the choir at Progressive New Hope Baptist Church in South Central Houston as a child.{{cite web |last1=Milkowski |first1=Holly |title=Black History Month Profile: Johnny Nash Jr. |url=https://www.chron.com/life/article/Black-History-Month-Profile-Johnny-Nash-Jr-1682844.php |website=Houston Chronicle |access-date=June 5, 2020 |date=February 22, 2011}} Beginning in 1953, Nash sang covers of R&B hits on Matinee, a local variety show on KPRC-TV;{{cite web |last=Ankeny|first=Jason|title=Johnny Nash Biography |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/johnny-nash-mn0000246628/biography |publisher=AllMusic |access-date=June 5, 2020}} from 1956 he sang on Arthur Godfrey's radio and television programs for a seven-year period.
Career
=1950s=
Signing with ABC-Paramount, Nash made his major label debut in 1957 with the single "A Teenager Sings the Blues". He had his first chart hit in early 1958 with a cover of Doris Day's "A Very Special Love". Marketed as a rival to Johnny Mathis, Nash also enjoyed success as an actor early in his career, appearing in the screen version of playwright Louis S. Peterson's Take a Giant Step in 1959. Nash won a Silver Sail Award for his performance from the Locarno International Film Festival. Nash continued releasing singles on a variety of labels such as Groove, Chess, Argo, and Warner Bros. The song "The Teen Commandments" by Paul Anka, George Hamilton IV, and Johnny Nash reached #14 on Canada's CHUM Charts, December 15, 1958.{{cite web|url=http://chumtribute.com/58-12-15-chart.jpg| title=CHUM Hit Parade - December 15, 1958|website=Chumtribute.com}}
=1960s=
Nash sang the theme song to the syndicated animated cartoon series The Mighty Hercules, which ran on various television stations from 1963 to 1966.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1635324/soundtrack|website=IMDb|title=Hercules Saves Helena|access-date=October 7, 2020}}
In 1964, Nash and manager Danny Sims formed JoDa Records in New York.{{cite book |last1=Moskowitz |first1=David |title=The Words and Music of Bob Marley |date=2007 |publisher=Praeger |location=Westport |isbn=978-0-275-98935-4 |pages=21–22 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QPZEqZHKq2AC&q=Joda|oclc=76925010}} JoDa released The Cowsills' single "All I Really Want to Be Is Me".{{cite book |last1=Warner |first1=Jay |title=American Singing Groups: A History from 1940s to Today |date=2006 |publisher=Hal Leonard |location=Milwaukee |isbn=0634099787 |page=35 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mTM_9JTeoMIC&pg=PA350|oclc=68966384|lccn=2006922018}} Although JoDa filed for bankruptcy after only two years, Nash and Sims moved on to marketing American singers to Jamaica, owing to the low cost of recording in that country.
In 1965, Nash had a top five hit in the US Billboard R&B chart, the ballad "Let's Move and Groove Together". It was just outside the Top 40 in Canada at #44.{{cite web|url=http://rpmimages.3345.ca/pdfs/Vol+4%2C+No.+8+-+Week+of+October+18th%2C+1965.pdf| title=RPM Magazine - October 18, 1965 - page 5}} That year, he and Sims moved to Jamaica.{{cite web |last1=Dansby |first1=Andrew |title=Johnny Nash's career 'Clearly' had more depth than one song |url=https://www.chron.com/news/article/Johnny-Nash-s-career-Clearly-had-more-depth-3637089.php |website=Houston Chronicle |access-date=June 5, 2020 |date=June 15, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130719133242/http://www.chron.com/news/article/Johnny-Nash-s-career-Clearly-had-more-depth-3637089.php |archive-date=July 19, 2013 |url-status=dead }} Their lawyer Newton Willoughby was the father of Jamaican radio host Neville Willoughby.{{cite web |last1=Campbell |first1=Howard |title=Max Romeo honours Neville Willoughby |url=http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20091115/ent/ent6.html |website=Jamaica Gleaner |access-date=June 5, 2020 |date=November 15, 2009}} After selling off his old entertainment assets in New York, Sims opened a new music publishing business in Jamaica, Cayman Music. Nash planned to try breaking the local rocksteady sound in the United States. Around 1966 or 1967, Neville Willoughby took Nash to a Rastafarian party where Bob Marley & The Wailing Wailers were performing. Members Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh, and Rita Marley introduced Nash to the local music scene.{{cite web|last=Jelly-Schapiro|first=Joshua|title=Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Island Records|url=http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=688&fulltext=1&media=|publisher=Los Angeles Review of Books|date=June 11, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120709081953/http://lareviewofbooks.org/article.php?type=&id=688&fulltext=1&media=|archive-date=July 9, 2012}} Nash signed all four to an exclusive publishing contract with Cayman Music for J$50 a week.
In 1967, Nash, Arthur Jenkins, and Sims collaborated to create a new label, JAD Records (after their first names Johnny, Arthur, and Danny), and recorded their albums at Federal Records in Kingston.{{cite book |last1=White |first1=Timothy |title=Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley |date=2006 |publisher=Owl Books |location=New York |isbn=978-0-8050-8086-5 |page=227 |edition=revised and enlarged |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h4nfr2cYAMQC&q=%22jad+records%22+1968&pg=PA227}} JAD released Nash's rocksteady single "Hold Me Tight" in 1968; it became a top-five hit in both the U.S. and UK, and number 1 in Canada.{{cite web|url=http://rpmimages.3345.ca/pdfs/Volume+10-No.+11-November+11%2C+1968.pdf| title=RPM Magazine - November 11, 1968 - page 5}} The record sold well in Argentina. According to the January 25 issue of Cash Box, both Nash's version and a version by Anthony Swete were selling strongly.Cash Box, January 29, 1969 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/60s/1969/CB-1969-01-25.pdf Page 76 Cash Box Argentina] It was charting alongside a version by Anthony Swete in the Argentina's Best Sellers chart.Cash Box, January 29, 1969 - [https://www.worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Cash-Box/60s/1969/CB-1969-01-25.pdf Page 76 Cash Box Argentina, Argentina's Best Sellers, This Week 5, Last Week 9 Hold Me Tight (Odeon) Anthony Swete (RCA); Johnny Nash (EMI)]
=1970s=
In 1971, Nash scored another UK hit with his cover of Marley's "Stir It Up".
Nash's 1972 reggae-influenced single "I Can See Clearly Now" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in November 1972.{{cite book| first= Joseph| last= Murrells| year= 1978| title= The Book of Golden Discs| edition= 2nd| publisher= Barrie and Jenkins Ltd| location= London| page= [https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/317 317]| isbn= 0-214-20512-6| url= https://archive.org/details/bookofgoldendisc00murr/page/317}} "I Can See Clearly Now" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 4, 1972, and remained atop the chart for four weeks, spending the same four weeks atop the adult contemporary chart. The I Can See Clearly Now album includes four original Marley compositions published by JAD: "Guava Jelly", "Comma Comma", "You Poured Sugar on Me", and the follow-up hit "Stir It Up". "There Are More Questions Than Answers" was a third hit single taken from the album.{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/i-can-see-clearly-now-mw0000201192|title=I Can See Clearly Now – Johnny Nash|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=October 7, 2020}}
Nash was also a composer for the Swedish romance film Want So Much to Believe (1971),{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yt9SDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT116|title=So Much Things to Say: The Oral History of Bob Marley|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|date=July 11, 2017|last=Steffens|first=Roger|page=116|isbn=9780393634792}} in which he portrayed 'Robert'.{{cite web|url=https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba75dae7b|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010195553/https://www2.bfi.org.uk/films-tv-people/4ce2ba75dae7b|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 10, 2020|title=Johnny Nash|website=British Film Institute|access-date=October 7, 2020}} The movie soundtrack, partly instrumental reggae with strings, was co-composed by Bob Marley and arranged by Fred Jordan.
JAD Records ceased to exist in 1971, but it was revived in 1997 by American Marley specialist Roger Steffens and French musician and producer Bruno Blum for the Complete Bob Marley & the Wailers 1967–1972 ten-album series, for which several of the Nash-produced Marley and Tosh tracks were mixed or remixed by Blum for release. In the UK, his biggest hit was with the song "Tears on My Pillow" which reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in July 1975 for one week.{{cite book| first= David| last= Roberts| year= 2006| title= British Hit Singles & Albums| edition= 19th| publisher= Guinness World Records Limited| location= London| page= 387| isbn= 1-904994-10-5}} The album Tears on My Pillow came out later in the year.{{cite news |last1=The Herald-Palladium |title=Herald-Palladium:Family Weekly |url=https://ia601508.us.archive.org/BookReader/BookReaderImages.php?zip=/21/items/benton-harbor-herald-palladium-1975-11-08/benton-harbor-herald-palladium-1975-11-08_jp2.zip&file=benton-harbor-herald-palladium-1975-11-08_jp2/benton-harbor-herald-palladium-1975-11-08_0074.jp2&id=benton-harbor-herald-palladium-1975-11-08&scale=2&rotate=0 |access-date=5 March 2025 |work=Herald Palladium |issue=264 |publisher=Associated Press |date=8 November 1975 |archive-url=https://archive.org/ |archive-date=28 October 2022|page=12 |language=English |quote="...his new album "Tears on My Pillow" looks like another hit." |author1-link=The Herald-Palladium }}
After a cover of Sam Cooke's "Wonderful World" in 1976 and "Let's Go Dancing" in 1979, for many years Nash seemed to have dropped out of sight.
=Later career=
Nash had a brief resurgence in the mid-1980s with the album Here Again (1986), which included the minor UK hit, "Rock Me Baby". Younger audiences were introduced to Nash's music with the appearance of Jimmy Cliff's cover of "I Can See Clearly Now" in Disney's 1993 film Cool Runnings. Nash's version of the song appeared over the opening scene of John Cusack's 1997 film, Grosse Point Blank.{{Cite web|date=2020-10-07|title=I Can See Clearly Now singer Johnny Nash dies, aged 80|url=https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2020/1007/1170051-i-can-see-clearly-now-singer-johnny-nash-dies-aged-80/|website=Rte.ie|language=en}}
In May 2006, Nash worked with SugarHill Recording Studios chief engineer Andy Bradley and Tierra Studios' Randy Miller to transfer analog tapes of his songs from the 1970s and 1980s to Pro Tools digital format.{{cite web|url=http://mixonline.com/mixline/johnny-nash-sugarhill-050406/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930023904/http://mixonline.com/mixline/johnny-nash-sugarhill-050406/|archive-date=September 30, 2007|title=Johnny Nash Mixes at SugarHill|date=May 4, 2006}}{{cite web |url=http://mixonline.com/recording/projects/audio_clearly_houston/ |title=Clearly Houston |publisher=Mixonline |date=January 6, 2006 |access-date=August 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021163113/http://mixonline.com/recording/projects/audio_clearly_houston/ |archive-date=October 21, 2012 |url-status=dead }}
=Acting=
Nash has four acting credits in film and television. In 1959, he had the lead role as Spencer Scott in Take a Giant Step, directed by Philip Leacock, one of the first black family films written by a black writer.{{cite web|last1=Reid|first1=Mark|title=Take a Giant Step, A Raisin in the Sun: The U.S. black family film|url=http://www.ejumpcut.org/archive/onlinessays/JC36folder/BlackFamilyFilm.html|website=ejumpcut.org|publisher=Jump Cut|access-date= January 19, 2015}} In 1960, he appeared as "Apple" alongside Dennis Hopper in the crime drama Key Witness. In 1971, he played Robert in the Swedish romance Vill så gärna tro.
Personal life
Nash was married three times and had 3 children,one child was left behind in kingston ,Jamaica, now located in Montreal, Canada{{Cite web|title=Johnny Nash, singer of 'I Can See Clearly Now,' dies at 80|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009203809/https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/johnny-nash-singer-now-dies-80-73464289|url-status=dead|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/johnny-nash-singer-now-dies-80-73464289|
archive-date=9 October 2020|access-date=8 October 2020|website=ABC News|language=en}}
Nash died of natural causes in his home, surrounded by close family in Houston on October 6, 2020, after a period of declining health. He was 80.{{cite news|title=Johnny Nash, singer of 'I Can See Clearly Now,' dies at 80|url=https://apnews.com/article/jamaica-johnny-mathis-johnny-nash-archive-bob-marley-0f9f260a1c75a6901ceaab05b52be458|first=Hillel|last=Italie|date=October 7, 2020|access-date=October 7, 2020|work=Associated Press}}{{cite news|title=Johnny Nash, 'I Can See Clearly Now' Singer, Dies at 80|url=https://variety.com/2020/music/news/johnny-nash-dead-singer-i-can-see-clearly-now-1234795224/|first=Chris|last=Willman|date=October 6, 2020|access-date=October 7, 2020|magazine=Variety}}
Selected discography
=Albums=
| class="wikitable" |
| scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Title ! scope="col" colspan="4"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Record label |
|---|
| style="font-size:smaller;"
! width="40"|US ! width="40"|US R&B ! width="40"|AUS ! width="40"|UK |
| 1958
| Johnny Nash | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center" rowspan="5"| ABC Paramount |
| rowspan="2"| 1959
| I Got Rhythm | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| Quiet Hour
| align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| 1960
| Let's Get Lost | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| 1961
| Studio Time | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| 1964
| Composer's Choice | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|Argo |
| 1968
| Hold Me Tight | align="center"|109 | align="center"|23 | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center" rowspan="4"| JAD |
| rowspan="3"| 1969
| Prince of Peace | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| Soul Folk
| align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| Love and Peace
| align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| rowspan="2"| 1972
| Teardrops in the Rain | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|Cadet |
| I Can See Clearly Now
| align="center"|23 | align="center"|10 | align="center"|29 | align="center"|39 | align="center" rowspan="3"| Epic |
| 1973
| My Merry-Go-Round | align="center"|169 | align="center"|49 | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| 1974
| Celebrate Life | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– |
| 1975
| Tears on My Pillow | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|CBS |
| 1977
| What a Wonderful World | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|Epic |
| 1978
| Love Me Tender | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|Bellaphon |
| 1979
| Let's Go Dancing | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|Epic |
| 1986
| align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|– | align="center"|London |
| colspan="8" style="text-align:center; font-size:9pt;"| "–" denotes releases that did not chart. |
=Compilations=
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
! Album ! style="width:40px;"|UK ! Record label |
|---|
| 1974
| Johnny Nash's Greatest Hits | align="center"|– |
| align=center | CBS |
| 1977
| Johnny Nash Collection | align="center"|18 | | align=center | Epic |
| 1981
| Stir It Up | align="center"|– | | align=center | Hallmark |
| 1993
| The Reggae Collection | align="center"|– | | align=center | Epic |
| colspan="5" style="text-align:center; font-size:9pt;"| "–" denotes releases that did not chart. |
=Soundtrack=
Nash sang the theme song for the television cartoon series The Mighty Hercules, which aired in first-run syndication from 1963 to 1966.{{Cite web|url=https://nostalgiacentral.com/television/tv-by-decade/tv-shows-1960s/mighty-hercules/|title=Mighty Hercules, The |website=Nostalgiacentral.com|date=June 23, 2014 |access-date=October 7, 2020}}{{Cite web|url=https://theclassicrocker.wordpress.com/2019/02/23/162-the-mighty-hercules-theme-song/|title=#162 – The Mighty Hercules Theme Song|website=Theclassicrocker.wordpress.com|date=February 23, 2019|access-date=October 7, 2020}}{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
=Singles=
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |
| rowspan="2"| Year
! rowspan="2"| Single (A-side, B-side) ! colspan="7"| Chart positions ! rowspan="2"| Certifications ! rowspan="2"| Album |
|---|
| style="font-size:smaller;"
! style="width:40px;"| US ! style="width:40px;"| US ! style="width:40px;"| US ! style="width:40px;"| US ! style="width:40px;"| UK ! style="width:40px;"| CAN ! style="width:40px;"| AUS |
| | 1956
| style="text-align:left;"| "A Teenager Sings the Blues" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="10"|Non-album tracks |
| rowspan="2"| 1957
| style="text-align:left;"| "I'll Walk Alone" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "A Very Special Love" b/w "Won't You Let Me Share My Love with You" | 23 | 30 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="5"| 1958
| style="text-align:left;"| "My Pledge to You" | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Please Don't Go" b/w "I Lost My Love Last Night" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "You're Looking at Me" b/w "Truly Love" | – | 98 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Almost in Your Arms" b/w "Midnight Moonlight" (from Johnny Nash) | 78 | 49 | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "The Teen Commandments" Paul Anka, George Hamilton IV, Johnny Nash B-side by Don Costa: "If You Learn to Pray" | 29 | 46 | – | – | – | 41 | |
| rowspan="5"| 1959
| style="text-align:left;"| "Walk with Faith in Your Heart" | – | 48 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "As Time Goes By" b/w "The Voice of Love" | 43 | 48 | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "And the Angels Sing" b/w "Baby, Baby, Baby" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | I Got Rhythm |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Take a Giant Step" b/w "But Not for Me" | – | 119 | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="4"|Non-album tracks |
| style="text-align:left;"| "The Wish" b/w "Too Proud" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="5"|1960
| style="text-align:left;"| "Goodbye" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Never My Love" b/w "(You've Got) The Love I Love" (from I Got Rhythm) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Let the Rest of the World Go By" b/w "Music of Love" (non-album track) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | Let's Get Lost |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Looks Like the End of the World" b/w "We Kissed" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="13"|Non-album tracks |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Somebody" b/w "Kisses" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="4"| 1961
| style="text-align:left;"| "Some of Your Lovin'" | 104 | 93 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "I Need Someone to Stand by Me" Original B-side: "A House on the Hill" Later B-side: "A Thousand Miles Away" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "I'm Counting on You" b/w "I Lost My Baby" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Too Much Love" b/w "Love's Young Dream" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="2"| 1962
| style="text-align:left;"| "Don't Take Away Your Love" | – | 129 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Ol' Man River" b/w "My Dear Little Sweetheart" | 120 | 91 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="4"|1963
| style="text-align:left;"| "I'm Movin' On" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "I've Got a Lot to Offer Darling" b/w "Helpless" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Deep in the Heart of Harlem" b/w "What Kind of Love Is This" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Town of Lonely Hearts" b/w "It's No Good for Me" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="3"| 1964
| style="text-align:left;"| "I'm Leaving" | 120 | 103 | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Love Ain't Nothin'" b/w "Talk to Me" | – | 133 | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="4"|Teardrops in the Rain |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" b/w "Always" (non-album track) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="3"|1965
| style="text-align:left;"| "Strange Feeling" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Teardrops in the Rain" b/w "I Know What I Want" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Let's Move & Groove Together" b/w "Understanding" (from Love Me Tender) | 88 | 92 | 4 | – | – | – | | Non-album track |
| rowspan="4"|1966
| style="text-align:left;"| "Get Myself Together" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | Teardrops in the Rain |
| style="text-align:left;"| "One More Time" b/w "Tryin' to Find Her" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="2"|Love Me Tender |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Somewhere" b/w "Big City" | 120 | 118 | 35 | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Amen" b/w "Perfumed Flower" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="3"|Non-album tracks |
| rowspan="2"|1967
| style="text-align:left;"| "Good Goodness" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "(I'm So) Glad You're My Baby" b/w "Stormy" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="2"| 1968
| style="text-align:left;"| "Hold Me Tight" | 5 | 7 | 21 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 4 | | rowspan="3"|Hold Me Tight |
| style="text-align:left;"| "You Got Soul" b/w "Don't Cry" | 58 | 55 | 46 | – | 6 | 37 | 72 | |
| rowspan="5"| 1969
| style="text-align:left;"| "Lovey Dovey" | 130 | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "We Try Harder"* b/w "My Time"* | 135 | – | – | – | – | – | – | | Johnny Nash & Kim Weston |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Sweet Charity" b/w "People in Love" (from Hold Me Tight) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | | Non-album track |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Love and Peace" b/w "People in Love" (from Hold Me Tight) | 132 | – | – | – | – | – | – | | Love and Peace |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Cupid" b/w "Hold Me Tight" | 39 | 36 | – | 38 | 6 | 30 | – | | Hold Me Tight |
| rowspan="2"|1970
| style="text-align:left;"| "(What A) Groovey Feeling" | 102 | 131 | – | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="2"|Non-album tracks |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Falling in and Out of Love" b/w "You Got to Change Your Ways" (from Hold Me Tight) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="3"| 1972
| style="text-align:left;"| "Stir It Up" | – | 11 | – | 6 | 13 | 7 | 48 | | rowspan="4"|I Can See Clearly Now |
| style="text-align:left;"| "I Can See Clearly Now" b/w "How Good It Is" | 1 | 1 | 38 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 3 | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "There Are More Questions Than Answers" b/w "Guava Jelly" | – | – | – | – | 9 | – | – | |
| rowspan="3"| 1973
| style="text-align:left;"| "Stir It Up" | 12{{Efn|Re-released in US after success of "I Can See Clearly Now".|name=fn1|group=upper-alpha}} | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "My Merry-Go-Round" b/w "(Oh Jesus) We're Trying to Get Back to You" | 77 | 74 | – | 34 | – | 47 | – | | rowspan="3"|My Merry-Go-Round |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Ooh What a Feeling" b/w "Yellow House" | 103 | – | – | 38 | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="3"| 1974
| style="text-align:left;"| "Loving You" | 91 | 67 | 40 | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "You Can't Go Halfway" b/w "The Very First Time" | 105 | 90 | 38 | – | – | – | – | | rowspan="3"|Celebrate Life |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Celebrate Life" b/w "Beautiful Baby" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| rowspan="3"| 1975
| style="text-align:left;"| "(You Gave Me Such) Good Vibrations" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Tears on My Pillow" b/w "Beautiful Baby" (from Celebrate Life) | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | 69 | | rowspan="2"|Tears on My Pillow |
| style="text-align:left;"| "Let's Be Friends" b/w "The Edge of Love" | – | – | – | – | 42 | – | – | |
| | 1976
| style="text-align:left;"| "(What A) Wonderful World" | 103 | 82 | 66 | 34 | 25 | – | 96 | | rowspan="2"|What a Wonderful World |
| | 1977
| style="text-align:left;"| "That Woman" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| | 1979
| style="text-align:left;"| "Closer" | – | – | 74 | – | – | – | – | | Let's Go Dancing |
| | 1985
| style="text-align:left;"| "Rock Me Baby" | – | – | – | – | 47 | – | 99 | |Here Again |
| | 1989
| style="text-align:left;"| "I Can See Clearly Now" (remix) | – | – | – | – | 54 | – | – | |Non-album track |
| align="center" colspan="11" style="font-size:9pt"| "–" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |
Notes
{{notelist-ua}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://johnnynash.com/}}
- {{allMusic}}
- {{Discogs artist}}
- {{IMDb name|0621750}}
{{Johnny Nash}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nash, Johnny}}
Category:American male pop singers
Category:20th-century African-American male singers
Category:American expatriates in Jamaica
Category:Groove Records artists
Category:Traditional pop music singers
Category:20th-century American singers
Category:20th-century American male singers
Category:21st-century American singers
Category:21st-century American male singers