<Tr> <Th> Label </Th> <Td> Treasure Isle </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Songwriter (s) </Th> <Td> John Holt </Td> </Tr> <P> "The Tide Is High" is a 1966 song written by John Holt, originally produced by Duke Reid and performed by the Jamaican group The Paragons, with Holt as lead singer . The song gained international attention in 1980, when a version by the American band Blondie became a US / UK number one hit . The British girl group Atomic Kitten also had a number one hit with their version of the song in 2002, while Canadian rapper Kardinal Offishall had a minor hit with his interpretation in 2008 . </P> <P> "The Tide Is High" was written by John Holt and originally recorded by the Paragons (the rocksteady vocal trio of which he was a member), and accompanied by Tommy McCook and the Suspersonic Band . It was produced by Duke Reid and released as a 7 - inch single on Reid's Treasure Isle and Trojan labels and as the B - side of the single "Only a Smile". </P>

Who wrote the song the tide is high