‘Township Jive‘

| Longer Version | More With Lady Smith Black Mambazo |

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About Paul Simon:

Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) in Newark, New Jersey to Jewish Hungarian parents, is an American singer-songwriter and musician, perhaps best known for his partnership with Art Garfunkel in the duo Simon & Garfunkel. In 2006, Time magazine called him one of the 100 “people who shape our world.” As of 2007, he resides in New Canaan, Connecticut. [ READ MORE ] [ OFFICIAL PAUL SIMON WEBSITE ] [ More Music By PAUL SIMON ]

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About LadySmith Black Mambazo:

Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a male choral group from South Africa that sings in the vocal style of isicathamiya and mbube. They rose to worldwide prominence as a result of singing with Paul Simon on his album, Graceland and have won multiple awards, including three Grammy Awards. They were formed by Joseph Shabalala in 1960 and became one of South Africa’s prolific recording artists, with their releases receiving gold and platinum disc honours. The group has now become a mobile academy, teaching people about South Africa and its culture. [ READ MORE ] [ OFFICIAL MAMBAZO WEBSITE ] [ More Music By LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO ]

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NOTES:

1. Isicathamiya (with the ‘c’ pronounced as a dental click) is a singing style that originated from the South African Zulus. In European understanding, a cappella is also used to describe this form of singing. — [ MORE ]

2. Mbube — is a form of South African vocal music, made famous by Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The word mbube means “lion” in Zulu. Traditionally performed a cappella, the style is sung in a powerful and loud way (see Mbube Roots, Rounder CD 5025). The members of the group are male, although quite a few groups often have a female singer (On Tiptoe: Gentle Steps to Freedom). However, since the formation of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, the style has fallen in favour of softer singing, which is known as isicathamiya.

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About Hugh Masekela:

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Hugh Ramopolo Masekela (b. Witbank, South Africa, April 4, 1939) is a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, composer, and singer.

He began singing and playing piano as a child. At age 14, after seeing the film Young Man With a Horn (in which Kirk Douglas portrays American jazz trumpeter Bix Beiderbecke), he took up playing the trumpet. His first trumpet was given to him by Archbishop Trevor Huddleston, the anti-apartheid chaplain at St. Peters Secondary School.

Huddleston asked the leader of the then Johannesburg “Native” Municipal Brass Band, Uncle Sauda, to teach Masekela the rudiments of trumpet playing. Masekela quickly mastered the instrument. Soon, some of Masekela’s schoolmates also became interested in playing instruments, leading to the formation of the Huddleston Jazz Band, South Africa’s very first youth orchestra. By 1956, after leading other ensembles, Masekela joined Alfred Herbert’s African Jazz Revue.

Since 1954, Masekela played music that closely reflected his life experience. The agony, conflict, and exploitation South Africa faced during 1950’s and 1960’s, inspired and influenced him to make music. He was an artist who in his music vividly portrayed the struggles and sorrows, as well as the joys and passions of his country. His music protested about apartheid, slavery, government; the hardships individuals were living. Masekela reached a large population of people that also felt oppressed due to the country situation.

Following a Manhattan Brothers tour of South Africa in 1958, Masekela wound up in the orchestra for the musical King Kong, written by Todd Matshikiza. King Kong was South Africa’s first blockbuster theatrical success, touring the country for a sold-out year with Miriam Makeba and the Manhattan Brothers’ Nathan Mdledle in the lead. The musical later went to London’s West End for two years. [ READ MORE ] [ More Music By HUGH MASEKELA ]

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