South Africa: Voices On High

Of course, race relations in South Africa have been entirely black and white for the entirety of the country's colonial history (and far beyond through the apartheid era). When African labor was first harnessed for mines on the Strand, men working under the harshest conditions turned to music on Sundays for release. In short time they birthed a unique style known as isicathamiya : call-and-response vocal music, sometimes matched with rhythmic dance.

When Africans were prohibited from consuming alcohol, they turned to illegal drinking places known as shebeens that were as much cultural hubs as anything else. That in turn led to South African jazz and popular styles known as kwela and mbaqanga , which of course fed right back into church music on more sober days. And so two and two yield six in the case of the South African sound. But back to the church...

Ladysmith Black Mambazo
Raise Your Spirit Higher: Wenyukela
Heads Up
2003

Maybe two and two is ten in the case of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, a vocal tentet that has endured many changes since its founding in the early '60s by Joseph Shabalala. The sixties were a turbulent time in South Africa, a fact that's reflected in the group's name: Ladysmith after Shabalala's hometown, Black after the mighty ox (as well as the obvious), and Mambazo from the Zulu word for axe.

(Such names were not unique. One of the greatest records in South African history is Mankunku's 1968 masterpiece Yakhal' Inkomo , whose title refers to the sound a bull makes when taken to slaughter.)

But make no mistake: LBM is entirely about peace, consciousness, respect, and reconciliation. There's no violence or roughness in this music—just spiritual communication of the highest order. According to Shabalala, "it comes from the blood." Indeed. These vocal harmonies will remind Western ears of hymns and our own gospel music, and that's entirely appropriate given the embedded message of love. They may also recall the gentle ripples of Paul Simon's 1986 recording Graceland, probably the greatest hunk of South African music the world has ever swallowed en masse. Call and response between man and man, man and God.

On Raise Your Spirit Higher the members of Ladysmith Black Mambazo sing nine spiritual anthems in Zulu, three in English, plus an odd hip-hop tribute to the leader's late wife by his grandsons. Gentle waves of open harmonies break on the shore, individual voices rising throughout in counterpoint and call-and-response. The music is particularly warm because of the deep pitches of the male voices involved. Intermittent fluttering trills, breath, and clicks accent certain features—especially prominent in "Because I Love," a tribute to the group's home town, and appropriate given the vastly expanded sonorities of the Zulu language.

Raise Your Spirit Higher stacks up there with the very best of Ladysmith Black Mambazo's output (over 30 records strong at this point). It's impeccably produced, thoroughly organic, and a spiritual tribute of the highest order. "Black Is Beautiful." Indeed. Now close your eyes and listen.

Visit Ladysmith Black Mambazo and Heads Up on the web.

Various Artists
The Rough Guide to South African Gospel
World Music Network
2003

The third volume in the series to address music from the tip of the Dark Continent, the Rough Guide to South African Gospel strikes right at the heart. It's a fine complement to the South African Jazz guide from 2000, since jazz and gospel share common roots that sink deep into religion, race, and culture. And, of course, voices raised in praise.

For the black majority in South Africa, church music found a willing partner in tribal song, especially since the church was the warmest place Europeans had to offer the underclass. Blacks found solace, respect, and literacy in Christianity, and today over 80% of the country's black population considers itself Christian.

The liner notes claim that gospel is South Africa's most popular music today, bolstered by the fact that singer Rebecca Malope's seventh record ( Shwele Baba, from 1995) sold over 100,000 copies in its first three weeks. South Africa is hardly a well-oiled market by American standards, which makes that figure all the more impressive.

"Usizo Lwam'," a hit from that release, has the heaviest production of any track in this collection. If you had to compare it to contemporary American urban music, you'd probably call it a spiritual slow jam: downtempo, paced regular beats, thick synth textures, and absolutely soulful delivery. But the regional influences come through loud and clear with the song's stark cries, open harmonies, and compact proportions.

Of course Ladysmith Black Mambazo is represented here with a classic selection from 1975 that's probably the best representative of the traditional isicathamiya style turned directly toward the church. It's characteristically warm, gentle, and soft. More roots-oriented sounds dominate the rest of the record, with a pile of choirs that quite literally come right out of services. You'll find these more familiar if you yourself check in to a musical denomination on a regular basis. It is serious stuff, not the kind where an average parishioner can shout and join in.

The extensive liner notes classify each track according to the particular church branch each represents—Ethiopian, Pentecostal, Zionist, or Apostolic—and that's a rather sterile and intellectual way of breaking things down. Better to look at the orientation (traditional versus modern) and influences (liturgical, jazz, R&B, American folk music). There are touches of country twang, modern soul, hip-swinging American gospel, mbaqanga, old time spirituals, urban dance music, and West African highlife.

This is an amazingly deep and far-reaching collection, probably the definitive issue on the subject, and a welcoming first step into the rich harmonies that mark South African vocal music as a genre all its own.

Hallelujah.

Visit World Music Network and Rough Guides on the web.

Tracks and Personnel

Raise Your Spirit Higher: Wenyukela

Tracks
1. Tribute - 1:17
2. Because I Love You - 4:10
3. Wenyukela (Raise Your Spirit Higher) - 4:52
4. Wenza Ngani? (How Did You Do That?) - 4:38
5. Dlondlobalo Njalo (Preserve South Africa's - 4:20
6. Sandlwana (A Mountain) - 4:51
7. Mbayimbayi (By and By I'm Coming) - 4:28
8. Black Is Beautiful - 3:30
9. Uqinisil' Ubaba (Lord Is the Light and... - 3:54
10. Udidekil' Umhlaba (Lord's Work) - 4:32
11. Iningi Liyabon Ububende (Many Spoil the... - 4:56
12. Wangibambezela (Message from His Heart) - 5:00
13. Wamlul' Umshado (Beautiful Wedding) - 4:04
14. Phalamende (Parliament) - 3:40
15. Fak' Ibhande (Don't Drink and Drive) - 3:26
16. Music Knows No Boundaries - 3:06
17. Halala South Africa (Congratulations South Africa) - 5:19

Personnel

Ladysmith Black Mambazo: Joseph Shabalala, Jabulane Dubazana, Abednego Mazibuko, Albert Mazibuko, Sibongiseni Lucas Shabalala, Thamsanqua Shabalala, Thulani Shabalala, Msizi Innocent Shabalala, Jockey Shabalala, Ndoa Russel Mthembu.

Rough Guide to South African Gospel

1. Namhla Niyabizwa - S.A.C. Choir
2. Bayahuba Abantwana - St. Moses Choir
3. Wadatshulwa - Amadodana Asempumaze
4. Zingandidakumbisa Na? - Amadodana Ase Wesile
5. Morena Boluka - Amagugu Odumu
6. Hamba Jona - Michael Nkole & His Apostles
7. Nkosi Baba Ngiyakuthanda - Ama-Nazaretha
8. Lefatshe La Dikhutsanyane - Vuyo Mokoena & Pure Magic
9. Tumelo - I.P.C.C.
10. Nkosi Yami Uze Ungikhumbule - Holy Brothers
11. Izindaba - 12 Apostles Church Choir
12. There's Room Enough - Kings Messengers Quartet
13. Hosanna Nkosi Yami - Davey Angels
14. Usizo Lwam' - Rebecca Malope
15. Ha Ba Tshela Jordane - Holy Cross Choir
16. Kenang Bohle - Rock Of Ages Temple Choir
17. Baba Wethu Singenile - Ladysmith Black Mambazo
18. Ha Batsela Nokeng Ea Jordane - Barorisi Ba Morena
19. Ka Lifu Laka - Z.C.C. Mukhukhu
20. Vuka John Sithandaze - Izikhova Ezimnqini
21. Alleluya - Bana Ba Lesedi
22. Wemngoma Lishonile - Holy Spirits Choir

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