Ladysmith Black Mambazo Shaka Zulu

Rip It Up, Issue 120, 1 July 1987, Page 23

Ladysmith Black Mambazo Shaka Zulu

Warners Whatever one may think of the political “correctness” of Paul Simon recording in South Africa, one undeniable benefit is that Graceland has opened a lot of western ears to the sounds of Soweto. The sudden local availability of compilation LPs featuring exciting examples of township jive is testimony enough. Now, in Shaka Zulu we have the first major international release from one of black South Africa’s favourite musical acts. Paul Simon produced. Ladysmith Black Mambazo are, of course, the 10-piece vocal group who featured on Graceland and subsequently joined Simon’s worldwide (expect NZ) tour. From the few television sequences shown here — the Grammy awards, two Simon videoclips and RWP doco — it's apparent that Ladysmith's performance centres on the personality of leader and writer Joseph Shabalala. Shabalala's smile may be absent on record — as is the group choreography, although it can be heard on one track — but the acapella warmth _ of this music maintains its glow. Whether the lyrics are in English or an indigenous tongue is irrelevant as one responds to pure vocalese, including paralinguistics that range from laughs to gentle wails, from tongue trills to kissing sounds. For this reviewer to start commenting on such features as the group’s harmonic range, or whatever, would be as ethnocentrically dangerous as a Siberian criticising Te Maori. Suffice to say that if you are taken by Ladysmith's contribution’s to Graceland, then you won't be disappointed by Shaka Zulu.

Peter Thomson