What a gift Oliver was to all of us.

 siqbal wrote:
You lucky duck.  I wish that I had been there too!

I can sing that chorus

Its vey catchy

Saw Tuku live in 2008 in Dubai with a bunch of Zim guest workers. It was a party! 

No clue what he is saying, but words/ lyrics are just a tiny part of any music.

 Masogonzalo wrote:

Such meaningful lyrics ! 🤣🤣🤣

yes this is excellent

this rocks...dont it?

Donuts?

I really hope that backing vocal chorus outro isn't "beep beep".

EXCELLENT!!  RP introduced me to  him, & now I like a LOT of his music.  Thanx RP!   

How about a translation of the lyrics.

injured

 meanderer wrote:


Thank You!

 eileenomurphy wrote:

Well, don't know for sure, but the Mbira (an instrument played by the late Chartwell Dutiro to great effect) is pronounced with a short 'um' at the start. Don't emphasize the 'u'. Like the 'mmmm' sound made when the cooking smells good - but really short...

The rest is kind of phonetic... First 'u' would be an 'oo' sound and the second like the 'ou' in should.

I sang and drummed with Chartwell and he had played alongside this guy
Not so much an answer from learned knowledge, but from informed ignorance and a jot of assumption... Hope it helps...

ce wrote:
The song title seems to be incorrect on RP, it should be "Ndakuvara" with a 'k'. 

 eileenomurphy wrote:
Well, you've got me there ;-) 

Good Tune!

 ce wrote:


OK! How do you pronounce his last name? ...thank you in advance,

 justin4kick wrote:
 
I bought this cd in Jamaica while on vacation in Montego Bay in '02.  The bartenders at Sandals turned us on to him.

The song title seems to be incorrect on RP, it should be "Ndakuvara" with a 'k'. 

What a great song! I especially like the way the bass growls in the deep and interlaces with the music. It's almost like a second drum kit.

Bill, where on earth do you find these gems?

May you be digging them for a long, long time.

You bring joy to my life.

 easmann wrote:
 
I am aware of no god that will help you. Rather, if you seek help, find it at the end of your arms, and also between your ears.

great musicianship and joy in this. great find RP.

can't not want to move your body...

I really dig the backing vocals on this.

Pidi pidi!

Bought this cd while vacationing in Montego Bay in 2002.  Always reminds me of a great time when I give it a listen.

 bird_of wrote: 
This morning NPR had a short piece on him passing.

Sigh. 

Here I was , thinking I was listening to a full automated system. till I heard Bill saying "this great musician died today". I checked on the web. and its today. aw, ok. voice sampling.  RP must be a bot by now ;-p  Hope its an AI tomorrow ;-0))

I saw him a few years ago in Marin County, which is just north of San Francisco. It was a great show! I'm not sure if he's still touring, but I definitely recommend seeing him if you have a chance.

I was curious about what the song was about. I saw a little discussion of the lyrics below, but I wasn't sure what all the symbolism was about.

I found this on the web. I haven't fact checked it.

I must admit I woefully under educated on current events and politics in Africa. But I thought I would put this out there in the event that anyone else was interested in what the song is supposedly about.

If all this is true, this research gives me an appreciation of the ability afforded me to protest/criticize my government and its policies.  How truly lucky I am to live in such a country when the some people in the world have to disguise their commentary through imagery in song lyrics so they do not become political prisoners.

This is supposedly a carefully craft commentary of the current ruler of Zimbabwe,  President Robert Mugabe.

Oliver is trying to not end up in Jail like his fellow country man, Thomas Mapfumo, who has faced imprisonment and censorship for his political activism.
Recently he has used his music to criticize the violent regime of President Robert Mugabe. His "Ndakuvara" uses the imagery of a  man injured by a young ox, one who refuses to follow the examples of his elders. The indirectness of Mtukudzi's approach allows his music to go beyond a simple critique of Mugabe. While everyone recognizes Mugabe and his regime in the figure of the ox, the song also conveys a more general and important message about the harm power can bring when it trespasses past accepted and expected boundaries. Because Tuku does not name Mugabe, this message also arrives at the ears of his supporters who may be deaf to a more open attack. Tuku's art opens spaces for engagement which otherwise political art may not.

I was injured while training the ox
Call the mother of my children; I am hurt
I was injured while training the ox
I thought this young ox would be like
its elders
And yet it ignored its elders'
(good examples)
I used to admire it as it fed in the pastures
Thinking that in future we would harness it
Hoping that it will do the ploughing for us
Everything has gone upside down
The young oxen has kicked me
Everything has gone upside down
The young oxen has over-powered me

 easmann wrote: 
Yeah, the void's not really that inhospitable.

 Beaker wrote:
Indeed. It's almost as if we're all stuck on the same hunk of dirt hurtling helplessly through an inhospitable void. Oh wait, that viewpoint's so out of favor now. God help us.

Just finishing African chicken and a craft lager, topped off by Oliver M.   MMMMNNN!

I have really gotten into African-influenced contemporary music lately.  This is a new favorite!  I also like Nico N Vinz (AKA "Envy") also discovered here on RP.

I don't like much "ethnic" type music but this is pretty nice.
Men at Work meet Bob Marley.

Ditto

WONDERFUL

Groovy!
 

7 to 8...yeah baby!!!

 treehugger wrote: 
Spot on TH... awesome song. Speaks deeply to me 

It's Ndakuvara. 

Missed the chance to see him and a full dance troupe when they blew through town last year......Ndammit.

This cut has a terrifically percussed rhythmic content that is exceptional.  It's not the language, it's the harmonies, THEY kick butt.

Cheers,
JoelB

 Cynaera wrote: 
Ditto...ditto...ditto.

 Byronape wrote:
Just because it is not in English, doesn't necessarily mean it is good.  You would be more closed-minded to say you liked it only because you couldn't understand the words.

An honest, authentic opinion is never wrong.

 Aegean wrote: 
Well, what do you know?  This could have been written by cattlemen in rural Texas!  Tuku is right: be aware of the blessings that have come your way.

 Aegean wrote:My wife used to teach in Uganda, and was married to an African for a number of years.  She's hugely into African music, and I know this song from her.  But I can relate to the guy who has a problem getting into music who's lyrics he can't understand.  Looking up the meaning of the lyrics isn't quite the same.  I can't associate the poetry of the guy with the emotions in his music and vocal modulations as I don't understand what's being sung as it is being sung.  This intrinsically reduces the enjoyment I experience listening to a piece of music with vocals.  It's not quite as bad as when a song has lyrics I find stupid and/or reprehensible (ziggy marley's ode to solipsism, which gets a good bit of play here on RP is an example of this), but it does reduce the degree of pleasure I can get from the music.

On the other hand African music in particular has a range and complexity that is nearly impossible to find in western popular music, and a hugely different underlying structure.  These things make the music worth the effort of listening to.

Interestingly, my wife informs me that many popular African artists release two versions of their music:  an African release, and a western release.  The western versions are simplified to be more musically digestible by western audiences and their more limited pallete.  My ear is not trained to the point where I could tell you if this is the western or african version of the song, or indeed if there are two versions of this album or not. 

I hate to sound like a closed minded American here, but I have hard time getting into the world music stuff.  I don't really know what it is, I don't think it's the language barrier, I can barely understand people like Thom Yorke already anyway. 

 cousinkill wrote: 
Sounds like "ribbit, ribbit" to me.

For a couple seconds, I thought it was going to be Men At Work!— Pretty cool tune, someone mentioned the "didit, didit!"?

This is a really cool song!  (I can't wait to hear how Bill pronounces the name...)  It makes me crank up the music and dance...

 jedley wrote: 

Ummmmmmmmm.......no

 4merdj wrote: 

Huh, huh, huh, huh....you said undulating. Yes, great song!

Nice undulating rhythm ... Me likee!!! 

if the bongos were replaced by a drum kit this would be a Duran Duran song

Like this style!!!

Would really like to hear that cover, Bill.  BTW, just returned from ROTR 2009 .... another excellent festival!!

 aqualight wrote: 

Thanks Bill. I'd have to try really hard to find this on FM.

when listening/// like in somewhere far from.my place...... at sunny hot Africa...

all the best to the coolest place on the continent!

I saw him do a Bonnie Raitt cover at a Reggae On The River. Great stuff.

 horstman wrote: 

You and George Costanza.

 Gartholamundi wrote: 

Absolutely, totally agree. I have a very nice World Music playlist on my iPod of songs and artists I was introduced to via RP.

jameyp wrote:
totally excellent, and i completely agree. whoop! whoop!

THIS IS GREAT!  I love it when RP mixes in world music— yay Bill!

thank you

I love this guy's music.

See him/them live.  Lots of positive energy, good performance

Dancing in my chair!

A bit pop-ish, but I like it. Great background music.

no, nothing special for this genre..........

 Kittee wrote: 

me either.

 spraehbuer wrote: 
Maybe it's because they are close minded idiots?

I see a man, with a guitar, standing in a field wearing a white shirt.

Wonderful. Love the bass playing, sounds like EW influence.

I head-bob to this song....

I don't know, sometimes I see Colin Powell. spraehbuer wrote:

meloman wrote: that was funny

good tune.

spraehbuer wrote: Looks like Danny Glover to me.

He looks more like Harry Belafonte to me.

d00kie wrote: well yeah, they are both...black !? why is it when people see black people they always look like Danny Glover or Eddie Murphy ?

Perfect for tonight!

Nope this does nothing for me

Love this piece! Thanks, Bill!

sweet tune

dwa375 wrote: LMAO!!! he said Sesame Street on drugs.. heheh... Hey this guy (at least from the cover art) looks like Danny Glover a bit :-)

Love the way it just noodles along.

To bad it's not played as often as it once was(judging from the comments)

Fantastic. Let's have some more Zimbabweans please RP. What about some Thomas Mapfumo?

Been quite a long time since I've heard this on the RP... it's like seeing an old friend again. Very nice Mr. Mtukudzi...

coding_to_music wrote: I don't hear it; maybe it was the dev in the cubicle next to you?

what's not to like!!

Just one more bannana for one that makes me groove in my chair

More bananas! 7

That slap bass in the middle was way cool!

leoparadise wrote: Here's another helping of bananas:

The emoticons are getting WAY out of control on the comments for this song.

I like it!

I frigin love this guy

Very catchy tune, and what a surprise (and relief) no Peter Gabriel.

What an amazing thing to find here, on the other hand maybe not, why am I surprised?

very good..

dwa375 wrote: catmaven wrote: These are two of the most bizarre, incoherent comments I've ever seen on RP.

Great stuff. WaltK wrote: I like that idea!

Sounded like a pager or cell phone or beeping backup alarm for a while during the song. They may think that is charming and modern, I think "Answer the pager!" Aside from that, a fun song...

Played too much? Peesh!

mafe wrote: That's embarassing. I never know what to say to myself when that happens....

I have no idea what he's singing, but it sounds really cool! How 'bout some Nigerian rock while we're at it? Those guys can really get down.

I like african music

How 'bout some Baka Beyond?

Sounds like some kind of Seseme Street on drugs. It's awful.

Platypus wrote: I agree, and also agree with another listener that it is obtrusive. Provide translation at least, please.

I dig it!