En Mana Kuoyo

Ayub Ogada

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 18, 1993)
• Original Release Date: June 18, 1993
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Real World
• ASIN: B000000HP1
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #91,248 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Prior to a lot of travel and his eventual settling in England, Ayub Ogada was a member of the Luo tribe from a wedge of northern Kenya pinched between Uganda and Tanzania. Ogada's music is based on repetitious patterns plucked on the nyatiti, a stringed instrument reminiscent of the lyre. On En Mana Kuoyo (meaning "just sand"), he sings mellifluous, almost hypnotic, and yet ultimately lackadaisical melodies concerning home, his instrument, the weather, and injustice. By way of attempting a subtle fusion of African and European (not to mention urban and rural) styles, Ogada is accompanied by a small ensemble that adds surprisingly little to almost too-pretty songs more alike than not. --Richard Gehr

Product Description
One of the Finest UK-BASED African Musicians Explores the Traditional Culture of his People, the Luo: 'go Far, See the World, but Don't Forget Where You Come Fromà' --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Jewel, January 17, 2002

By	Arise Therefore (Orange, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This recording is one of the few "jewels" in my collection of thousands of musical titles. The music on this disc is spacious, gentle, and at the same time, stimulating. Although I fear some of our reviews as listeners may sound a bit like reviews of `New Age' music, this is African music. (Perhaps informed a bit by Ayub's experiences in the western world.) If you have a heart connected to your ears and an appreciation for acoustic African music, you will be doing yourself a favor by adding this to your collection. If I may add, I find the review by Richard Gehr of ... unfortunate and upsettingly off target. Perhaps this just isn't his kind of music.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ALIVE, November 20, 2002

By	Roselle Nordtome "[e-mail]" (Arizona, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

'alive' is how I feel listening to Ayub Ogada's music, and especially "Obiero". It is the sound of mother earth and father sky, and all the children.
His vocalizations give rise to my own urge to let my voice resound. I want so 'sing with', even though I do not understand the words.
His voice and music elicit a deep longing of my soul; a co-existence of joy and sorrow, an awareness of both, and a letting go, a birthing of both into song/music.
My taste in music is rather eclectic; I am not a 'fan' of any particular group, direction, performer.
Ayub Ogada stands out in the cosmos of music as one of the brightest shining stars.
Anyone with a desire to feel his/her existence sounded in the most beautiful way can benefit from listening to this music. Opening the heart/voice to sound along is even better. (You will have to get over the insecurity of not knowing the language). What I have read in interviews/biography of Ayub only acknowledged the feeling I got from his music that he is a person of impeccability, giving expression to his inner spark of Divinity in the most diligent and beautiful way.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Soothing, haunting and soulful sounds of Africa, March 12, 2006

By	Jean E. Pouliot (Newburyport, MA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I fell in love with Ayub Ogada's music after hearing his haunting "Kothbiro" -- effectively the theme song of the film "The Constant Gardener."

I bought the disk for my wife who has played it over and over. She loves the simple, beautiful rhythms, Ogada's liltingly sensual voice and the sense-pictures his music provides of the unforgettable African countryside and people.