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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Mapfumo, born in 1945, is styled the "Lion Of Zimbabwe" because of his unceasing socio-political activism and iconic world profile. Beginning with his involvement in the fight to transform white-dominated Rhodesia into the Republic of Zimbabwe in 1980, he has devoted his life to combating corruption and injustice everywhere. Forced into exile by his criticism of Robert Mugabe's quarter-century-old regime, he now lives in the USA. Meanwhile, although he is unquestionably his nation's biggest star, his output is presently banned there. Mapfumo's musical style, a suavely melodic mixture of local triple rhythms, sometimes flavored by reggae and other tributaries, is known as chimurenga (the Shona word for struggle). It still packs a punch here, whether fronted by repetitive mbira (thumb piano) and guitar riffs, church-like organs, rib-crunching bass, close harmony and unison choirs, or blasts of martial brass. His message remains of paramount importance, whether speaking of intimate concerns, such as in the ineffably tender "Mukanzi Wangu," where a wife patiently awaits the return of her husband, a migrant worker, or addressing the commonality of all peoples under God in "Marudzi Nemarudzi." Mapfumo, the poet of righteous conflict, has fashioned a work of singular beauty, power and maturity. --Christina Roden
Product Description
2006 release by the single most popular musician in Zimbabwe for over 25 years. Mapfumo draws on such an array of genres - African jazz, classic R&B, Shona spirit music, rock, reggae and a variety of local Zimbabwean styles - that he has formed a completely new style of music, which he calls 'Chimurenga'. Loping rhythms form the bedrock for the groove which is constant, incessant and which underpins the horns, the vocals, the African girl's chorus and chants - it is as unique and in it's own way as influential on his country as Fela Kuti or even western performers such as James Brown.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The 'Lion of Zimbabwe' Roars for All of Us,
By Giordano Bruno (Wherever I am, I am.) - See all my reviews (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER) (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)
This review is from: Rise Up (Audio CD)
Thomas Mapfumo has been the musical voice of protest in Zimbabwe and all of southern Africa for three decades. Easily the most famous singer in his native country, Mapfumo lives in exile from the regime of robert Mugabe, and his music is banned at home. But Mapfumo doesn't sing his protest only against one corrupt dictator. Here are some lines from his earlier 'chimarenga' (struggle) songs:
"Corruption is like a disease that plagues the whole world. There are many leaders and others with power who are misleading the people.The songs remind everyone that corruption is everywhere and that no one can run away from justice." "This song is about the exploitation of the poor by the rich. There comes a time of confrontation when the poor say enough, we will not be controlled by those who do not practice what they preach." "This song is about family men who spend all their time and lose all their money in pubs and 'shabeens' with 'girls of sport'." Mapfumo's gruff baritone voice is an instrument as lyrical or as fierce as he wants it to be. It's a voice that can't be doubted. His singing/chanting cries of protest are backed up by music that can only be heard as richly joyful. If these songs are to be sung in the streets of protest, then the singers will be dancing. The source of Mapfumo's music is tribal Africa, as any amount of listening to ethnographic field recordings would show. The complex layers of duple and triple rhythm, expressed in melodic patterns based on the sound of the mbira (thumb piano), are ancestral, as is Mapfumo's cascade-of-words delivery. Recent CDs show a steadily growing international influence on Mapfumo, especially the influence of reggae, and more readiness to incorporate the "high life" jazz sounds of African pop music. There is a kind of 'disconnect' between the anguish often expressed in Mapfumo's words and the exuberance of his music, but that disconnect is ours, not his. Mapfumo is a man of joy in a world of sorrow.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful, atmospheric music meshed with politics,
By
This review is from: Rise Up (Audio CD)
I first heard some of the songs from this album on the NPR program Afropop
Worldwide in the spring of 2005. 'Rise Up' has been available as a download from the Calabash Music website since April 2005 (when I purchased it), but was only released in CD form in July 2006. It's a shame that it has taken so long for the rest of the world to learn about this album, because for me this album is the fulfillment of a sound I had been seeking for much of my life. I had long enjoyed the sinuous guitar lines that graced songs like Paul Simon's 'Crazy Love, Vol. II' (Graceland) and '(Nothing But) Flowers' by the Talking Heads (Naked), and wanted to find African music of the sort that had inspired those melodies. 'Rise Up' , though released two decades after those songs, is everything I had been looking for: rich guitar melodies, organ loops reminiscent of Marleyesque Reggae, sweet vocal accompaniment by the backup singers, and Mapfumo's own gruff, world-weary voice as it expresses dissatisfaction with what has happened to his Zimbabwean homeland under the regime of Robert Mugabe (Mapfumo is living in exile in the United States). The guitar melodies, which first drew my attention, mimic those of the traditional mbira thumb pianos of Mapfumo's Shona people. It's funny that music with such an acerbic political message (just look at the song titles!) can simultaneously convey images of lush tropical rain forests, cool waterfalls, and colorful tropical birds... OK, maybe that's just my interpretation--buy this album and listen for yourself, for it will take you to amazing places too.
1 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
the lion is power,
This review is from: Rise Up (Audio CD)
WOW! THOMAS MAPFUMO POWER LIFE LOVE PEACE come share in the soulful african bliss.
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