Shanda

Oliver Mtukudzi | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 3, 2004)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Alula
• ASIN: B0002IQN7O
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #146,635 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #26 in Music > World Music > Africa > Zimbabwe

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Discovery!, April 25, 2005

By 

D. Russell (Grass Valley, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shanda (Audio CD)

In the "World Music" section of a local store, I put on a pair of headphones and randomly chose a disk. What a wonderful surprise! This is the first CD of African music I have ever purchased. The beat is wonderful, the tunes are upbeat and interesting, and I listen to this once a day because it makes me feel good. Even if you've never heard of Mtukudzi, I strongly urge you to check out his music. It can't be easily classified, but as they say in the art world, "I know what I like," and this is it.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An intimate set of performances recorded live, August 29, 2004

By 

WorldDiscoveries.Net "Bill Donovan, Reviewer" (Petaluma, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shanda (Audio CD)

From the opening strains of the beautiful piano to Oliver Mtuzkudzi's gorgeous vocals, SHANDA draws in listeners with an intimate set of performances recorded live in Zimbabwe's township clubs and beer halls.
 Expect not a collection of new delights: this is a hand-picked retrospective covering the best of Tuku's 20+ career, and it also includes date introductions to help listeners absorb the progress of his sound.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lively Collection, January 22, 2007

By 

applewood (everywhere and nowhere) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shanda (Audio CD)

This is a delightful collection of (seemingly) recent live recordings spanning several decades of Mtukudzi's career. His sound is instantly recognizable as Zimbabwean, as his vocal style and playing is based firmly on the traditional Shona Mbira sound (simple thumb piano). Often it's the guitar taking the mbira part, playing out long meandering repetitious tunes with the vocals droning over the top. The songs easily fall into a timeless groove and play long but never tiresome.

The sound may be grounded in the traditional, but the songs are enlivened with electronic arrangements and reggae/pop sensibility. The result is an enjoyable, light, uplifting message of love and hope. Zimbabwe seems an unlike source of such joy....and this makes me appreciate it all the more.