Chillout Sessions

The Ultimate Collection

Favourites

The Warner Brothers Collection

Gospel Songs

Joseph Shabalala, founder and lead singer of Ladysmith, received the source and inspiration for the harmonies of the group in dreams and visions of a heavenly choir, tutoring him on the music and movements that make Ladysmith unique. "Gospel Songs," a 2-CD compilation of Ladysmith's spiritual music, underscores the special power, spiritual effect and hope their music created during the turbulent time of apartheid in South Africa. Joseph was touched by apartheid when his brother was killed by an off-duty security guard. He at first thought it was a message from God to stop singing, but as time went by a spirit came to him and said, "This is your gift from God-carry on." The 33 beautiful spiritual songs on these two CDs reflect the joy, peace and harmony of Joseph's music and encourage people to come to God, "Where He will help you." All Ladysmith's shows end with the message of "Go in peace, love and harmony." We might not understand the words of the songs, but the feeling, heart and purpose speaks out powerfully, loud, clear and filled with hope. An inspiring collection from a legendary group!

In Harmony

The first live recording, captured from their sold-out appearance at London's Royal Albert Hall. The South-African Ladysmith has an international reputation, acting as informal ambassadors of musical goodwill. Though we were unable to listen to this CD prior to publication, we know it contains many of the group's most popular songs, including "Homeless," written by Paul Simon. We can be sure that Ladysmith's performance will be a joyous event.

In Harmony - Live at the Royal Albert Hall

African Lullaby

The Best of Ladysmith Black Mambazo

The Best of Ladysmith Black Mambazo Vol.2

The Star and the Wise Man

Heavenly

Ladysmith crosses cultural boundaries more than ever before to bring their musical message to a wider audience. The lineup of musicians who with whom they work is fabulous. The album begins with one of the most complex pieces of music imaginable from Joseph who admits that his music is very difficult to sing. Dolly Parton leads "Knockin' On Heavens Door." "O Happy Day" and "Take My Hand Precious Lord" features vocalist Betty Griffin. Phoebe Snow is lead singer on "People Get Ready." Bill Champlin does the lead vocal on "River Of Dreams." You'll find Lou Rawls in lead on "Chain Gang" and Hana "Coyote" Motijoane sings lead on "I'll Take You There." Among these instrumentally accompanied guest appearances which explore American gospel and R&B are an equal number of Ladysmith familiars. It's wonderful how many artists seek to share the message of hope and joy with Ladysmith Black Mambazo!

Spirit of South Africa: The Very Best of Ladysmith Black Mambazo

The Best of Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Thuthukani Ngoxolo

Did you know that Ladysmith Black Mambazo is Nelson Mandella's favorite musical group? When he was released from jail, he publicly wondered where Joseph Shabalala was. He described Joseph as our pillar, our ambassador. Thus it was that Ladysmith, whose music never took sides but shared a love for all, accompanied Nelson Mandella to Sweden in 1993 where he accepted the Nobel Peace Prize and they performed in celebration. They were at his side six months later as he was inaugurated president of South Africa. Thuthukani Ngoxolo means let's develop in peace. There could be no more fitting title for a recording (which was nominated for a Grammy) with this historical context. Some of the translated song titles are, "With God Everything Is Possible," "Why Aren't You Happy?," "What Goes Around Comes Around" and "Let's Sit Down And Negotiate."

Liph' Iqiniso

Liph' iquiniso was the first recording by Ladysmith after the end of apartheid. They had worked, in their way, for that end. Their musical goal was to reinforce the traditions of the people and make them proud. Beyond that immediate goal, Joseph Shabalala has always sought to introduce people of disparate cultures to one other. That is why, over the years, he has written music in so many other languages in addition to his native Zulu. It's good to think of the fact that, although political activists often criticized Joseph and Ladysmith for a perceived lack of political awareness, it was the desire to share the beauty of song that caused Joseph and Paul Simon to be the first world renown breakers of the international ban of South Africa. That had more to do with the dissolving of apartheid than those forgotten critics could foresee. You will find some of the most beautiful of Ladysmith's music on this recording which was one of their six nominated for Grammys.

Gift Of The Tortoise

This release from Ladysmith takes the entire family on an enchanting musical journey trough the rich and wondrous land of the Zulu people. The combination of great music and lively introductions in English delights children and adults alike.

Zibuyinhlazane

Two Worlds, One Heart

Classic Tracks

By the time Ladysmith Black Mambazo became known in the United States they had recorded twenty or so albums in South Africa on the Gallo label. Many of them had gone gold. Only a few of those earlier recordings have been released here since they began their recording for the U.S. market with Shaka Zulu. In 1990 Shanachie compiled this wonderful disc of tracks taken from Ladysmith's Gallo discography which had been originally released in South Africa. These are some of the songs which made mbube songs famous through out Africa long before they were heard by a U.S. audience, except for small audiences of eclectic non-commercial radio stations. This is the sound that captivated Paul Simon and stimulated his desire to work with them.

How The Leopard Got His Spots

Umthombo Wamanzi

This is another Shanachie release (1988) of a Gallo recording from South Africa which had been released originally in 1982. All of the songs are inspired by the Christian faith which the members of Ladysmith share. Love, love of Jesus, love of God, love one another and redemption through love are themes which permeate the dozen songs. You might think of this recording as mbube gospel songs. We have no doubt that they are sung in many churches and gatherings around the world. You can feel the sincerity and the love of these men as they finish songs (sung in Zulu) with, "Halleuya - A-men, Halleuya - A-many!" It is a beautiful recording of one of the best known musical groups in the world.

Journey Of Dreams

Journey of Dreams began in the late 1950's in Joseph Shabalala's dreams. Joseph writes. "This Journey of Dreams began a long time ago, while I was still a young boy on the farm and children would come to my dreams and sing to me. Now that we have made this record working with Russ Titelman and blessed by Paul Simon's guidance, I feel the dreams are now living inside the music as never before. For the first time I have made the music on record exactly as my dreams would tell me and for this I am grateful. Because the world listens now and that means the Journey of Dreams goes on and on." You can experience that dream with this baker's dozen songs which are, all but one, sung in Zulu. That one is the finale, "Amazing Grace" arranged and sung with Paul Simon. Don't miss the dream!

Shaka Zulu

As Joseph Shabalala said when he was talking about recording Shaka Zulu, "Umcolo uthokozisa abadabukileyo." This means, "singing makes all the sad people happy because it is the voice of happiness." It also means that he was overjoyed to have been able to record his first U.S. release which was produced by his good friend, Paul Simon. It was 1987, and after recording twenty five records in Africa his musical message was finally becoming international. That message was, and is today, take pride in your heritage, create joy in your life and embrace all people. The strength of the message and the beauty of its musical transmission was reason for Shaka Zulu being awarded a Grammy in 1987 for Best Traditional Folk Recording. It also marks the beginning of Joseph's habit of writing some songs in English in order to make his music more accessible to our very different culture. This is a great recording for introducing new listeners to Ladysmith's music.

Inala

Inala was recorded in 1985 on the Gallo label in South Africa. It has some of Ladysmith's first songs sung in English which had no direct religious theme. After their appearance on Paul Simon's Graceland album (1986), they began recording on the Warner Brothers label for the instant audience discovered in the U.S. Shanachie licensed the rights to distribute the Gallo recordings and began to do so with this recording in 1987. "That's Why I Choose You" is the first of two songs in English and views the freedom of both men and women in their relationships. Nowadays it would be viewed as a testimonial to a stunning clarity of vision. Pauline is a song of a man's lost love presented in Ladysmith's inimitable style. These two songs are interspersed in a selection of non-English songs which have the feel of an entire emotional spectrum.

Ulwandle Oluncgwele

Induku Zethu

MAJOR MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACKS

Moonwalker - Michael Jackson
A Dry White Season - Marlon Brando
Let's Do It A Cappella - Spike Lee
Coming To America - Eddie Murphy
Cry The Beloved Country - James Earl Jones

ORIGINAL THEATER/STAGE PRODUCTIONS

The Song Of Jacob Zulu - Nominated for six TONY AWARDS; Drama Desk Award
Nomathemba - JEFF Award (Original Musical Score)

TELEVISION APPEARANCES & COMMERCIALS

Sesame Street - Mambazo's appearance with Paul Simon is among the top three-requested segments since the show's 1968 debut.

7-Up, Lifesavers Candy - Both commercials won the prestigious CLIO Award.

Heinz Soup - Fans of a British tv commercial prompted release of "Inkanyeza Nezaza" (The Star and The Wiseman) as a single in 1997. This is still going strong in 1999.

IBM - On-camera performance from South Africa in 1995's "Solutions For A Small Planet" tv campaign featuring native speakers in several languages worldwide