UMC.org Music Review
Soweto Gospel Choir: African Spirit
Label: Schanachie
Sound/Style: multi-cultural vocal music addressing unity and spirituality
By Steve Morley
(UMC.org)--The sound of South Africa first reached a world audience through Paul Simon’s groundbreaking 1986 album, Graceland. Working directly with South African musicians, Simon flung wide the western gates for undiluted African music, most notably that of the vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The worldwide acclaim earned by Ladysmith Black Mambazo has come to another South African act, the Soweto Gospel Choir. The group, made up of formerly non-professional singers, was drawn from local churches in the South African townships collectively known as Soweto. Their enthusiastic performances, which include straightforward Christian sentiments, promote an emotionally appealing brand of cross-cultural unity that presents the Gospel as one facet of their overall entertainment package. The group’s third record, African Spirit, suggests that the Choir is perhaps best experienced onstage.
Without the benefit of flowing robes and spirited choreography, the songs here sometimes sound generic and suffer from soloists with minor but distracting vocal flaws. The vibrancy that ought to emanate from a 26-member choir doesn’t always make it to disc, which is a matter of engineering. The energy that does appear rarely carries over to the musical accompaniment, which provides only nominal rhythmic support (though the effusive track "Africa" is a notable exception). If you subscribe to the old cliché that white folks always clap on the downbeat while people of color feel the beats in between, you may question why the performances here are so rooted to beats "one" and "three," lacking the rhythmic lift so prevalent in music from predominantly black regions.
"Rivers of Babylon," a modern-day reggae standard based on Psalm 137, is one example of the diverse array of secular tunes and spirituals tackled by the singers ("By the rivers of Babylon/ Where we sat down/ And there we wept/ When we remembered Zion"). Their rendition of the Hillsong worship tune "Hosanna" is a charmingly performed highlight. The Choir’s aim of cultural transcendence is commendable, though it homogenizes their native identity. It also leads to some curious song choices like Bob Dylan’s "I’ll Remember You" and a live track by Irish superstars U2, on which the Soweto singers also appear. At least, these are curious for a group whose very name – Soweto Gospel Choir – emphasizes their country of origin and their Christian heritage. They fare better musically and thematically with a second Dylan cover, "Forever Young," which functions as a warmhearted blessing: "May you grow up to be righteous/ May you grow up to be true/ May you always know the truth and see the light surrounding you/ May you always be courageous/ Stand upright and be strong/ May you stay forever young."
Perhaps the millions who bought the group’s first two albums are prepared to embrace the broader mix of influences on African Spirit; however, seekers of a full-blooded African experience or a strictly biblical perspective may find their itch unscratched.
Audio Clips
"Seteng Sediba"
"Avulekile Amasango/One Love"
"I'll Remember You"
"Akahlulwa"
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