Best, Live & Unplugged at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town (Appleseed Recordings, 2014)
The popular South African world music star Johnny Clegg presented many of his best known songs in an acoustic format at the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town. This unplugged concert is now available in North America through Appleseed Recordings.
For someone who was used to Clegg’s vibrant electric sound, the unplugged versions of his songs sound equally engaging. The British-born singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist defied apartheid with his integrated bands Juluka and Savuka, who performed a fabulous mix of South African traditional music, rock and pop.
In addition to lead vocals, Johnny Clegg plays guitar, melodica and concertina on Best, Live & Unplugged at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town. He’s joined by excellent musicians: Andy Innes on vocals, guitar, mandolin; Bongani Masuku on vocals; Trevor Donjeany on bass; and Barry Van Zyl on percussion.
Johnny Clegg’s sound on Best, Live & Unplugged at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town ranges from pieces clearly in the world music realm, with Zulu lyrics and vocals, African percussion and western instrumentation; to American folk-influenced songs where Clegg’s vocal style sounds surprisingly similar to Bob Dylan.
Clegg fans will recognize classics such as “Scatterlings of Africa,” “Impi,” “The Crossing,” “Cruel Crazy Beautiful World” and “Woza Africa.” The last song on the album is “Asimbonanga,” Johnny Clegg’s tribute to the late Nelson Mandela.
Best, Live & Unplugged at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town demonstrates that seminal world music artist Johnny Clegg is still in splendid form after several decades of hard work promoting racial harmony and great South African-rooted music.
Buy Best, Live & Unplugged at the Baxter Theatre, Cape Town
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
