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STRANIERIINITALIA.IT| Samba Mapangala releases Virunga Live on Tour LP |
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It features a bonus track praising US President Obama
30th January 2009: Rumba Maestro Samba Mapangala and his Orchestra Virunga have released a new digital LP entirely recorded during his live tours of Canada and the US. The LP titled “Virunga Live on Tour” is Samba’s first ever first recording of live shows, bringing in all the energy and unique emotions experienced while entertaining fans in the two countries.  While the LP features some of Samba’s past greatest hits, performance by new musicians to different audiences allows Samba to kind of re-energise and re-invent those hits, giving them a totally new rhythm and taste. Samba incorporates reactions from the audience in re-elaborating the hits, and even prolongs them where necessary. There are no limits to improvisation here, making the LP contain rhythms never heard before. This is what I would term great old hits with new flavor and energy. In the summer of 2007, Samba went on tour in Canada and the US for the first time in 10 years, performing in Toronto, Montreal, Milwaukee, Madison WI, Oakland CA, Roseburg OR, Portland, Santa Monica, Carlsbad and San Juan Capistrano CA, before heading for the WOMAD festival in England. Virunga’s show at Yoshi’s nightclub in Oakland, a jazz-club room with great acoustics and a devoted audience for African music, was one of the tour highlights, and fortunately was captured directly from the sound board for continued enjoyment and appreciation. The red-hot touring band on stage that night was composed of an all-star cast of Congolese musicians plus the great Cameroonian saxophonist Jimmy Mvondo: Samba, lead vocals; Rissa Rissa, harmony vocal and animation; Huit Kilos, lead guitar; Bopol Mansiamina, rhythm guitar; Miguel Yamba, bass; Komba Bellow, drums and Javier Navarrette, congas. The new digital LP features a selection of music from the two sets that night, with everyone on top of their game. This recording offers an exclusive glimpse of an unforgettable evening with Samba, East Africa’s most beloved singer, impeccably edited and mastered by sound technician Douglas Paterson and now available for digital download. The LP features the following hits: "Sungura" (Hare) - original studio recording is available from CD Baby on the "Feet on Fire" album; "Siri" (Secret) - from the "Ujumbe" album; "Malako" (Last Wish) - Samba’s masterpiece signature song, originally released in 1982 in Kenya, on the "Virunga Volcano" album; "Marina" (A love song) - original available on "Virunga Roots Vol. 1" and "Adija" (Advice to a young girl - from the "Song and Dance" album). This new recording confirms that even on stage, Samba never forgets to educate as he entertains his fans. In "Sungura", he tells the story of the hare and the tortoise, showing that the slow and steady wins the race. In "Siri", he reminds couples to be always ready to ask for forgiveness and to forgive. He warns them to be careful with friends who are never happy when other people’s families are doing well. They’ll always look for ways of planting trouble, Samba says. In "Adija", Samba who is addressing young girls, is encouraging them to concentrate on their studies. “Clear your studies and become self-reliant,” he says. He also warns them to be careful with men who will do everything possible to take them to bed then disappear. The LP also features a bonus track: “Obama Ubarikiwe” (Obama be Blessed) vocal and rap remixes. This is a song Samba composed in praise of US President Barack Obama. “Obama Ubarikiwe” is a short but extremely danceable hit. The hit begins with a prayer asking God to bless Obama, before leaving room for instrumentals dominated by saxophone and infectious guitar rhythms. Samba then comes in with his honey-like voice in a prayer asking God to bless Obama. There is a short rap interlude performed by the 14-year-old Fanaka Ndege followed by Samba’s Swahili lyrics saying: “Obama, leadership is a gift from God, and you have it. Please help to bring peace, change and hope to all Americans and all the world. We love you!” The LP is available only as digital download. You can listen to snippets of the LP and obtain a copy from http://cdbaby.com/cd/mapangala6
By Stephen Ogongo
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