Reviews (page 4 of 7)
Really great. Didn’t realise they’d been going for that long but just a great sound.
This is another band I came across quite randomly when searching for something different. I went to browse the foreign section of a record store and picked the one LBM LP they had (it wasn't the one 1001 sent us) since, based on the cover photo, they didn't look like they would be playing the same crap the radio stations were force feeding us. The picture sung a thousand words! Their singing is beautiful and they create lovely melodies without instruments. My personal music culture makes it tough to listen to an entire album of a capella. In the late 90s they put out an album that had Dolly Parton on lead vocals. On that LP they had instruments on the DP song and some other songs which mixed it up nicely.
Something different on the list. A great sound, really calming and relaxing
Un disco muy muy chulo. La verdad en parte de eso siento que se trata el discos que "debes" escuchar, también es el punto de conocer y adentrarte en estilos musicales tradicionales que normalmente se pasan por alto. De todas las cosas con sonido africano que nos ha tocado esta es la más sencilla, auténtica y tradicional, aparte de ser un estilo de canto que me agrada mucho. Me hace pensar que me encantaría que hubiera algun disco por ejemplo de cantos de tuvan mongol, o canto tibetano, un disco de una obra de kabuki, hay muchos estilos musicales que cuadrarían perfecto en el punto de cosas que "debes" escuchar al menos una vez, dudo mucho que llegue a esos puntos la lista pero al menos esta entrada es agradable de ver. Punto interesante (y esperaría que no fuera la única razón por la que hubieran caido aquí o no habrá más cosas de este tipo) es que el grupo cantó con Paul Simon en el disco de Graceland y de ahí fue que se dieron un poco a conocer.
Por un lado, qué bonitos y bien cuidados arreglos vocales. Creo que es el primer disco 100% a capella que nos ha tocado y me parece que es un gran ejemplo de algo que debes oír, aunque sea por abrir horizontes. Por otro lado, creo que todo lo no-occidental que hemos oído es africano, y quizá haya un tanto de sesgo en ese sentido. Eso, obviamente no le quita calificación a este disco.
Very pleasant and almost hypnotic sound. I can imagine that when this was first released it was groundbreaking.
Great harmonies. Very soothing.
“Oh yeah, those guys from that Paul Simon album. Whatever happened to them…?” These guys are great. Always enjoy hearing them. A capella music is always so refreshing to listen to, and this one I know none of the songs. Nice palate cleanser.
Really enjoyed the album, even that guy that kept making that clicking noise. Relaxing and beautiful.
Very very relaxing, Enya vibes. Not my thing but a good listen
Familiar sounds reminiscent of Paul Simon's Graceland Album - As it should...
I really enjoyed this album. Went and listened to Graceland by Paul Simon afterwards
Beautiful sounds and use of voices
Listening to this while walking through the Bird Sanctuary was like a religious experience.
Really enjoyed this
South African a cappella band, I liked it more than I expected.
Great harmonies, good music for cooking or working
Vibes. A little repetitive
Such nice vocal music. I listened to it while at work and it was just the right amount of relaxing.
Good background music to work to
I liked it!! Different than my usual sounds, but :)
vibez
I liked it.
Beautiful and soothing. A much appreciated sojourn.
Great discovery!!!
Música africana. Shooting to fame as the vocal group on Paul Simon's classic album Graceland,
So peaceful and soothing.
La verdad está muy chingón. "A surprise to be sure but a welcome one"
Cool album of beautiful a capella and amazing harmonies.
Definitely an album worth listening to. A unique sound and a joy to listen to. Yes, I just wrote that.
Another good album I never would have known
Good shit. Calm, beautiful, peaceful
Very calming, healing album. Goes great on a park stroll to just clear your head and energy. A lot of it blends together, language barrier issue but it smoothly transitions all the way through. Standout Tracks: Golgotha, Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain, Wausho Kubani? (Who Were You Talking To?)
The vocal harmonies are always a pleasure to hear but all too often they’re somewhat repetitive
This was fine. It gets a little monotonous for me personally, I'm not really into just choral works in general. I know that vocal harmonies were catnip to Robert Dimery so I can see why this was added. It probably is also culturally significant.
Good but it got a little repetitive. Maybe just because I can't understand the lyrics but it started to sound really samey by the 8th track.
cool but starts to taper in appeal for me towards the latter half. i wonder if capturing this in a studio and etching it on a slab of vinyl is divorcing it from its proper context too much?
And for the last time ever, we have an album that I had to go to YouTube to listen to. I thought that this album was on streaming, but apparently that's a rerecording made for the album's 30th anniversary, so I had to go to YouTube for it. But was it worth it? Well, considering the fact that I'm trying to listen to every album on this list, yes it was! But if it wasn't on this list and I still decided to listen to it anyway, would I have spent my time well with this album? Sure, I guess. This isn't really the kind of album that I listen to all that much, but I see value in this. This is Ladysmith Black Mambazo's 1987 album Shaka Zulu. This album is entirely a cappella, and I'm pretty sure that it's the only one of its kind on this list. Even Björk's Medúlla had a little bit of non-vocal instrumentation on it. This is just a group of guys from South Africa singing with no instrumentation behind it. I absolutely respect what this album is going for, but I do have complaints. While the songs were nice, they did get quite repetitive and didn't capture my attention a whole lot. I can admire the fully a cappela sound and the vocal talents of LBM's members, but the lack of extra instruments means that each song kinda sounds the same. They all sound nice, but they the sound the same. The language barrier on some off the songs definitely doesn't make things easier. I'm sure they're singing about nice things though. I mean, "Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain" seems to be a song about beautiful rain. Crazy, I know, but it's a nice source of inspiration nonetheless. I get the appeal of this album, and I can see what Paul Simon saw in these guys when making Graceland, but I have my own personal preferences for the kind of music that I enjoy the most, and a cappela gospel album isn't exactly a part of those preferences. Shaka Zulu is a nice listen for sure, but it certainly wasn't made for me personally. I've got nothing against it, but there's not much drawing me towards loving it either. 3/5.
Sounded good but a bit boring. Wouldn't listen normally
Got Graceland and then this a few days later. Doesn't SEEM very random! This is nice, any one with ears can tell this is good music made by talented by people. Just not something I'm ever going to turn. Glad I had a chance to sit down with it for a bit though.
Diverting enough, wouldn't seek it out.
Very pleasant.
Songs are pretty cool. The vocal harmonies are interesting but the album is a whole is too much. I like listening to them. Everybody liked Graceland when you add the western elements by the fourth a cappella song it was just a little bit too much.
This is the first time I’ve listened to a full album with no instruments, just voices. It was strange how easy it was to take for granted.
It was great but I will admit I became a bit bored towards the end. I feel I shouldn't have but I did.
Not bad. Didn’t understand much, but was interesting to listen to. 3/5
This was actually pretty chill to work to. There were moments of wet lip sounds that made it a tough headphone listen but otherwise, pretty chill. 3 stars
5.5/10
This is surely interesting. The vocal harmonies are delicious, and there is a hypnotic feeling while listening to this album that is wonderful. If there is a word for this album, aside delicious, or delicate, is beautiful. Really beautiful. It surely is not the kind of music I like to listen to, but I do not mind to sometimes take a break and find something as sweet, pleasant and also unique as this album. It is a full a capella album and, still, it feels very warm. It is almost ritualistic, in the way the voices come and go, over and over, accompanying each other in a kind of sway. It is wonderful. It has something really catchy and enigmatic that traps you even being just a vocal album. The harmonies are so very well accomplished. But, if I stick to a more subjective side, sure, it is not much of my taste. I've been very pleased to listen to it, but it is still an album that lacks of some more variety in the melodies. The songs are wonderful as tranquil tracks to listen to. And, as background music, I'm sure it really works well, but I don't think as an album it stands that hugely, as a conscious listening. Then, I would need to talk about ways of listening to music, and, for sure, there is no correct one. But I like to pay attention, and I don't feel I have much to find in here. It is mostly a soft sequence of lovely songs. So, I don't know, have I liked this? Yes, sure. Is this a well delivered record? Sure, and pretty original too. Will I listen to it in the future again? I'm not so sure... That's the point, it's really lovely, and beautiful, but I don't think it is an album I will be willing to listen to again. Maybe yes, but not in the recent future. So, maybe I'll change my mind, but for today, I'll just say that it is nice, even more than nice, but not my cup of tea. It works well because of its length, but I don't see me listening to this album in repeat. Oh, I would love to love it, but it is not the case.
3 out of 5. Kinda blends together but great vocal harmonies here.
captivating, lovely, relaxing... but, sadly, not really worth coming back to
Was midway through the third song and thought to myself - there is something very different about this. Took me a few minutes to realize the entire album is a capella. The voices are like finely tuned instruments. Really amazing and quite pleasant to listen to.
This is lovely. I did not know their work independent of Paul Simon's 'Graceland' (which I love) but I really enjoyed this.
Soothing and nice vibes
J’avais compris apres 2 chanson le concept. Un peu redondant ensuite. Points bonus pour la belle coincidence d’écouter ça avant de voir le musical du Roi Lion!
Unfortunately sounds a little too much like Paul Simon. Where are the African albums that aren't produced by boring white men trying to introduce some colour to their carers?
Heard before?:❌️ Will listen again?:❓️/❌️
Soothing, wonderful vocals.
Good harmonizing You could tell me this was The Lion King Soundtrack from another country and I’d believe you. There are definitely skippable songs. The songs also tend to sound the same. With German music I can usually terribly translate their words into English. This, I can’t. That doesn’t mean anything. I am just filling space on a pretty generic review. To summarize. I’m not a fan but I recognize the effort.
This album wasn’t on my streaming service, but I was able to listen to the greatest hits. Instantly recognizable from Graceland. Fun to hear this group on its own.
This is a very different listening experience to most albums, and it's probably one that is exponentially better should one speak the language. As it stands, this is a decent album for what it is, but I'd have to sit with it for longer to really know if I loved it or not.
Could not find the original version but found the "revisited" version and sounds exactly like I assume the original version sounds. Totally great for relaxing music, good on Paul Simon for brining them to international attention.
Not bad - very soothing
Not bad. World music. Although I don't think I'll ever play it again.
It's good but just too repetitive. When they worked with Paul Simon it worked better.
Very pleasant listen if not a bit repetitive. A little too much sheen on it, but the vocal performances are something else.
Pretty solid a capella album. It's a really warm and pretty album, with some fantastic harmonies and melodies. With that being said, I don't love it, mainly because it did feel kind of samey and it went on for a bit longer than I'd like, but considering that there's not really anything else like it on this list (from what I've seen, at least), I'll teeter on the side of positive here.
A bit sleepy
Very different from the usual which is fun
It's interesting and pretty but not something I would listen to with any regularity. I literally could not tell when one song ended and another began.
Kai tää ihan OK oli. ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really like their sound, have an album or 2 somewhere but listening to a whole album unless in the right place, which wasn’t the case today brings score down 3 Star
I see why Cady's parents were mad about her missing this concert. (I also kind of see why Cady wanted to skip the concert.)
Amazing voices and harmonies but all quite samey I guess
It’s all very pleasant and chilled, but to an extent that I was a tad bored by it at the end. A few changes in pace wouldn’t have gone amiss for me.
It's a pleasant sound. The voices are obviously gorgeous but I'm unlikely to return to it.
The whole acapella nature of the record was maybe its biggest hurdle for me, especially at nearly 40 minutes. But it honestly ended up entrancing me before long. Just the very steady nature of it all is hypnotizing, in the same way a long piano-driven ambient album is. Far from your conventional music but one that proves that the voice is a strong enough standalone instrument, same as any other instrument. In this case it's multiple voices, but really they all come together as one, like a warm blanket over you on a quiet, cold night as you're ushered into the dream world. An album I'm glad I got to listen to. Not entirely my thing, but that really doesn't matter now, does it. This feels important, ethereal, and soulful, and I'm probably just not at the point where I've fully grasped it.
Really interesting. Pleasant listen
Sounds fantastic, beautiful harmonies, is it v bad to say it all sounds a bit the same? Also bit hard to sing along, if I'm being critical...
This why the list exists. Out of 200 albums there have been about 30 albums that I wasn’t familiar with. Out of these few I think 15 are really ones I should have heard before I died. This is one of its good. Does it get a little monotonous sure. It’s soothing and I think I enjoyed listening to this.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo were part of the reason why Graceland was as iconic as it was. I'm not very big into a-capella groups but some of the backing rhythms (especially in 'Unomathemba') are really sick to hear. Probably better on certain kinds of drugs. Tolerable enough to be entertaining/acceptable listen and certainly intriguing but absolutely not for me.
Really good, probably wouldn't choose to listen again, but that's my problem. Enjoyed it though, lots of cool harmonies and was interesting throughout. 3.5
3.7 almost a 4; they have other albums I like better
A little slow for my liking, but interesting. I like when these kinds of albums pop up on here.
Amazingly tight harmonies.
This is the type of truly unique music that this list needs more of. Very cool for something like this to be wholly African and also have some pop elements, I haven’t heard anything like this before. Was it my favorite album? No. Did it expand my perspective? Yes
Obviously this sound is unique and powerful - otherwise Paul Simon wouldn't have sought it out and brought it to wider prominence - so I found this soothing and enjoyable solely for that reason. I'm less sold on what's being more literally communicated here; the theology on "Golgotha" seems muddled, and the rest of this isn't pointed enough to really signify for me. Call me culturally insensitive or whatever but this isn't better than *Graceland*.
6.5/10 - Sounds like they were true to their sound on Graceland. Great vibes, super peaceful and easy to listen to.
The singing is beautiful and the vibes are high. 6/10
I listened to most of this in the bathtub and i was very comfortable
It's a relaxing listen, but I'm not sure if there'd ever be a moment in my life again when I'd go "I wanna relisten to Shaka Zulu!" The album has a pretty interesting background though, and is produced by Paul Simon, so I'm not opposed to it being on the list. It's just that it doesn't really hit me on a musical enjoyment levels as much as it hits me on the musical intrigue levels.
It’s nice as first but gets a bit repetitive. Needs a bit of drums, guitar, keyboard etc to flesh it out and break the monotony
I’m a big fan of Graceland and obviously plenty of similar vibes with this one. Enjoyable enough listen but probably wouldn’t get on my regular listening rotation.
Kind of amazing the grandiose feel these guys can get with only vocals. Favorite track: Hello My Baby
Unique good losten
We listened to this music in the car. After 20 minutes I asked my girlfriend: how do you like this album? Her response: ah, this is not still the first song? That pretty much sums it up. Yes, significant music, and I don’t dislike it, it is just very similar to me. No strong emotions. Three stars.
Truly lovely. Its a capella nature does limit its upside, though. And the songs tend to run together on a full album listen.
nice enough, but you kept wanting to hear Paul Simon jump outta there
Its making me want to listen to Graceland (that must be on here, right)
tiene valores de producción pero hay que estar de humor y más metido en el género para escuchar algo así 3.0
Beautiful, entrancing voices. No idea on the subject matter but I'm sure it's as pure as the driven snow.
Vond het heel vet maar wel het gevoel dat ik na 5 minuten al heel het album heb gehoord
2.5
Uh, it's OK? Obviously talented, kinda cool to hear the acapella, but all the tongue clicking mouth noise stuff got kind of old after awhile. I'm aware it's a language, but it's also on my nerves. Like German.
youtube.com/watch?v=CCcMPFu4pD4
Great craft and talent but not something that I'm likely to listen to again. Hard to separate it in my mind from the Paul Simon thing.
Slipped into the background a bit but it's an album I will listen to again.
Not sure if it’s a bad thing or a good thing that I couldn’t get the Broadway version of the Lion King out of my head when I listened to this.
I only knew Ladysmith Black Mambazo from Paul Simon and was happy to be immersed in this album. Ultimately, despite the quality and consistency of this sound, a whole album was a bit too much. I would dip in again but not really able to identify a particular track that stands out.
Interesting album. I did enjoy it, and having the opportunity to hear and find things like this are great thing about the 1001 list.
Se han ganado a capela tres estrellas
Nice but meh
Decent
Muy entretenido, hermosas voces armónicas
They're good at what they do and this makes for a pleasant listen. Lacking variety, though.
I have an uncomfortable response to this. I want to be embracing it for just what it is, but it’s difficult to disassociate it from Graceland. It is totally listenable but while I’d like to be connecting with it on an emotional level, instead it feels more like an enjoyable familiar texture, rather than a strong artistic statement, particularly on the tracks with a language barrier. I know this on me, but it’s my review. I’m pretty sure Paul Simon did them dirty. The cool thing would have been to let Ladysmith have a spotlight and humbly stand behind them safe in the knowledge you’d written your best songs in 10 years. He’s had a lot of arrogance about him though, and I trust Steven Van Zandt on issues regarding music and apartheid and SVZ says the collaboration shouldn’t have happened. The rights and wrongs put aside for a moment, Ladysmith did get a massive boost by featuring on Graceland. I can’t believe this album would have been in the 1001 otherwise. It is a solid album of the thing that it is, but it doesn’t get my attention. Feels background-y when it should probably be more than that.
Not my thing
You know what? This is kinda nice. Not great, not bad. Feels like optimism.
Pretty good music to chill to. Halford’s Golgotha is much better though.
Finally, after nearly 100 albums, one from the "Global South". LBM are an excellent group, and this is a fine collection of songs showcasing their immense skill. Despite this being purely a capella it does feel a little overproduced (quite an artifical timbre?) and is merely a collection of good tunes rather than a considered "album", as such. Would be interesting to check out some older cuts...
Pleasing as background music. You really do get a sense of the culture, the clicks in the language, and the singers are talented. Paul Simon wouldn’t settle for less, I’m sure, and this was produced at a very important time in South African history. That being said, there is a heavy use of cheese here. It’s practically a broccoli casserole. They’re singing with kissy sounds, they do a whole rendition of This Little Light of Mine- yeah, that’s a bit much. There are nice vibes here. It’s definitely a ‘feel good’ piece. But it can get so sappy it’s soggy.
I didn't mind it, it was relaxing chill and a good vibe. Was very spiritual and heartwarming. Not sure I would go back to it though, just isn't anytime music. Also each song was rather repetitive and very one note.
This was cool vibes, but it was too slow and repetitive and chanty for anything to really draw me in.
Ok for an occasional listen but not my fav.
The African tribes run through me!
Beautiful harmonies for sure, but there isn’t much else here.
Enjoyable
Completely neutral on this.
A nice little detour to Africa. I probably won’t come back to it but respect what they’re going for and love how it can transport you to a different continent. Rating: 2.7
Curioso, fue divertido escucharlo
album #48 When I started this project/challenge with my partner, this is moreso what I was expecting! Music that you wouldn't necessarily hear in the mainstream as often, but is worth hearing before you die. I think this list definitely suffers from too much Western (specifically UK/US) influence, and oft tries to offset this in a terribly unsubtle way. You shouldn't have 500 Morrissey albums and then such a small amount of music from any country that doesn't speak English...! Just saying lol. It's a difficult undertaking, to make a list such as this, but sometimes it feels a touch sloppy and lacking in diversity (from a genre, language, year, and country perspective). It well displays the systemic exclusion of non-white, LGBTQ+, and non-western music which is sad. Maybe they should have renamed the list, I don't know. Again, I respect it's a hard balance and I'm enjoying the project and that it's exposing me to music I haven't heard before (such as this album!), but I think it's also important to explore the issues with this list and what could be improved upon. We need to stop giving white men the microphone on music opinions LMAO. Either way, I'm glad the list exists because it means i can partake in this fun little project and also because it allows for these conversations! :) ꩜ average track rating: 2.4/5 ꩜ favourite track(s): yibo labo, unomathemba ꩜ least favourite track(s): hello my baby ꩜ album rating: ★★⯪☆☆ ꩜ number of albums left to review: 1,041 ꩜ number of albums from the list that i agree with being on the list: 29 (+1 Shaka Zulu) ꩜ albums from the list that I would consider on my list: 11 ꩜ albums from the list I won't include on my list: 37
Sounds lovely, but there's not much light and shade.
Another African album means more joy! This is another artist that I already knew; I have enjoyed one or two of their albums, previously, and this one sounded pretty similar. What impresses me most about their music is probably the precision (and coordination, assuming they are performing as a group) with which they craft vocal harmonies, especially considering the amount of syllables that are included in some of the phrases. Because it's only voices singing in a similar style, there is risk of losing interest, part way, but it is the joy that keeps me engaged throughout
lovely vibe and way to start my day
N ouvi
ta bueno
Straight up the middle. Not a genre I'm really interested in, but I really don't have much to say in the negative. Not for me but not bad.
relaxing once I stopped tweaking, pretty good album. key track would be Yibo Labo
This loses its charm pretty quickly
Light 3
This is beautiful and the multiple-part harmonies are incredibly well done. I have really come to enjoy and appreciate African music, especially after being exposed to more of it by this list. So why don't I like this? I just don't respond favorably to the a cappella format. I respect the talent that goes into it, but I just don't enjoy listening to it.
Not my kind of thing. Sounds lovely as background music however it starts to grate after a time. Deserves to be on the list
I do love me some LBM harmonies the clapping and foot stomping on Wawusho Kuban is such a groove
Sounds impressive and wonderful - but a whole album of this with nothing really dynamically different (something louder or faster, something with instrumentation) falls a bit flat.
I'll admit, while I didn't find this all that interesting, it was still just so soothing that it's hard to criticise that much. And even with much of the album being in Zulu, even though I don't understand a word of it, you can still feel the warmth of the music. I do still feel like being an a capella album it is held back just a bit, the simplistic nature of the genre makes it pretty hard to make it anything that groundbreaking. But it's cool that Paul Simon was so heavily involved in this, and all things considered he did a great job and definitely made this about as well as he could have given the genre and style and all that.
A lot of beautiful harmonies and melodies, but not an album that really grabbed me. 3/5
This is beautiful
I enjoyed this far more then the techno yesterday.
Impressive work but not my cup of tea...
Cool harmonies
I listened to this while out on a sunset walk with Bart & Lyndsie. A very pleasant evening. (I always find it worth noting what’s not on Spotify. LBM recently played in Ojai, I should have gone?) “I HAVE MAGGOTS IN MY SCROOOTUMMM”
This was okay, at times relaxing. I may not listen to it again, scoring is hard sometimes, I'd like to give this a 2.5,2 is too low, so 3 it is.
I feel calm. serenaded by harmonies!
The harmonies are as tight as anything you will ever hear. Absolutely stunning. It does have a tendency to get very repetitive or samey as there is only so much variation you can produce using solely vocals.
Graceland has always been a favorite album of mine and it was a treat to listen more to this band that was featured on it. I love the vocal harmonies. Finding this original album was a struggle in streaming, but it is on YouTube. It is better than the anniversary album version.
Interesting, but maybe a bit samey and felt a little long. low 3/5.
Very earthy, calming music. Nice harmonies. Sounds more meaningful than a lot of western stuff
Like many I was introduced to Ladysmith Black Mambazo as one of the absolute stand out featured artists on Paul Simon's Graceland, one of my all time favourite albums, but had never explored their music very thoroughly beyond that, so seeing this album come up was a very exciting surprise. I do think unfortunately the album suffers somewhat because of the direct comparison it inevitably draws to Graceland and what Simon brought to the project with his song-writing ability, comparably Shaka Zulu does drag a bit over an extended period of listening and the songs do tend to blend together. That isn't to say the music itself is unenjoyable, there is a really unique sound to this record, and to the group's music as a whole that is really unique and honestly very relaxing, I could very easily see myself putting this on as some background music to unwind to. It is very clear why Ladysmith Black Mambazo made the impact that they did on Paul Simon, and on the world as a whole on Graceland, and to hear their sound by themselves on this record is a really enjoyable and special thing. Fav Track: 9 - Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain Best Three Track Run: 8, 9, 10
Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a fun name to say. I like to say their name as much as possible. We can all thank Paul Simon for bringing the amazing music of Ladysmith Black Mambazo to a wider audience, but this kind of music speaks for itself. Their distinct African style of acappella, known as mbube (see? I learn things every day doing this project), is exactly the type of thing that I absolutely love. Their glorious harmonies are just so nice to listen to. The melodies are upbeat in a way that makes it impossible to be in a bad mood listening to their music. It’s sparse: no instruments, just vocals. But it never feels like anything is missing. On a sunny Sunday afternoon, Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a fantastic soundtrack for walking the dogs in the countryside. Ladysmith Black Mambazo. I just wanted to say the name one more time. 3.5 stars.
This felt like it was included on the list because Paul Simon produced it, and not on its own merit. Not the band's fault so I'll give it a pass and move on to the next album. Eighty-eight more to go...
African. Had to use youtube spotify didnt work
5 / 10 - a capella - wohlklingende Harmonien, sehr beruhigend - wenig abwechslung, weder harmonisch, melodisch, noch rhythmisch Favs: - Ikhaya Lamaqhave
This is the beautiful music borrowed in Graceland. Mellow and uniform good background but hard to listen in whole
Beautiful acapella performance, almost hypnotic. If it gave Nelson Mandela hope it must be decent..
Very pleasant and relaxing throughout
It was strangely soothing and something I do this project for. 3/5
6/10 – Decent
i've heard reference to this album, but never listened. It's warm and calming. I don't hate it.
Nice and mellow. I only know LBM from their work with Paul Simon but I really liked hearing them sans collaboration here. Not sure how often I would come back to it, but definitely would want to at some point. 3.4/5
Pleasant listen. I was clapping along at the end. Nothing to do with the album, but Shaka Zulu the person always makes me think of when a Jeopardy contestant said "Who is Chaka Khan?" to a clue about him
Liked this a lot but not sure how often I would throw some African music in otherwise
It's nice. 3/5.
Fine
Spectacular vocal performances highlight that even if I can't understand the words the sentiment behind the harmonies shines through clearly. THIS is something that should be on a list like this. Pleasantly surprised after an 8 record run of absolute watery shit recommended by the 1001 albumgenerator.
Smooth
70
07/03/2026 It's not really my thing but I appreciate what it is. Spotify listeners: 330.6k
I don't really like this genre that much. Nevertheless, it was quite interesting to listen to this album. It didn't really inspire me. Towards the end, it started to get on my nerves a bit. It's not my taste and I won't listen to it again. 3/5
A good album, I liked Hello My Baby the most.
Este album es un ejemplo de Isicathamiya, genero de musica tipico del pueblo Zulu de Sudafrica. Fue un muy buen change de la musica occidental que hemos escuchado hasta ahora. Es un tipo de musica muy calming. Sin embargo, como no es un genero que escucho mucho, al final del album todo lo escuchaba igual y bajo mi interes por el 3/5
Can you have too much of a nice thing? I think you can, and with this album I did. It’s objectively beautiful to listen to - unadorned, consistently great compositions. But the sound (I cannot comment on the lyrics) comes across saccharine if you listen to it too much, a whole album for example. The effect is that it felt a long 30ish minutes despite being of considerable merit. Something beautiful for a few minutes but not for lengthy listening.
I very much enjoyed this lowkey South African a capella album from Ladysmith Black Mambazo! This isn’t music I typically gravitate towards but it was a great diversion from what I normally listen to and I would listen to this album again soon!
yeah it's not bad
I really wanted to like this but it never arrived where great a capella set should. The group is talented and well produced but there was a lack of progression and hooks in the music that left a bitter taste in my mouth.
I don't have a lot of love for a capella works; I find them a little boring outside of the perfect harmonies. I guess that's the point, though, the harmonies. This is cool mostly because it's not some troop of goofy college kids singing silly songs. I don't understand most of it given that a lot of the songs aren't in English, but the harmonies are, in fact, perfect and the melodies are interesting and build on themselves in a non-traditionally western way. Anyway it's fine. It's still fundamentally a capella.
Sure ain’t as good as the first album.
wasn't made for me and that's okay
you are capitalizing off my love of acapella groups! very chill--the songs all felt a little same-y but that just might be because I'm not used to the genre. Really gorgeous voices.
In. Like it. They're very good & have a large catalog to explore. As with most a cappella tho, it's a lot. This is tasteful & soulful & interesting. But okay already. How about a tight EP rather than a whole entire LP? Still tho it is quite good. Definitely worthy to throw into the random mix.
Really beautiful harmony singing. But a whole album? Language didn’t matter it sounded beautiful. But excessive. These guys should be performing only on presentations kind of things. Annoyed cause I had to listen on YouTube.
Liked the exotic a Cappella. However my Xosa is very limited so did not get the lyrics and music started to sound very samy.
Really surprised with this. Actually really enjoyed it probably a 3.5
Enjoyable. 3.5 stars
Very cool and well-executed but the forms of each song were very similar to eachother and was too repetitive to listen to as an album
Solid
To jest coś nowego dla mnie, ale podobało mi się. Muzyka jest spokojna, relaksująca. Głosy są czarujące, nawet jeśli nie wiem o czym mówią. 3/5
Honestly, this is about as good as A Capella can get. Really makes appreciate those with vocal talent.
Very cool and interesting the ease which with they sing and play is relaxing and makes me want to understand what they are saying. This is a very talented group of musicians. Very different and indeed meritory pf being in this lost
I'd really love to give this album a 4. It maybe deserves even more than that. But at the end of the day, despite the pristine harmonies and relaxing vocals, most of the music is just too repetitive for me to want to come back to. There is no doubt that this album deserves to be on this list though, in fact, the list maybe needs even more albums like this. 3.5 Highlight: Hello My Baby
This was alright. About what I expected
Favorite songs: Unomathemba, King of Kings, Yibo Labo
This album is no longer on Spotify, so I had a heard tone finding it.
GOING IN: No strong feelings LISTENED WHILE: morning commute FAMILIARITY: New to me SKIP RATE: Played it straight through REPLAY VALUE: Once was plenty DISCOVERY CURVE: Warmed up nicely ALBUM ARC: Strong start, tailed off VERDICT: Better than expected BODY'S VERDICT: Sitting nicely - Motionless appreciation FAVOURITE TRACK: My Rating: 3.5
Fedt, også okay kedeligt indimellem - god afrikansk vibe
What a lovely album to start the day with. I especially loved the harmonies on “How Long?”
No instruments sounds quite so beautiful as many harmonised voices. Unfortunately the songs didn’t overly interest me and I struggled to differentiate between them.
I am at a total loss as to how I should approach this review and I have been sweating it all day. On the one hand, this is something completely foreign to me in an age where nearly every worldly experience is at my fingertips. On the other hand, I feel wholly unqualified to judge this listening experience as a result of it being curated randomly to me. This record of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, an all-male South African a capella group creates a soft, pure, atmospheric listening experience. There are no instruments. There is no “production” - just the human voice and some foot stomping (at times) to accompany the organic structure of the music. This is so outside of my world that I can’t judge it on anything but my experience which is passive. Does it do what it sets out to do? Yes. Does it scratch some baseline human itch? Yes. Is it particularly memorable for me? No. Is it the best version of what it is? I can’t even begin to determine… primarily because 100% of my listening experience with South African all-male a cappella music is contained in this single album. I appreciate it for what it is and I can say nothing more. As a side note, having to listen to this music be broken up by toilet paper ads on YouTube (because it’s not on Spotify) was distracting.
A little on the boring side, but pleasant enough
This was fine, though I think listening to it at a latitude where it’s dark at 4 in the afternoon in January doesn’t help. Would I listen to it again? Probably not.
Pretty immediately recognized these guys from Graceland. Their harmonies are so so tight. Only problem is, despite being an a cappella person, I can only take so much a cappella music at once.
3.3 It was enjoyable. Not really my usual things, and I'm glad it was only half an hour but it was a peaceful half an hour. It's an interesting style, and hard to dislike. Probably one of two vocal-only albums on this list and it was a lot more enjoyable than Bjorks tbf.
Like many, I'm familiar with this group mostly through Paul Simon's Graceland (and the wonderful exclamation in The Venture Brothers). This was cool, I don't think it's something I could listen to over and over again, but it was definitely cool.
The harmonies are great, but I found myself wishing there was a little more variation in terms of accompaniment; even some percussion. (Note; listened to 2017 "remake", as could not find original)
Kind of a vibe even tho I didn’t understand it
Wouldn’t reach for it but liked it for upbeatish but not distracting gym music.
It was soothing and a bit repetitive, but I didn’t dislike it. I dont see myself revisiting tho
Fun album to have on the list. I'm always for diversity in all forms and the same goes for music! Definitely not used to listening to vocal-only type of music, and it's not the "instrument" I find most interesting. Still, the harmonies are impressive and interesting. Everything is tied together with a nice reverb, which enhances the spiritual feeling I get from this album. Nothing I will listen to much probably, but nice to have heard!
Beautiful stuff from the fellas.
Worthy, with a beauty but dull.
Paul?
Very nice
Beautiful. Not something I would listen to, however, if I'm honest.
This was an enjoyable world album. But after awhile it started to sound the same.
I was really enjoying it, but then I thought it slightly overstayed its welcome?
Paul Simon production can't save this one-note album. A few nice harmonies but LBM always seemed to be too safe to be interesting.
i have a history or hating choir kids since most of choir kids i have engaged with are fucking annoying. but my moot (i personally hear myself reading that in a borat accent) is a choir kid and was in the school a cappella club during high school. but anyway im a theatre kid turned stagehand but the flair persists, so i think i shouldnt be hating on choir kids, as the outsiders may percieve them and theatre kids as similarly annoying. and my moot's one of the best person i ever met online. and also on a prior conversation, he said that he likes paul simon, who happens to produce the album. enough ranting. honestly this is kinda mid? like cultrual differences and stuffs makes me not that being able to like this album, but the harmonies are sometimes nice. like everything just floats by without leaving any impression to me. i might like graceland more despite all these claims of cultrual appropriation. gonna forward it to my moot and ask what he thinks. 3/5
it was so nice to get something completely different today, enjoyed listening to this in the afternoon sun 3.5
Random thoughts: * I'm familiar with Ladysmith from both Paul Simon and my appreciation of music class in college. * This is quite fun to listen to and is a huge change of pace. * It is so unique it is hard to rate against more pop and rock offerings on this list of albums. * I would like to revisit this again and hopefully this reminds me to.
I’d heard the name Ladysmith Black Mambazo, but I couldn’t remember where or why I knew I recognized the name. Then my good, reliable friend, the internet, told me they were a South African male choir who sang on the Graceland album by Paul Simon. Talk about an album you need to hear before you die. Well, I think Shaka Zulu is another album to hear before you die. As soon as the first note hit, I knew I was going to like this album. It’s hard to explain, but this album gives you a bit of understanding of how most American music came from the music of Africans who were brought to this country as slaves. It’s very spiritual, it just has a feeling about it. You can see where gospel music came from and the blues, jazz, even rock and roll. The album is purely a capella, no instruments that I can hear, which for me is hard to do. I’m not a big a cappella fan, but this album is a joy to listen to. To me, most a cappella sounds bland, but this has soul and is like no a cappella I’ve heard before. Wikipedia said that this was probably the group’s most commercially accessible record, though the songs were just re-recorded versions of their older “hits.” It also helps that this album came out after Graceland, in which the group made themselves known to a world of new fans. The album was produced by Paul Simon, explaining the more commercially accessible sound. Usually, I do some work at my desk as I listen to these albums for the first time. With Shaka Zulu, many times I stopped just to sit and listen. It seemed every few minutes I heard something that caught my fancy. Things like tongue clicking, a nice bass sound, and an interesting melody. Just an amazing album. Now, all that being said, will I be listening to this non-stop for the rest of time? Probably not. Though it is a good album to sit with and relax. I think this is an album worth hearing before you die because I’d wager you haven't heard much music more interesting than Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Glad this was included because they have a very unique sound. Very hypnotic to listen to but I don’t find myself wanting to come back to it much yet.
Biting my tongue to try and not make fun of white South Africans in this review, so I will keep this short. Yeah, everyone in this are beautifully talented - but I got the gist of this real quick. I get it boys, you harmonise and hum a lot. That's about the whole extent of this thing. I guess I just generally don't like music from South Africa. But this is at least tolerable, Afrikaans music sucks even worse.
Beautiful vocals, but quite repetitive. Probably great reading music for whenever you decide to dig into your copy of the bible. Making the second track the highlight for me cause it reminded me of the theme song for Swords & Sandals II: Gladiators, the greatest flash game of all time. Highlights: Hello My Baby
A bit too chill
These guys can sing their asses off and have some beautiful harmonies. That being said, I don't know that I "enjoy" listening to this album. I don't feel I have the proper context to evaluate it fairly. I basically never listen to acapella choral music and, thus, have no frame of reference.
Glad I heard it once because of how unit is but not something that I would ever seek out on my own.
Graceland? Nice.
I think this is the group that played on Graceland with Paul Simon.
Different but in a good way.
A nice relaxing album
This album is from a South African men’s a cappella group, who became popular here after Paul Simon featured them on his Graceland album. A few of the tracks are done in English. The music has a gospel vibe to it, and is easy to listen to.
These guys came to USC when I was there! I had never heard of them so it was a real surprise to find out they were actually famous after the fact. Anyway, I'm not gonna be mad at Zulu acapella (or technically, isicathamiya, which is a little more overlap heavy I think), but I also have no idea what they're singing about (though, probably religious stuff if Jesu means what I think it does) and I don't have time to investigate, so there's a certain non-English ceiling. If it's anything like the English lyrics, maybe that's for the best. Well, I say, that, but, Highlight: when "hello my baby" and "i love my baby" merge into sounding the same as they're repeated enough (like my childhood favorite "it's eleven men/eleven minutes") :)
No było to relaksujące i przyjemne, ale bardzo monotonne i nie odczuwałam, żeby było na wysokim muzycznym poziomie. Jako ciekawostka owszem. Ale żeby tego słuchać regularnie? 5/10
Best Song: Ikhaya Lamaqhawe. I don't know what I liked most about this song, beyond the tone and emotion of the lead singer. Worst Song: Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain. I liked the chorus, but the verses felt too much like a children's song. Overall: Their voices are great, but there is a certain "softness" that starts to feel grating after a point. I get that the a capella is half the point, but it did feel like they would be really benefitted by some backing music.
Great harmonies.
Beautiful voices and harmonies. Very unique pick and glad I got to broaden my music taste
Day694 - it’s hard to hear this without thinking about graceland.
There's few better sounds in the world than this band. However the songs aren't as good as the performance
5/10
Nothing I would listen to purposefully but it was alright
I'm no expert on African music; I think I know the basic differences between mbube and isicathamiya, but don't ask me a) to give any definitive thoughts on them or b) how to pronounce them. I *do* know that, in my pretty limited forays outside "Western" genres, African music tends to hit me on a more emotional level than music from other countries/regions. There are moments on this record where the beauty of LBM's voices really resonate with me, and I find it to be a pleasant listen on the whole. That said, I don't foresee it being an album that I return to on any regular basis, and I would be lying if I said that, despite my genuine enjoyment, it has sparked a flame in me to immediately dive deeper into this style of music. 3/5
Cool harmonies. Likely won't revisit but respect it from a distance. It says something that this is on the list likely because Paul Simon opened them up to a larger audience and not because, y'know, people who aren't white make music too and it's frequently not co-signed by legends.
Good to see some more diverse music on the list and whilst I have heard of Ladysmith Black Mambazo and listened to Graceland, I’d never previously listened to one of their albums. It’s unlikely I’d choose to revisit but it’s a perfectly good listen and it’s easy to understand why people like this and why it was included on the list.
This was a really nice album that I don’t want to hear in its entirety again. They have an incredible grasp on harmonizing and arranging, but so much of the songs start to sound the same after a while. Also, every so often there was a mouth noise that just kind of skeeved me out. Don’t take any of this as too harsh of criticism, it’s a great A Cappella album, it just wears your patience down too.
Beautiful a cappella singing, and really distinctive. Highly recommend seeing them live -- but after 30 minutes, it's all the same. Same for this album.
Really peaceful and nice listen. Can't say I noticed anything besides just vicing with it.
Hypnotic. Oh it's the group that worked with Paul Simon. Very nice. Would benefit from some more variety.
No objections from me on this one. While I don't gravitate towards this type and style of music on a regular basis, I enjoyed it nonetheless. The acapella harmonies are incredible.
Man, there's something so satisfying about acapella harmonies like this. Such an enjoyable listen.
Great a cappella vocals
++: Golgotha, King of Kings, How Long?, Yibo Labo, Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain, Wawusho Kubani? +: Unomathemba, Hello My Baby, Lomhlaba Kawunoni, Ikhaya Lamaqhawe 7,0/10
Unomathemba - 4/5 Hello My Baby - 3/5 At Golgotha - 4/5 King of Kings - 4/5 The Earth Is Never Satisfied - 4/5 How Long? - 3/5 Home of the Heroes - 4/5 These Are the Guys - 2/5 Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain - 3/5 Who Were You Talking To? - 3/5 Average score: 3.4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
It’s ok man
I was grooving to this!
Don’t generally care for African music, but this was pretty decent.
Made me want to watch Coming To America
Solid enough.
~this album was not available on Spotify so this review is for their album Imbongi~ The chants did have a mesmerizing sound but there was just something missing to really set it apart.
Very chill
Fun, but most songs start sounding the same after awhile.
I’ve never listened to this group outside of Paul Simon’s Graceland. Shocked to see that they formed in 1960.
Interesting addition, like the vibe, but not an acapella fan and the sound tends to be too samey across songs
I like a cappela music, so this was a fun listen. There is so much going on culturally and historically in this album, it's hard to talk about it all.
I very much appreciate what they do. Their introduction to the world by Paul Simon felt like a little miracle at the time. Such subtle and beautiful sounds. A whole album all feels a little samey-samey for me. It’s a nice bonus when they show up somewhere else. A single song - wonderful. A whole album - hard to be excited or engaged by it for the full 45 minutes of the 30th anniversary version that was available to me on streaming. I think there was only one additional track, so basically the same as the original.
Great Songs: Good Songs: Lomhlaba Kawunoni (The Earth Never Gets Fat), Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain Mid Songs: Unomathemba, Hello My Baby, Golgotha, How Long?, Ikhaya Lamaqhawa (Home of the Heroes), Yibo Labo (These Are The Guys), Wawusho Kubani? (Who Were You Talking To?) Bad Songs:
There’s certainly talent in blending all these voices together. But I couldn’t get into it. 5/10
interesting album, can't get into it when I don't understand lyrics
Great drum fills
Hello My Baby is adorable with the kiss sounds. Really pleasant album and loved hearing songs with clicks.
Many years from now (hopefully), lying on my deathbed, listening to my 1001 albums playlist, after confusedly asking the nurse who The Thrills and Flamin' Groovies were, something from this album will come on. I'll settle back in bed, smile and in that moment be genuinely happy. A worthy entry into the '1001 Albums to Listen to While You Die' list. Wait...that isn't what we are doing? Anyway, thanks for feeding me something different, generator!
- this is the first instance of non-western music this project has given me, which is fun, and I hope there are more albums like this included in the list - my first exposure to this group was from the movie Mean Girls, when the mom says "but you love Ladysmith Black Mambazo!" when the main character (who grew up in Africa and only recently moved to the US) declines to go with her parents to a concert so she can hold a wild house party instead. at the time, I assumed it was a single woman, so learning it was a men's chorus instead was delightful - the live version from KEXP on YouTube is a better way to understand this group, I think. the Wikipedia page said that the name of this vocal tradition means something like "walking softly" or "stepping lightly," which is partly due to the soft sound of their voices but also refers to some light steps or dancing that takes place, so I wanted to find a live version to see if it was a different experience than just listening. I didn't notice any real "dancing" (maybe some arm movements from the soloist), but I think seeing them actually sing together is the better context - the background vocals almost sound like waves lapping on a shore (especially in tracks like "Wawusho Kubani") in that they swell and recede over and over again, coming up and then almost fading away - I like that the solo vocalists never have overly stylized voices. the solo parts are emphasized and accent the choral parts, but the singers never have super strong voices that are meant to be the highlight, unlike in gospel music from the US. everyone feels more or less equal; it's just who's at the microphone filling in the spaces the chorus doesn't take up overall, a pleasant listen. they all started to sound the same after a while and everything is mostly variations around a single chord, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing
Solid. Not really a huge fan of acappella music, but this was just nice and calm and kinda meditative. Everything kinda blended together, but two that stood out were How Long and Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain. Probably won't revisit this one much but I'm glad I checked it out and might throw it on again for the vibes sometime. 6/10, 3 stars.
Cool album but it’s a lot in one sitting.
I was very impressed by this album and it’s something I’m probably going to listen to again from harmonising your vocals to a majority acappella throughout the album with something fresh and new one at the end really nice. Would give it a four but I need to be stricter with stars as it’ll mean it’s on the same band as Stanktonia
cool acappella
Did not find all the songs. Very good music from what was on spotify
Influents en la world music però escoltant dues cançons n'hi ha suficient.
Beautiful, nuanced singing. Calming. Can be a bit monotonous and could be more dynamic and exploratory
3,2
Chilled
Exceeded expectations
Музыка: 7/10 Разнообразие: 4/10 Тематика и вайб: 7/10 Цепляемость (отдельные песни зашли): 4/10 Реиграбельность (можно ли рандомно врубить на фон): 7/10 Итог: 5.8
Originally Paul Simon’s band, they were frustrated that they only got to play the intro to all of his songs and always back stage. That was until they joined Len Houmous on one of his famous LSD trips. It gave them the confidence to not only split away and do their own thing but also to really focus on those harmonies. 2.6 9/10 - Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain
This record is at its best when the group is providing unique perspectives on Folk songs and political events; however, covers of American gospel songs and attitudes are scattered throughout and while not a bad thing seem to distract from the otherwise profound nature of the record
As much as I've heard LBM I've never been able to sink my teeth into their music. Obviously, it's fantastic stuff but lacks an edge I need to love what I'm listening to.
this was very very pleasant. I enjoyed this very much.
Boring, not my thing
7/10
This is an impeccable album and the 36min runtime is exactly the right length. I didn’t enjoy this as much as I did Youssou N’Dour, but that’s just my personal taste.
73% Best: Hello Pretty Girl; Golgotha; Rain, Rain, Beautiful Rain Must-Hear? Not quite. The album is very decent. I can't really justify listening to a full album of this style, but it is very well put together and sounds nice.
kinda sick