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Though best known for their work on Paul Simon’s 1986 album, Graceland, South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo has been making music since the early 1960s when the group was first formed by lead singer Joseph Shabalala (who still fronts the group). In their almost fifty years together they have become one of South Africa’s most prolific bands, taking the traditional sounds of their Zulu heritage around the World, wining multiple Grammy’s in the process.
Ladysmith was formed after Shabalala had a series of recurring dreams in which he saw a choir singing in perfect harmony (a story he relates with much detail on the bonus interview included on the DVD). Shabalala took his new a cappella group – named after his hometown, Ladysmith – on the road entering competitions around the country. They were eventually declared “to good” to enter competitions anymore, and soon released their debut album, which made them mega-stars in their home country.
Their new DVD, Live!, captures their still perfect harmony from a full show recorded last year at the University of Akron. It is a spirited and moving performance, with the group taking time to tell stories and connect with the audience throughout. The group now includes four of Shabalala’s sons, and despite the personal changes Ladysmith as seen over the last fifty years, their voices still meld together perfectly in an uplifting mix of English and Zulu. Live! draws from all realms of LSMB’s long career, including their most well known song, “Homeless”, which was co-written with Simon for Graceland. It is quite simply the culmination of the dream Shabalala had so many years ago, and the perfect choir he envisioned.
