Johnny Clegg with Savuka & Juluka

Manufacturer Description

Artist Johnny Clegg merged the white, English-speaking culture with the Black, African culture of South Africa to form South Africa's first interracial band Juluka. In the days of apartheid, Juluka encountered their share of problems, including the banning of their first album by the South African government. After this group disbanded in the mid-80's, Clegg formed another band, Savuka, which blended European pop with African music. Savuka toured North America, opening for Steve Winwood and George Michael, as well as garnering a Grammy nomination in the Best World Music Category.

Track Listing:
Savuka - Live In Paris
1. Umfazi Omdala
2. Cruel Crazy Beautiful World
3. Take My Heart Away
4. Jericho
5. It's An Illusion
6. Hambile/The Dance
7. Scatterlings of Africa
8. Warsaw 1943
9. Siyayilanda
10. Dela
11. Asimbonanga
12. One Man One Vote
13. I Call Your Name - Dance

Savuka Videos
1. Great Heart
2. Third World Child
3. I Call Your Name
4. These Days
5. The Crossing
6. In My African Dream
7. When The System Has Fallen
8. Tough Enough

Acoustic In Mae Sai - Giyani

Juluka Videos
Scatterlings Of Africa
December African Rain
Kilimanjaro
Forever

Juluka - Live in Cape Town
Impi
Umbaganga Music

Bonus Material
Asimbonanga - With Nelson Mandela In Frankfurt
Juluka Mantombana Dance - Concert In The Park
Johnny Clegg Interview
Song Lyrics

Though still relatively unknown in America, South African musician Johnny Clegg has been a significant presence in Europe and Africa for several decades--and deservedly so, as the comprehensive, entertaining Johnny Clegg with Savuka & Jaluka: Live! and More... makes clear. Clegg was born in England but has lived in Africa since infancy, and his commingling of those two cultures began in earnest in the '70s, when he formed Juluka, whose interracial lineup (Clegg himself is white) and politically charged songs made for a heady, controversial brew at a time when apartheid was still the rule. Those days are recalled here via concert footage and early videos (including "Scatterlings of Africa," probably their best-known tune), but much of the DVD is devoted to live and video footage of Savuka, Clegg's next band (which included newcomers as well as Juluka veterans), which he formed in '86 and is still going strong. Many songs are devoted to Africa's various plights, but lyrical content notwithstanding, this music--with its nimble bass lines, West African guitar styles (played by Clegg himself; he's also a superb dancer), and combination of infectious Western pop melodies and traditional Zulu sounds--is downright irresistible. It wouldn't be much of an exaggeration to call Clegg the "African Elvis," a musician who adapted black music and made it available to a broad commercial audience. Best of all, Live! and More... will make you smile. --Sam Graham