Music of Africa's Guitar Week #4 - Shem Tube (Kenya)
Our fourth post in a week that explores acoustic guitar music from various points in Africa.
It wasn't my plan to focus mostly on Kenya (with a side trip to Botswana) for Guitar Week. That's just the way it worked out. I'm expecting we'll have another Guitar Week soon that will look at some other countries.
Today we're featuring a few songs by Kenyan guitarist, Shem Tube. Who's apparently popular with song collectors making their way through Kenya, recording guitarists.
First up (above), a recording by Cyrus Moussavi, who gives this description:
The great Luhya guitarist Shem “Golden Fingers” Tube plays alongside his son and his friends at their home in western Kenya.
Next, as described in the Field Recording Report from the Singing Wells project to record music from East Africa:
Yet another legend of omutibo music is Shem Tube. Born Shem Andayi Lundu, Shemtube is the founder of Abana Banazarene group and one of the locally most popular musicians. Accompanied by Wycliff Omwoha on efanda; Ateyu Kwoma oning’omaand main vocal and Brown Amukhoye on second guitar and back-vocals, Shemtube played some of his greatest hits. These included “Mrembo Sofa”; “Amukhoye aa Tupe”; “Grace Mpenzi”; “Mary Ondiso” and “Agneta Mama”. We also recorded an Influences session with Fadhilee joining them on the third guitar.