Pick of the Week - Mapfumothon #2 (Thomas Mapfumo) (Zimbabwe)

In recognition of Thomas Mapfumo's 80th birtday in early July, I'm listening to all of his albums and posting a few thoughts.

Mapfumothon continues. The plan is to listen to all of Thomas Mapfumo's albums before July closes (hmm). It's about 40 years worth of albums, starting in the mid-Seventies. I won't be doing full reviews - just some background and a few thoughts. Here's part one.

Chimurenga For Justice (1985)

It's five albums in and the word Chimurenga is used in an album title for the first time. If my count is correct, it appears eight more times. It's a Shona word meaning "struggle" or "uprising" and early on it came to be associated with the style of music Mapfumo and the Blacks Unlimited originated.

The first three songs here don't feel quite like the Chimurenga style Mapfumo and company were working out, although "Rumbidzai Mambo" gets close. The next track, "Mugara Ndega," is a fairly straightforward reggae tune.

Favorites - Marondera

I reviewed the next two albums not so long ago, so I'll refer you to those reviews. For the sake of completion for this stunt, I did give them another spin.

Mr. Music (1985)

Zimbabwe Mozambique (1988)

Chamunorwa (1989)

Chamunorwa came out in 1989, in the midst of a flurry of Mapfumo album releases. Six albums came out from 1988 - 1991, including Corruption, which was released in the same year as this one.

It was a time of change in Zimbabwe following the revolution of nearly a decade earlier and all was not well. Mapfumo frequently noted this in his music at the time and it did not go over well with the targets of his criticism.

Favorites - Chitima Ndikature