AFRICA’S MBAQANGA: SONG OF THE SOUTH

While “Sun City” has focused the pop world’s attention on South Africa, the contemporary American sound of that record is far from the indigenous pop styles that have developed in that country.

South African music has been an occasional force in pop and jazz. Trumpeter Hugh Masekela and pianist/composer Abdullah Ibrahim (Dollar Brand) are recognized in the jazz world. Malcolm McLaren employed South African musicians and rhythm on portions of his “Duck Rock” album while expatriate pop groups like Juluka and the Malopoets recently attracted attention by mixing Western and South African pop forms.

But Americans’ chances to hear undiluted mbaqanga music--a blanket term for the music popular in South Africa’s black townships--have been limited by distribution difficulties. And South African musicians are encouraged to play Western pop styles, limiting mbaqanga (pronounced oom-ba-KWANG-a ) music to township bars.

Fans who sample some of the 15 to 20 albums available in the States will discover that the sound is far removed from Nigeria’s juju music, the most widely known African style here. As African music authority Randall Grass of New Jersey-based Shanachie Records notes, juju is rooted in the traditions of the stable Yoruba tribe, while mbaqanga is a smorgasbord, the product of many uprooted tribal cultures interacting in the townships.

There is a basic sound--skittering guitar lines, prominent bass melodies and minimal drumming--but the most striking characteristic is the wide range of styles under the mbaqanga umbrella. Some instrumental tracks boast a rhythmic verve akin to reggae while others recall zydeco and Cajun music with a South African twist. One school features a cappella vocal groups while the “groaner” style was popularized by vocalist Mahlathini, who sounds like the late blues great Howlin’ Wolf crossed with a bullfrog.

According to Grass, the lyrics usually aren’t political in nature, but songs concerned with everyday life under apartheid inevitably acquire a political meaning. The political situation has affected the availability of South African recordings: England’s Rough Trade stopped distributing them two years ago after hearing that royalties were going to the whites-only musicians union. (Grass says that he investigated before releasing records by South African artists on Shanachie and found no evidence of that arrangement.)

England’s Earth Works label has taken the lead in releasing music from South Africa and Zimbabwe, while Shanachie has emerged as the chief American outlet.

Here’s a guide to some of the best collections:

“SOWETO.” Various artists (Rough Trade import). This essential 1981 collection introduced the wide range of South African pop sounds to Western listeners. The material includes a pair of a cappella selections by the New Lucky Boys, the punchy “Zulu Boy” by John Motha, and the irresistible instrumentals “Here We Come” and “New Katanga Country” by one Mister King Jerroo. The recording quality is rough in spots but the exuberant performances throughout “Soweto” sound like the work of inspired musicians who knew they had three minutes to leave their mark on the world and made the most of it.

“THE INDESTRUCTIBLE BEAT OF SOWETO.” Various artists (Earth Works/Shanachie). This crisply recorded assortment of tracks recorded between 1981 and ’84 is a valuable complement to “Soweto.” Such major artists as Mahlathini and Ladysmith Black Mambazo are featured but the best performances are delivered by Udokotela Shange Namajaha. “Awungilobolele” sports a haunting hook and the fiddle-driven instrumental “Sobabamba” evokes the bayou flavor of a Cajun dance.

“INDUKU ZETHU.” Ladysmith Black Mambazo (Shanachie). Gospel harmonizing intertwines with Zulu tribal vocal traditions on this first American release by the veteran a cappella group. The octet’s rich vocal blend focuses on deep unison harmonies that soothe more than evoke the call-and-response release of American gospel. The group’s new Shanachie album “Ulwandle Oluncgwele” should be a good test of its ability to sustain interest with a strict a cappella approach.

“PHEZULU EQHUDENI.” Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens (Earth Works import). This 1984 re-release of a 1975 album focuses on two influential South African artists backed by the leading session band of the period. The similarities in arrangement and tempo lessen the record’s impact but it’s a valuable introduction to the sound of female vocal quintet the Mahotella Queens and the “groaner” Mahlathini.

“THE CHIMURENGA SINGLES, 1976-1980.” Thomas Mapfumo (Earth Works/Shanachie). These politically oriented songs earned guitarist/singer Mapfumo some jail time in his native Zimbabwe after they were adopted by guerrilla forces during that nation’s independence struggle. Musically, Mapfumo occupies the middle ground between the sparse South African township style and the dense, multiple guitar attack of Zairian music. “Chimurenga” impresses with variety as the brooding spiritual power of the early singles “Tozvireva Kupiko” is replaced by lilting rhythms and bright horn charts on later material. Mapfumo’s live appearances in England have won rave reviews so he may be the man to bring music from the southern African region to an international audience.