It has been years since Paul Simon made his initial trip to South Africa and met Joseph Shabalala, and the other members of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, in a recording studio in Johannesburg. Having listened to a cassette of their music sent by a DJ based in Los Angeles, Simon was captivated by the stirring sound of bass, alto and tenor harmonies. Simon incorporated the traditional sounds of black South Africa into the Graceland album, a project regarded by many as seminal to today's explosive interest in World music
'60s Africa found the Zulu and Sotho beginning to incorporate the influences of African American R&B, jazz, and blues into their traditional, indigenous music. New styles such as township jazz, pennywhistle street music, Kwela, and marabi were formed. Eventually, these myriad styles coalesced to create a new hybrid pop music that came to be known as mbaqanga. Though mbaqanga employs the traditional instrumentation of Western pop (guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and vocals), the approach to song structure and rhythmic, melodic, and harmonic phrasing is uniquely African.
Recorded between 1981 and 1984, THE INDESTRUCTIBLE BEAT OF SOWETO is the first (and arguably the best) of a slew of South African pop recordings that soon followed. Characterized by insistent, rhythmically complex beats, elastic, burbling basslines, tight, ska-sounding guitar accompaniment, and thick, multi-part vocals, this music is as intriguing as it is appealing. Groups with such names as Udokotela Shange Namajaha and Amaswazi Emvelo serve up bright, infectious melodies and percussively insistent tracks that are clearly intended for dancing.
Hello My Baby
Ladysmith Black Mambazo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hey beautiful girl
Hey baby hey
Sing hey baby hey
Hey baby hey hey
Hey beautiful girl
Come along, come along
Before I'm going
Come along
Come along
To kiss me
Before I'm going
Don't you kiss me nice nice
Before I'm going
Don't you kiss me nice nice
Before I'm going
Come along
Come along
Come along
You you you
Don't you meditate
I sent a messenger to tell you that
I want to meet you at the station
Come along, come along, to kiss me before I'm going
Come along come along
To kiss me before I'm going
Don't you kiss me nice, nice
Come along
Come along
Come along
You you you
Hello my baby
Hello my baby
Hello my sweet
Hello my baby
Hello my sweetheart
Don't you meditate
Don't you meditate
I send a messenger to tell you that I want to meet you
In a station
The lyrics to Ladysmith Black Mambazoโs song "Hello My Baby" are a playful and romantic invitation to a lover. The verses are repetitive, featuring the singer repeating "Hey baby, hey beautiful girl" and encouraging the object of their desire to come and kiss them before they leave. The song is filled with light-hearted energy and a sense of longing, culminating in the chorus, with the singers greeting their beloved with a cheerful, "Hello my baby, hello my sweet, hello my sweetheart."
The repetitive nature of the lyrics amplifies the focus on the physicality of the moment, with an emphasis on the desire for a loving, passionate touch. The singer is requesting their lover to come to them before they leave, to kiss them deeply and to fulfill their desire for a physical connection. The song is joyfully expressing the need for love and physical intimacy, which is emphasized through the repetition of the phrase "come along, come along, to kiss me before I'm going."
Line by Line Meaning
Hey baby
The singer is greeting someone in a familiar and possibly romantic way
Hey beautiful girl
The singer is addressing a woman with a compliment on her appearance
Hey baby hey
The singer is repeating the greeting
Sing hey baby hey
The singer is urging someone to join in singing the greeting
Hey baby hey hey
The singer is repeating the greeting with slight variation
Hey beautiful girl
The singer is addressing a woman with a compliment on her appearance
Come along, come along, to kiss me before I'm going
The singer is asking the addressed woman to come kiss him before he leaves
Come along come along
The singer is urging the addressed woman to come with him
To kiss me before I'm going
The singer is specifying the reason why he wants the addressed woman to come with him
Don't you kiss me nice nice
The singer is telling the addressed woman not to kiss him goodbye gently
Before I'm going
The singer is emphasizing the urgency for the addressed woman to come and kiss him
You you you
The singer is addressing someone directly
Don't you meditate
The singer is urging the addressed person to take action instead of contemplation
I sent a messenger to tell you that
The singer is explaining how he communicated his desire to meet the addressed person
I want to meet you at the station
The singer is specifying the time and place he wants to meet the addressed person
Hello my baby
The singer is greeting the addressed person affectionately
Hello my sweet
The singer is greeting the addressed person affectionately
Hello my sweetheart
The singer is greeting the addressed person affectionately
Lyrics ยฉ Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: JOSEPH SHABALALA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@inyerthable
Remembering the time I spent in prison with a group of Africans, mostly with Cameroonians, it was the end of the year and they began to sing and dance that night, it was magical that despite the sad moments and away from the family that night we were all one family. (Africans, South Americans, Asians, Europeans).. greetings from a Venezuelan friend!
@MundiaKamau
Wow! When was this and where? Regards, Michael M. Kamau, Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa, 7th November 2023.
@inyerthable
@@MundiaKamau Hello my brother! That was 4 years ago in USA!
@MundiaKamau
@@inyerthableI hear you๐
@nonkisibanda4021
Let's stay away from crime and leave our beautiful music for pure memories. Just saying. Don't bother retorting, you criminals, I don't even want to hear from you again.
@faunstancechulu9396
โ@@nonkisibanda4021why so bitter? Do you even know the reason he landed in prison? Music is a universal language if it resonates with his soul let him be
@irischrista9655
much love from austria and croatia๐ฆ๐น๐ฆ๐น๐ญ๐ทโคdiscovered this masterpiece in 2012๐still listening in 2024โค๏ธโค๏ธ๐
@msp6573
R.I. P legends. Iโm listening to this in 2023 in Scotland and I suddenly overwhelmed with feelings loving where I come from! Iโm Zimbabwean, African and so proud!!!! โค
@kevinmoturi7933
Much love from Kenya ๐ฐ๐ช๐ฐ๐ช. Still here in 2024
@TenToesDownInc.
Long live Oliver Mtukudzi Long Live Joseph Shabalala& family. Sending love from Australia