Somewhere in Afrika | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | October 1982 (Germany) 18 February 1983 (UK) | |||
Recorded | 1981-1982 | |||
Studio | Mastersounds Underhill Studios, London | |||
Genre | Rock Hard rock Progressive rock | |||
Length | 37:22 | |||
Label | Bronze (UK original release) Cohesion (UK 1999 reissue) Arista (U.S.) | |||
Producer | Manfred Mann | |||
Manfred Mann's Earth Band chronology | ||||
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Singles from Somewhere in Afrika | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [2] |
Somewhere in Afrika is the eleventh album by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, released in 1982. [3] It is their last studio album recorded for their long time record label Bronze Records. They would record their next studio album, Criminal Tango for Virgin Records. Bassist Matt Irving joined the band, replacing Pat King for this album.
The North American version of Somewhere in Afrika was reordered, and was substantially different from the European version. Several tracks were added, while others were altered or edited.
Added to the line-up were the songs "Runner" (the band's final Top 40 hit in the US to date) and "Rebel". "Runner" was included in the soundtracks of the films, The Philadelphia Experiment (1984) and Firstborn (1984). "Africa Suite" was altered to feature a completely different final section called "Brothers and Sisters of Azania" (which had appeared as a separate track on the European LP); the original final section of the suite (known as "Lalela") now appeared as a separate track earlier in the album's running order. Finally, the track "Redemption Song" was cut by over 3 minutes.
The label One Way Records added the original UK LP versions of "Third World Service" and "Redemption Song" to a CD reissue.
In the later program of MMEB remasters, "Runner" and "Rebel" were included on the 1999 reissue of "Criminal Tango".
The first CD release includes the tracks from the original UK LP, but in a very different sequence. Later reissues reverted to the original UK LP tracklisting. On the 1999 re-issue, "Africa Suite" is one track, whereas on the later remaster (from the 40th Anniversary Box Set and released as a standalone CD in 2016), all the sections have separate index tracks. The tracks "Runner" and "Rebel" were appended to the 1999 remaster of Criminal Tango with the explanation "Although recorded for the U.S. 'Somewhere in Afrika' album, these two songs feature the return of Mick Rogers and fit more into the 'Tango' period than the Afrika one."
Chief Dawethi, Fats Mothya, Jabu Mbalu, Rufus Sefothuma, Zanty Lekau
Chart (1982-1983) | Peak position |
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German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [4] | 8 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [5] | 8 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [6] | 14 |
UK Albums (OCC) [7] | 87 |
US Billboard 200 [8] | 40 |
Trevor Charles Rabin is a South African musician, songwriter, and film composer. Born into a musical family and raised in Johannesburg, Rabin took up the piano and guitar at an early age and became a session musician, playing and producing with a variety of artists. In 1972, he joined the rock band Rabbitt, which enjoyed considerable success in South Africa, and released his first solo album, Beginnings. In 1978, Rabin moved to London to further his career, working as a solo artist and a producer for various artists including Manfred Mann's Earth Band.
Manfred Mann's Earth Band are an English rock band formed by South African musician Manfred Mann. Their hits include covers of Bruce Springsteen's "For You", "Blinded by the Light" and "Spirit in the Night". After forming in 1971 and with a short hiatus in the late 1980s/early 1990s, the Earth Band continues to perform and tour.
"Redemption Song" is a song by Jamaican singer Bob Marley. It is the final track on Bob Marley and the Wailers' twelfth album, Uprising, produced by Chris Blackwell and released by Island Records. The song is considered one of Marley's greatest works. Some key lyrics derived from a speech given by the Pan-Africanist orator Marcus Garvey titled "The Work That Has Been Done."
"Blinded by the Light" is a song written and recorded by Bruce Springsteen, which first appeared on his 1973 debut album Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. A cover by British rock band Manfred Mann's Earth Band reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in February 1977 and was also a top ten hit in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada.
Christopher Hamlet Thompson is an English singer and guitarist known both for his work with Manfred Mann's Earth Band, specifically for his lead vocal on the classic hit "Blinded By the Light" and for his solo accomplishments.
"Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)" is a folk-rock song written and first recorded by Bob Dylan in 1967 during the Basement Tapes sessions. The song's first release was in January 1968 as "Mighty Quinn" in a version by the British band Manfred Mann, which became a great success. It has been recorded by a number of performers, often under the "Mighty Quinn" title.
Shona Laing is a New Zealand musician. Laing had several folk hits in her native country and in the 80's became internationally popular for her alternative music, most notably "(Glad I'm) Not a Kennedy" and "Soviet Snow" which was based on the Chernobyl disaster. Various alternative radio stations in the US such as WLIR played songs from her "South" album and she became internationally known. Laing contributed to Manfred Mann's Earth Band album Somewhere in Afrika and contributed music to, and appeared in, the 1985 action film Shaker Run.
David Flett is a Scottish rock guitarist, best known for performing with Manfred Mann's Earth Band and Thin Lizzy.
Masque is the thirteenth studio album by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, released in 1987 on Virgin Records. Chris Thompson had left the band after their previous album Criminal Tango and the band was now at three permanent members. After this album the Earth Band name was retired until 1991.
Mann Alive is a live double album released in 1998 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band.
The Best Of Manfred Mann's Earth Band Re-Mastered Volume II is a compilation album released in 2001 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band.
The Best Of Manfred Mann's Earth Band Re-Mastered is a compilation album released in 1999 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The title of track 4 on the compilation, "Blinded by the Light" is errantly printed as "Blinded by the Night".
Criminal Tango is the twelfth studio album released in 1986 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band with Chris Thompson. Founding guitarist/vocalist Mick Rogers returned to the band for this album and is still an active member. The new bassist Steve Kinch joined the band only when parts of the album were already recorded. Kinch therefore shared the bass parts on this album with bassists Durban Betancourt-Laverde and John Giblin. This is their first album for the Virgin Records label after eleven years with Bronze Records.
Budapest Live is an album released in 1984 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The album was recorded on the "Somewhere in Europe" tour in 1983 in support of the "Somewhere in Afrika" album, and despite its title, also featured recordings from the Dominion Theatre in London. It was the final Earth Band album to appear on the Bronze label and also the last album recorded with Steve Waller and Matt Irving.
Angel Station is the ninth album released by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, released in 1979. Several line-up changes were made for this album. Ex-Wings drummer Geoff Britton replaced founding drummer Chris Slade and Steve Waller replaced guitarist Dave Flett. Britton left the band soon after due to illness, and was replaced by John Lingwood. Also in the line-up were Pat King on bass guitar from the then current line-up and Chris Thompson.
Odds & Sods – Mis-takes & Out-takes is a four-CD box set compilation album released in 2005 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band. It features alternate takes, outtakes and other assorted rarities, recorded over the 35-year career of the band.
Matt Irving was a Scottish musician.
"Demolition Man" is a song written by Sting and performed by Grace Jones as the A-side of a 1981 single. Sting's band, the Police, later released their rendition of the song on their album Ghost in the Machine. The lyrics to Demolition Man are featured in the art book RadioEYES: Great Rock Lyrics Set to Art. The song was illustrated by John Taylor Dismukes.
Anderson Amos Temba "Andy" Qunta is an English singer, songwriter, composer and musician. In a career spanning more than 40 years, Qunta is best known as the keyboardist of the Australian rock band Icehouse from between 1982 and 1988. As a popular musician, he has been influenced by artists including the Who, Cliff Richard, Jimi Hendrix, Genesis, Manfred Mann, Yes, Todd Rundgren and Queen.
"The Runner", also called simply "Runner", is a song written by Canadian rock musician Ian Thomas, his version released in 1981 on the album of the same name. It was also recorded by Manfred Mann's Earth Band, a group known for making hits of reworked cover songs, and released as a single in 1984. It reached number 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US.