Richard Charles Rodgers was an American composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most well-known American composers of the 20th century, and his compositions had a significant influence on popular music.
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is a song originally written and recorded by Solomon Linda under the title "Mbube" for the South African Gallo Record Company in 1939. Linda's original was written in Zulu, while the English version's lyrics were written by George David Weiss.
Mbube is a form of South African vocal music, made famous by the South African group Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The word mbube means "lion" in Zulu. Traditionally performed a cappella, the members of the group are male although a few groups have a female singer. In this form, groups of voices singing homophonically in rhythmic unison are employed to create intricate harmonies and textures.
Isicathamiya is a singing style that originated from the South African Zulus. In European understanding, a cappella is also used to describe this form of singing.
Henry "Hank" Medress was an American singer and record producer, best known for his taking part in the American band The Tokens.
The Tokens were an American doo-wop band and record production company group from Brooklyn, New York City. The group has had four top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, all in the 1960s, their biggest being the chart-topping 1961 hit single "The Lion Sleeps Tonight". "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" borrowed heavily from the 1939 song "Mbube" by South African singer Solomon Linda. They are also known for having included at first Neil Sedaka, who later pursued a solo career.
The Zulu people are a South African ethnic group. Many Zulu musicians have become a major part of South African music, creating a huge influence in the music industry. A number of Zulu-folk derived styles have become well known across South Africa and abroad. Zulu music has dominated many genres in South Africa, especially house music, folk music, acapella, choral music and gospel. In fact, some of the most popular songs from South Africa are in Zulu.
George David Weiss was an American songwriter and arranger, who was a president of the Songwriters Guild of America.
Solomon Popoli Linda OIG, also known as Solomon Ntsele, was a South African musician, singer and composer best known as the composer of the song "Mbube", which later became the pop music success "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", and gave its name to the Mbube style of isicathamiya a cappella later popularized by Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
Hugo E. Peretti was an American songwriter, trumpeter, and record producer.
Rian Malan is a South African author, journalist, documentarist and songwriter of Afrikaner descent. He first rose to prominence as the author of the memoir My Traitor's Heart (1990), which, like the bulk of his work, deals with South African society in a historical and contemporary perspective and focuses on racial relations. As a journalist, he has written for major newspapers in South Africa, Britain and the United States.
François Verster is an independent South African film director and documentary maker.
"A Swingin' Safari" is a 1962 instrumental composed by Bert Kaempfert, using his alias, Bernd Bertie. It was recorded by Kaempfert on Polydor Records and released in the United States on Decca Records. The song features a distinctive main theme played on the piccolo as substitute for the traditional tin whistle, and a trumpet solo by Manfred "Fred" Moch. The prominent bass line is by Ladi Geisler. Kaempfert's recording of the song did not reach the charts, but a near-simultaneous cover by Billy Vaughn reached #13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 on the Easy Listening chart.
General Friedrich Kühn was a General der Panzertruppe in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany.
June Richmond was an American jazz singer and actor.
"Homeless" is a 1986 song by Paul Simon and Ladysmith Black Mambazo lead singer Joseph Shabalala.
A Lion's Trail is a 2002 documentary film by François Verster about the rights for the popular song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", also known as "Wimoweh", "Wimba Way" or "Awimbawe", a song written and recorded by the South African shepherd and singer of Zulu origin Solomon Linda with the Evening Birds as "Mbube".
ReMastered: The Lion's Share is a 2019 documentary film about the search by Rian Malan, a South African journalist, for the original writers of the famous song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight".
Journey of Dreams is an album by the South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo, released in 1988. Journey of Dreams also served as the title of a film about frontman Joseph Shabalala, directed by David Lister and shot around the same time. Shabalala chose the title in part to describe his journey from his birthplace of Ladysmith to international success. It also refers to his desire to get the sound he heard in his dreams on to record.
