![]() ![]() Family members say the melody was inspired by Linda's childhood chore of herding cattle and keeping predatory lions at bay.ĬONTRERAS: The pastoral setting of the song is at odds with its complicated legal legacy. The original was written and recorded in 1939 by Solomon Linda, a South African songwriter. This recording is by Ladysmith Black Mambazo with Taj Mahal. NPR's Felix Contreras has this report.įELIX CONTRERAS: The song was originally called Mbube. It's a story that goes back to the 1930's, a story about a song with a familiar chorus and a storied background that came to be known as The Lion Sleeps Tonight. The eighth notes that are written in both the opening and ending of the song are not sung as straight eighth notes.The family of an African singer and songwriter will finally be seeing millions of dollars in back royalties. RHYTHMS The Lion Sleeps Tonight is written in cut time 2/2, giving it a driving feel. First part solo voice, second part chorus joins in Three verses, each verse ending with melisma on the word “Wee” followed by “ooh wim-o-weh) Ending: Two part ending. STRUCTURE Opening: Two part opening, each part repeated. Other versions have been arranged and covered in many different styles which were more or less continuous with prior versions. THE TOKENS: SUCCESS Although initially reluctant to sing the new version (they liked The Weavers’ version), The Token’s version scored number one on the Billboard Hot 100. This new version contained new English lyrics for the second and third verses, and the soprano voice of opera singer Anita Darian. They hired George David Weiss, a musician and lyricist, to create a new arrangement this arrangement was covered by a group called The Tokens, and became famous in its own right. ![]() NEW LYRICS By 1961, two RCA producers, Hugo Peretti and Luigi Creatore, heard about this song. This exposure led to other cover-versions, including a folk arrangement by The Kingston Trio. ![]() PETE SEEGER AND THE WEAVERS The song was recorded as an adapted version with brass and string orchestra and chorus as a 78 single entitled “Wimoweh.” Seeger and his group approximated the original song’s chorus of “Uyimbube”, Zulu for “You are a lion.” This version became one of Billboard’s top ten and was a regular in their repertoire. The Lion Sleeps Tonight is featured in the Disney movie “The Lion King.” INITIAL REACTION: SUCCESS The song became popular as soon as it was marketed, selling about 100,000 copies in the first 9 years of it’s release (1939-1948), making Linda a success and becoming well-known in South Africa. The Lion Sleeps Tonight was first performed by Linda and his musical group “The Evening Birds” in the 1920’s for the South African Gallo Record Company during 1939 in Johannesburg (in Africa). EARLY BEGINNINGS The Lion Sleeps Tonight was composed by Solomon Linda, a South African singer of Zulu origin, who worked for the Gallo Record Company in Johannesburg as a cleaner and record packer. Mbube is also another term for isicathamiya, a style of a cappella music popularized by Ladysmith Black Mambazo. ORIGIN OF THE NAME The Lion Sleeps Tonight was originally titled “Mbube” and is also known as “Wimoweh.” The word “Mbube” is Zulu for lion. LION SLEEPS TONIGHT MY PURPOSE My purpose in using this song as an example is because of the musical fusion that is found in this song, as well as the rhythmic structure. ![]()
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