The second is that the (mostly wordless) falsetto vocals were improvised by Solomon Linda (over wonderfully sonorous and rhythmically compelling bass riffs) but it was not until near the end (about 2:22) of this, the third, take that he was inspired to produce the melody that is now universally associated with the words “In the jungle, the mighty jungle, the lion sleeps tonight”. The Lion Sleeps Tonight is a pop song made popular by doo-wop band The Tokens. Rather like King Arthur, there was a folk belief that Shaka is not dead but only sleeping and one day he will return to liberate his people from their colonial oppressors. The first is that the “lion” referred to in the song is none other than the famous Zulu king Shaka Zulu (the subject of this famous poem) who acquired legendary status after his death. There are two other fascinating things about this tune. The song was also used in the Disney film The Lion King without any royalties being paid, leading to a lawsuit brought by Linda’s surviving relatives (which was settled out of court). Solomon Linda sold the rights to the Gallo record company for just ten shillings in 1949 so never received significant income from the worldwide sales. All three songs (Mbube, Wimoweh, and The Lion Sleeps Tonight). Since then it has had more cover versions than I’ve had hot dinners, mostly with an English title The Lion Sleeps Tonight or Wimoweh, a not-entirely-accurate phonetic attempt to render the isiZulu phrase uyimbube (“you are a lion”) which occurs in the song. In 1994 Disney covered The Tokens version of the song for their film, The Lion King. The song Mbube by South African singer and composer Solomon Linda was first performed in 1939 and was an immediate hit in his native land. Eventually Mbube was used by Disney as part of the Lion King soundtrack. Albert Stanton, George David Weiss, Luigi Creatore, Hugo Peretti & Solomon Linda. To cut a long story short I found this, and it’s been in my head ever since so I thought I’d share it here. Wimoweh or The Lion Sleeps Tonight hit the Billboard charts, and spawned more adaptations by other African and international Artists including The Tokens, Miriam Makeba and Jimmy Dorsey. The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Wimoweh) Credits. I couldn’t identify some of the sounds so when I came inside I started googling about for various combinations of “birds singing in the evening”. This exciting resource provides two sides of basic melodies, chords progressions and rhythms for the song, In The Jungle (Wimoweh), as heard in Disneys. The other evening it was warm enough for me to sit out in the garden, listening to the birdsong until it got dark. The history of The Lion Sleeps tonightįor many the song was best known as a pop hit released by The Tokens in 1961, with lyrics written by George David Weiss, but it was actually inspired by the song ‘ Mbube’ written, recorded and performed by South African musician Solomon Linda.And now for something completely different… The relatives of Solomon Linda has endured decades of heartache over the song that has been covered countless times, used in Disney’s film and its hugely successful stage musical, earning piles of money for everyone, except them. The instantly hummable song is once again performed by meerkat-warthog duo Timon and Pumbaa (voiced by Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen in the remake) in a lighthearted moment, but for the family of the man who actually wrote the song back in the 1930s, it’s likely to be a bittersweet moment. Upendi (From the Lion King 2 Simbas Pride) Gene Miller. Jon Favreau’s photorealistic version will feature all of the original songs, including some new ones, but the onscreen return of ‘ The Lion Sleeps Tonight’ comes with a lot of baggage. Listen to Mbube (Wimoweh-The Lion Sleeps Tonight) by Ladysmith Black Mambazo, 1854 Shazams.
The Lion King's song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" has a controversial history (Credit: Disney)ĭisney’s latest blockbuster, its flashy new The Lion King remake, is coming to cinemas 25 years after the original animated feature was released.
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