Let me clear up some misconceptions about this a cappella group, started by Joseph Shabalala more than forty years ago. First of all, there are no ladies in the group, a fact that will be immediately evident the first time you hear the powerful voices of these ten men. "Ladysmith" is the name of Shabalal's rural hometown, "Black" is a reference to oxen, and "Mambazo" is the Zulu word for axe. The name is meant to convey the idea that the group's singing is so tight, polished, and powerful that they can chop down any rivals. In fact, they were banned from local competitions, though they were able to perform as non-competitors. They came to international fame with the release of Paul Simon's Graceland. Their 1987 Grammy award was only the first, and they received half a dozen nominations in following years.

Dave Love, the president of Heads Up Recordings, has been attempting to expose otherwise hidden artists to the world, and this recording is part of the label's increasingly popular African series. Here, Ladysmith Black Mambazo's powerfully rich voices are beautifully and subtly augmented by the thirteen string players of the English Chamber Orchestra. "Zulu goes classical" is an appropriate subtitle for this unique release. The selections alternate between classic Ladysmith songs and classical masterpieces such as "Amazing Grace," "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring," and Mozart's "Ave Verum Corpus".

Not one strident note can be heard from any vocalist or instrumentalist on this very special recording. Harmony and melody reign, even though most of the songs are not sung in English. The Zulu language is pleasing, almost soothing. Though severely taxing my memory, the group reminds me of the vocalists backing Harry Belafonte many years ago.

In my two-channel system, there seems to be no way for the audio quality to be better. The state-of-the-art recording surrounds me almost half way. Hopefully, the surround-sound SACD release of this album will completely surround me. Many of you will be able to hear the group live, as they are currently touring in the U.S. and Canada. If you cannot get to hear them in concert, this album comes surprisingly close to that experience.

-Karl Lozier