''Colonial Man'' is the eighteenth studio album by South African trumpeter

Hugh Masekela Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and f ...

. It was recorded in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and released on LP and eight-track cassette on 30 January 1976 via the

Casablanca Records Casablanca Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Republic Records. Under its founder Neil Bogart, Casablanca was most successful during the disco era of the mid to late 1970s. The label focuses ...

label. The album's title song "Colonial Man", "

Vasco Da Gama Vasco da Gama ( , ; – 24 December 1524), was a Portuguese explorer and nobleman who was the Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India, first European to reach India by sea. Da Gama's first voyage (1497–1499) was the first to link ...

" and "

Cecil Rhodes Cecil John Rhodes ( ; 5 July 185326 March 1902) was an English-South African mining magnate and politician in southern Africa who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony from 1890 to 1896. He and his British South Africa Company founded th ...

" express African

anti-colonial Decolonization is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby imperial nations establish and dominate foreign territories, often overseas. The meanings and applications of the term are disputed. Some scholars of decolon ...

sentiments. At the time of its release, it was referred to variously by reviewers as a

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

and a

protest A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration, or remonstrance) is a public act of objection, disapproval or dissent against political advantage. Protests can be thought of as acts of cooperation in which numerous people cooperate ...

album.

Reception

A reviewer of

Dusty Groove Dusty Groove is a Chicago-based Online music store, online Record shop, record store specializing in music release, new and vintage jazz, funk, Soul music, soul, Hip hop music, hip-hop, World music, world, Rare groove, rare, collectible, and vi ...

wrote: "A later album from Hugh Masekela – but still plenty darn hip, way more so than most of the other artists on the Casablanca label at the time! Hugh's South African groove is still very firmly in place here – mixed with a slightly warmer LA soul sound, but expanded with loads of great arrangements that get a lot more complicated than before – and which bring in some great keyboard and percussion bits. Sivuca makes a wonderful appearance on 1st and 3rd tracks – using that blend of voice and accordion that sounds so great – and the whole record's got a depth and sense of soul that you'd never guess from silly title and cover!"

Track listing

Personnel

*Art direction, design – Gribbitt!, Stephen Lumel *Backing Vocals – Deborah McDuffie (tracks: 1 3 6), Maeretha Stewart (tracks: 1 3 6),

Patti Austin Patti Austin (born August 10, 1950) is an American Grammy Award-winning R&B, pop, and jazz singer and songwriter best known for " Baby, Come to Me", her 1982 duet with James Ingram, which topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 after its re-release ...

(tracks: 1 3 6) *Bass, vocals – Yaw Opoku *Director –

Stewart Levine Stewart Levine (born 1946) is an American record producer. He has worked with many artists such as The Crusaders, Minnie Riperton, Lionel Richie, Simply Red, Hugh Masekela, Huey Lewis and the News, Patti LaBelle, Sly Stone, Boy George, Oleta Ada ...

*Drums (traps) – Papa Frankie Todd *Electric piano – Adaloja Gboyega *Accordion and voice - Sivuca (track 1) *Engineer – Rik Pekkonen *Guitar – "Jagger" Botchway *Guitar, vocals – Stanley Todd Kwesi *Mastering –

Bernie Grundman Bernie Grundman (born 16 December 1943, Minneapolis) is an American audio engineer. He is most known for his mastering work and his studio, Bernie Grundman Mastering, which he opened in 1984 in Hollywood. The studio, which includes engineers Chr ...

*Photography – David Alexander *Saxophone, percussion, vocals – O. J. Ekemode *Shekere, percussion, vocals – Odinga "Guy" Warren *Talking drum, percussion, vocals – Asante *Trumpet, vocals – Hugh Masekela

Re-releases

As of 2018, the album has not been released in its entirety on CD or as digital downloads. Compositions "Colonial Man" and "A Song for Brazil" were re-released on CD in 1998 on

Verve Records Verve Records is an active American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ca ...

as part of '' The Boy's Doin' It''. "A Song for Brazil", "Colonial Man" and "Witch Doctor" feature on the 2018 posthumous compilation of original recordings: '' Masekela '66–'76''.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1976 albums Hugh Masekela albums Casablanca Records albums Cultural depictions of Vasco da Gama Cultural depictions of Cecil Rhodes