When artistes repackage past songs

You sit at this pub in town and as the DJ waits for his usual session to start, he takes a walk down memory lane playing songs such as Cherry Oh Baby, Red Red Wine and Can’t Help Falling in Love by UB40 and many others.

As agreed by many these songs still rock and as a matter of fact they have stood the taste of time.

Unfortunately, just like many others not many of the current crop of fans know that these chat busters were originally done by some other artistes and UB 40’s efforts were only a rendition.

In fact these hits catapulted the band to stardom, and the same lines still enjoy massive air play on radio stations across the world.

‘Red Red Wine’ was written and first recorded by Neil Diamond whereas ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love with You’ was originally recorded by Pop legend, Elvis Presley.

In Tanzania the birth of Bongo Flava in the late 90s came with its fair share of innovations which included a new wave of young artistes taking over from the old guards.

Artistes such as Mr Paul, Solo Thang, Lady Jay Dee, Kwanza Unit, James Dandu and others were out there to bring change in the nascent industry; they were on a mission of keeping the classic modern.

Mr Paul who rose to prominence with ‘Ndani Ya Love’ bolstered his position in Bongo Flava when he reworked Marijani Rajabu’s  ‘Zuwena’, the song went on to become an instant hit throughout the country.

To the young it was something new that they had never heard and to the old, it brought back nostalgic memories from their youth.

Kwanza Unit prior to this had come with a rap version of King Kiki’s ‘Msafiri’, a song that equally made the doubters sit back and take notice of the young generation that was eager to take over the baton.

Lady Jaydee in her debut album carried one of Marijani Rajabu’s all time classics ‘Siwema’, it was a marvel  as the classic had been reborn as it became one of the first Bongo Flava songs to be played in night clubs.

Though roles in the song had been altered from Marijani’s version, she had without doubt hit the right knots and even later as she took on another classic Muhogo wa Jang’ombe by Bi Kidude, she was at home.

To some it looked like it was an easy way of getting to the top for a struggling artiste, it wasn’t an easy task as such because by taking on classic works from legends such as Bi Kidude, they had proved that they had what it takes to succeed.

Commenting on one of his works that had been redone by Kwanza Unit, rumba maestro King Kiki said it was an honour that the young men felt that his contribution was still valid.

“These lads came to me and asked if it was ok for them to redo ‘Msafiri’, all I had to do was to give them permission to go ahead and I must admit that I am glad with their work,” he said.

Whereas some pessimists see this as a sign of idleness, some pundits say the courage and ability to make a great song even greater is what matters as long as it sticks to the identity of its original composer.

 “Some songs become even more popular once they are reworked, as long as the messages intended are not distorted in any way,” argues John Kitime, a renowned musician with The Kilimanjaro Band.

According to uncle Kitime, fusing the old style with the current, has made such songs become major hits, regardless of how old they were.

“Technological advancements which brought in the CD and other forms of storage have made the quality of songs clearer and therefore they have improved the songs,” he says.

To him it was actually a surprise that many young artistes are showing interest in taking a walk into the past as a way to pay tribute to the artistes.

“When Lady Jay Dee reworked Siwema by Marijani, not only did she sing it well, but also paid him tribute, much to the delight of his family,” says Kitime.

In memory of fellow fallen Bad Boy Records artiste Christopher “The Notorious B.I.G,” Wallace Puff Daddy, Faith Evans and 112, went to the studio and reworked on the samples of the 1983 number one hit song “Every Breath You Take” by The Police with an interpolation chorus sung by Faith Evans.

In their debut album in 1996 the Fugees had a hit song called Ready or Not a 1968 song by The Delfonics, produced by Thom Bell; the same song had been redone by The Jackson 5.

But even then there is a procedure to follow and not something that can be done in a hurry as Lufunyo Mvungi, Chief Executive Officer of 41 Records puts it.

According to him, there has to be an agreement between the artiste who wishes to redo a song, and the legal owner of the copyright or their representatives.

 “Normally, one must go through proper channels, whereas anyone wishing to rework a song, they have to reach an agreement with whoever owns it,” says Lufunyo.

He, however, agrees that there are artistes who have remained tight lipped even when their songs got reworked even minus their permission.

Mr Rajabu Zomboko, a music analyst based in Dar es Salaam accentuates this saying it has now become customary for artistes to  reach an understanding when one needs to redo a song, though some have ended up in wrangles, especially when one decides to use the wrong channels to satisfy his desires.

“As we speak, Hamza Kalala has allowed Lady Jay Dee to redo ‘Nimekusamahe’, which means they have agreed on certain terms, otherwise Kalala would not have allowed Jay Dee to take his song,” he says.

According to Mr Zomboko, such agreements do not involve any exchange of money, but the owner of the song may reiterate on the need of preserving the origin of his work even when it is redone, and also acknowledge where the work came from.