Shanti-Lo Back in Swing of Things
After a long absence, Shanti-Lo was back in the swing of things at the Satchmo’s Jazz Cafe on Friday night.
But his show nearly failed to live up to expectations may be due to the chilly weather that night. Even the club itself was not so crowded, as it is usually the case on Friday nights.
Revellers only started trickling in after midnight. Shanti-Lo did not captivate the crowd like he did at the same club at the end of 2005. This time the stage was not set for the big show.
He only started performing at 1:00 am and was joined on the stage by women of the song, Nono and Nnunu. But during the first set, Shanti-Lo was not at his best and was even seen shouting at some people to get out of his view. Even the sound system was not up to scratch. Dressed in a black suit, he just did not seem to be in the mood to perform.
It did not come as a surprise that after only a few songs, he went for a break.
Shanti-Lo and his band came back to the stage after about an hour. But this time, Shanti-Lo was in his element. He attracted revellers to the stage as he did his favourite songs Boloi and Tshiwele. Nnunu delighted the revellers with her dancing as they did some of the tracks.
When in his element, Shanti-Lo is in his own league. As compared to his peers, Shanti-Lo is far much advanced when it comes to music. He is unlike many young musicians not into kwaito. He is into township jazz and he is following in the footsteps of the likes of South Africa songbird, Miriam Makeba.
During the Friday show, he continued to belt out tracks from his album and also sang cover songs.
Shanti-Lo went for another break at 3:00 am which makes people to wonder when do promoters want revellers to sleep. Why is it that the shows do not start early?
Last time promoter Steve Raman sent away jazz sensation Puna Gabasiane from one of his nightclubs because she came at 12:15 am. So why should a show start at 1:00 am this time around. Shanti-Lo and members of his band had been waiting at the club for more than two hours.
Earlier on, Jazz Impromptu warmed up the stage for Shanti-Lo. Jazz Impromptu, which performed at the same venue last weekend, is also his backing group. Some of the members of Jazz Impromptu include veteran guitarist Zakes Gwaze and Rampholo “Chamza’” Molefhe on keyboards. The only disappointment about this group is that they do not have their own compositions despite the fact that they are among the music ‘madala’ who should be showing the youngsters how it is done.
Since the beginning of this year, Satchmo’s club has not been hosting many live bands. The club has only started to do live shows and one of the artistes who is expected to perform there is Gabasiane.
It was only last year that the club staged a number of live shows featuring local and South African artistes. One of the prominent artistes who featured at the club is Lister Boleseng and also the Norway-based Banjo Mosele performed at the Gaborone West joint. South African acts included Sipho “Hot Stix” Mabuse and legendary guitarist Louis Mhlanga.
The management of the club is working on a line-up for the festive season.
Via Mmegi
