Olugendo
WOMAD Select (1999, 55 mins)
Olugendo is simply beautiful, although it’s not simple at all. Bernard Kabanda was a master of kadongo kamu music from Uganda. That literally means ‘just a small guitar’ – and that was all he needed.
Holding his acoustic guitar in a uniquely horizontal position, he somehow managed to play a bassline, chords, melody and tap a rhythm with his elbow all at the same time, the parts interweaving with mind-bending polyrhythms that makes it difficult to believe it all comes from one man. The real mastery is that it doesn’t sound complicated; it sounds like the easiest thing in the world. On top of it all are his cheery voice and delightful whistling. Kabanda’s songs are so sincere and often dark, but they’re filled with a cheeky humour that gets you smiling along, even if your Luganda is a little rusty.
Sadly, Kabanda died soon after this record was released in 1999. He was only 40 years old. We’re very lucky that he managed to get a slice of his wonderful music recorded before then. This is a truly and utterly joyous album, and it deserves to be much more widely heard.