Sixty (Hugh Masekela album) explained

Sixty
Type:studio
Artist:Hugh Masekela
Cover:Sixty - album cover.jpg
Border:yes
Released:June 13, 2000
Studio:Down Town Studio, Johannesburg, South Africa, BOP Recording Studios, Mmabatho, South Africa.
Genre:Jazz
Length:01:10:07
Label:Shanachie Records Shanachie 5070
Producer:Don Laka
Chronology:Hugh Masekela
Prev Title:The Best of Hugh Masekela on Novus
Prev Year:1999
Next Title:Grazing in the Grass
Next Year:2001

Sixty is a 2000 studio album by South African jazz trumpeter Hugh Masekela.[1] [2] It was recorded in Johannesburg, South Africa, and released via the Shanachie label.

Reception

Adam Greenberg of AllMusic stated: "Presumably to commemorate his 60th birthday, Hugh Masekela released an album of primarily African works. The album starts with a tribute to Fela, a kindred spirit in African horn playing and a friend of Masekela. After that, it moves on through a number of traditional songs and trips down memory lane... From time to time, the music seems to slip into something of a contemporary Harry Belafonte-esque sound (which perhaps might not be completely surprising, given the repeated collaborations between Belafonte and Miriam Makeba, coupled with Masekela's marriage to Makeba). Despite (or due to) any such similarities that may arise, this is international pop at its best."[3]

Chris Wodskou of Exclaim! wrote: "Hugh Masekela’s 60th birthday is cause for celebration, but perhaps the best way to observe this milestone would be to reflect back on his storied career, not to pick up the CD that commemorates his birthday. A giant in the greatly underrated South African jazz scene of the ’60s who went on to international renown in world music circles in the ’70s and ’80s, Masekela’s latest has him in a somewhat complacent frame of mind, keeping the heat on low and his signature funky undertones tepid."[4]

Notes and References

  1. Book: Mojapelo . Max . Beyond Memory: Recording the History, Moments and Memories of South African Music . 2008 . . 978-1-920299-28-6 . 285 . 7 June 2021 . en.
  2. Web site: Hugh Masekela - Biography. Amoeba Music. amoeba.com. 13 July 2017.
  3. Web site: Sixty. Allmusic. allmusic.com. 30 May 2017.
  4. Web site: Wodscou . Chris . Hugh Masekela Sixty . exclaim.ca . 4 May 2019 . en-ca . November 1, 1999.