Bert Kaempfert & His Orchestra - Good Life Music - Safari Swings Again Vol. 10

1. Happy Safari
2. Soft Shoe Safari
3. Limbo Lady
4. Tom Hark
5. Angelica
6. Sugar Bush
7. Baby Elephant Walk
8. Pata Pata
9. Monkey Shuffle
10. Mombasa Rock
11. Walking with Fips
12. The Way I Love You
13. Seven Up
14. Take Me
15. Zambesi
16. Tootie Flutie

Safari Swings Again

This album was recorded in the Polydor Studio in Hamburg at the beginning of October 1976 by the usual recording engineer, Peter Klemt. As the title suggests, Bert Kaempfert intentionally wanted to follow in the footsteps of his legendary LP A SWINGIN' SAFARI from 1962 with his such as Afrikaan Beat, Happy Trumpeter and the title number A Swingin' Safari which brought him success all over the world and two gold discs. The typical Kaempfert rhythm had been enhanced by a sensational sound coming from the flutes: here Bert Kaempfert oriented himself on the sound produced by blowing penny whistles in a special way as found in South African Kwela music whose style had been influenced by American swing and was very popular with young black people in the townships. "At the rehearsals, Bert Kaempfert tried to get the piccolos to imitate the sound of penny whistles. That was real hard work! But at last he heard what he wanted and Bert was really satisfied to have captured the charm of the whistles in 'his' piccolos," reminisced bass guitarist Ladi Geisler.

This unique sound of the flutes is also heard aplenty in SAFARI SWINGS AGAIN, and is accompanied by a larger orchestra than that of the 1962 production. Further tonal attractions are provided in lengthy solos by Ack van Rooyen (trumpet) and Jiggs Whigham (trombone). The nine original compositions by Bert Kaempfert and Herbert Rehbein are complemented by the delightful Tom Hark with its improvisatory tossing back and forth between the trumpet and trombone, Pata Pata, a top-ten hit from the South African-born Miriam Makeba, and the traditional Sugar Bush, taken from the South African song collection "Songs from the Veld" and performed by such great artists as Doris Day and Frankie Laine. And last but not least we have Henry Mancini's Baby Elephant Walk from the film "Hatari!" starring John Wayne, which, bathed in Bert Kaempfert's "Afrikaan Sound," takes on a whole new interesting dimension.

Fourteen years lie between these two LP productions - each of which having its own particular attraction. And what is more natural and fitting than to include in this CD three delightful bonus tracks, Take Me, Zambesi and Tootie Flutie, from the first "Safari" production?!

(Bert Kaempfert Music, Hamburg)