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Cameroon: Donny Elwood Takes New Album & Style Across the Country
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The Post (Buea)
OPINION
25 April 2008
Posted to the web 25 April 2008
Walter Wilson Nana
Donny Elwood has ended his tour of Cameroon. The tour opened Thursday, April 3 at the Alliance Franco-Camerounaise, AFC, Concert Hall in Garoua.
Thursday, April 24, the crowd-puller put the cap on the tour at the AFC Concert Hall in Bamenda. From the reaction of Elwood during his Buea stopover, the recent national outing has been largely successful.
Elwood's 7-province tour of Cameroon, which also took him to Maroua, Ngaoundere, Douala and Dschang and sponsored principally by the French Cooperation Agency, was a blend and an opportunity to showcase the artist's new musical style christened Off Metaphore and his new album entitled Offertorium.
At the AFC Concert Hall in Buea, Elwood's look was usual. The black cow-boy cap was well placed on his head, his transparent pair of glasses fitted in front of his eyes, his immaculate white shirt was tucked into his black pair of trouser and his nice black pair of shoes to make him complete.
No! He wouldn't be complete without his inseparable guitar. Now set to do what he knows how to do best, Elwood searched into his touch of the Afro-rhythms, rooted in the specialised cords of the guitar, the Bikutsi and Pédalé rhythms.
The fans will sing with him, especially in the very popular tracks of his previous albums. These include; Nomad' Balade, Nez Gro, Ecoute, Chacun pour soi, Annabela, pygmée, Salomé, Cousin militaire, Akao manga and the list goes on. The lyrics of Elwood's songs carry with them the daily issues and affairs of the African traditional setting and the urban Africa. Talk about poverty, hatred, general suffering and also love.
Considered to be the leading poet-singer in Cameroon after the passing away of Francis Bebey, Elwood injects good doses of humour in his poetry. His fans aren't indifferent to this. They will joyfully react to the wordings as he sings out with a lot of dexterity. He sings in a French language that is well polished and what he calls the Bantou language.
The maestro wouldn't be that successful if he does it alone. With him is a band of five professionals. These include; Steve Ndzana Tedede at the bass drums, Thierry Sandio Nembot, the pianist, Gabriel Mayo, the solo guitarist, Jean Paul Lietche does the bass guitar and Jean Paul Amombo at the percussion.
Elwood told this reporter he is done with the preparation of Offertorium. However, final touches are been made at the level of mass production. He would not give any date for the official release. While we wait for that, Offertorium, once more reiterates some of the themes Elwood is pre-occupied with in his artistic career. Think about the haves and the have not, man's inhumanity to man, the love for one another and more.
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An album with an eclectic approach, Offertorium is composed of ten tracks, enriched with jazzy, bluesy and other rhymic influences from the Bikutsi and Pédalé.
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