I've been wondering for years which of these two music legends is superior.
Miriam Makeba:
- 3 masterpieces (Gauteng; A Luta Continua; Welela)
- 5 excellent works (Mam Ndiyalila; Meet Me At the River; Goodbye Poverty; Jolinkomo; Olili)
Letta Mbulu:
- 1 landmark (Jikijela)
- 3 masterpieces (Not Yet Uhuru; Nomathemba; Zimkile)
- 6 excellent works (Music In the Air; Ndi-Phendule; Buza; I Need Your Love; Maru a pula; Kube)
My simple rating system gives Makeba 11 points and Mbuli gets a 15. That's a scary number since it would mean she's superior to Salif Keita! This I should revisit.
[sidenote] Oh, and I'm sure there's a lot of Miriam's work that I haven't trawled through. Either that or Miriam Makeba is, though excellent, is overrated, since I suspect she becomes a common answer to the question "who's the greatest female South African musician?". That's the answer that I also once had until I savoured much of Letta Mbulu's work and walked away amazed.