Anniversary of King Cetshwayo Kampande's Death

“A half loaf is better than no bread” - Zulu proverb

(King Cetshwayo Kampande)

King Cetshwayo Kampande was born on an unknown date in 1826 in Eshowe, Zulu Kingdom, South Africa. In 1856 he defeated and killed his younger brother in battle. He killed his mother and became effective ruler of the Zulu people. He killed any opposition to the throne. In 1873 he was installed as king. He expanded his army and equipped them with muskets.

(Kampande in 1878)

He also banned missionaries from his land. In 1879 the Zulu war began with the British against Kampande’s forces.

(Kampande in 1879)

In 1882 a Zulu civil war broke out between 2 Zulu factions. Kampande was later captured and exiled to Cape Town and then to London.

(Kampande in 1882)

In 1883 he returned to Zululand. When he returned he was wounded in the ongoing Zulu civil war. On February 8th, 1884 King Cetshwayo Kampande died of his wounds in Eshowe, South Africa. He was about 58 years old.

(Kampande in 1884)

Today is the 133rd anniversary of his death. Take time to remember this great king today.   

Anniversary of Henri Christophe's Death

“The donkey sweats so the horse can be decorated with lace” - Haitian Proverb

(Henri Christophe)

Henri Christophe was born as Christopher Henry on October 6th, 1767 in an unknown place in Grenada. He was born a slave. After being born he was brought to the northern part of Saint Domingue. In 1779 he served with French forces as a drummer boy. His regiment went to assist the United States during the U.S. Revolutionary War.

(A statue of Christophe)

As an adult he worked as a mason, sailor, stable hand, waiter, and billiard maker. He worked at and managed a hotel in Cap-Français. As a young man he gained his freedom. In 1791 he became a soldier in the Haitian Revolution. He fought with Toussaint Louverture against the French.

(A drawing of Christophe)

In 1802 he was promoted to general. In 1805 Christophe and Jean Jacques Dessalines mobilized troops to kick out the remaining French troops in the Dominican Republic. They set fire to the town of Santo Domingo. In 1806 he learned of an assassination attempt against Jean Jacques Dessalines but did not tell him. In 1807 he became the president of Haiti in the North.

(A drawing of Christophe)

In 1811 he declared the northern part of Haiti a kingdom. Christophe built 6 châteaux, 8 palaces and the massive Citadelle Laferrière, on a mountain near Milot. For agricultural production he chose to enforce corvée plantation work. He was unpopular during his reign.

(A drawing of Christophe)

On October 8th, 1820 Henri Christophe committed suicide due to risk of a possible coup in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. He was 53 years old.

(A statue of Christophe)

Today is the 196th anniversary of his death. Take time to remember this great leader today.

(P.S. sorry for the late post)

Happy Birthday Henri Christophe

“The donkey sweats so the horse can be decorated with lace” - Haitian Proverb

(Henri Christophe)

Henri Christophe was born as Christopher Henry on October 6th, 1767 in an unknown place in Grenada. He was born a slave. After being born he was brought to the northern part of Saint Domingue. In 1779 he served with French forces as a drummer boy. His regiment went to assist the United States during the U.S. Revolutionary War.

(A statue of Christophe)

As an adult he worked as a mason, sailor, stable hand, waiter, and billiard maker. He worked at and managed a hotel in Cap-Français. As a young man he gained his freedom. In 1791 he became a soldier in the Haitian Revolution. He fought with Toussaint Louverture against the French.

(A drawing of Christophe)

In 1802 he was promoted to general. In 1805 Christophe and Jean Jacques Dessalines mobilized troops to kick out the remaining French troops in the Dominican Republic. They set fire to the town of Santo Domingo. In 1806 he learned of an assassination attempt against Jean Jacques Dessalines but did not tell him. In 1807 he became the president of Haiti in the North.

(A drawing of Christophe)

In 1811 he declared the northern part of Haiti a kingdom. Christophe built 6 châteaux, 8 palaces and the massive Citadelle Laferrière, on a mountain near Milot. For agricultural production he chose to enforce corvée plantation work. He was unpopular during his reign.

(A drawing of Christophe)

On October 8th, 1820 Henri Christophe committed suicide due to risk of a possible coup in Cap-Haitien, Haiti. He was 53 years old.

(A statue of Christophe)

Today is his 249th birthday and we would all like to say happy birthday and rest in peace Henri Christophe.

Anniversary of Shaka Zulu's Death

“I need no bodyguard at all, for even the bravest men who approach me get weak at the knees and their hearts turn to water, whilst their heads become giddy and incapable of thinking as the sweat of fear paralyzes them. They know no other will except that of their King, who is something above, and below, this earth” - Shaka Zulu

(Shaka Zulu)

Shaka Zulu was born on an unknown date in 1787 in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. In 1816 Zulu’s father died. Shaka became Chief of the Zulu clan.

(A painting of Zulu)

In 1819 Zulu defeated Zwide in the Zulu Civil War. In 1825 Zulu killed Zwide. Due to his military background he taught the rest of the Zulus to be great warriors and revolutionized warfare.

(A drawing of Zulu)

One of his army’s signature tactics was the “Bull Horn Formation”. He started to have a powerful military with a mixture of diplomacy and patronage. He established relations with other tribes in the area. In 1826 he fought Zwide’s son in battle. On rare occasions he let Europeans into his territory.

(A drawing of Zulu)

After an assassination attempt Zulu allowed a White doctor to help with his wounds. To show gratitude he allowed Whites to operate in the Zulu Kingdom. In 1827 his mother died. Due to this he ordered that no crops should be planted due to mourning her death and any woman who became pregnant was to be killed along with her husband. 7,000 people were killed due to this. On September 24th, 1828 Shaka Zulu was killed by 3 assassins in KwaDukuza, South Africa. He was about 41 years old.

(A statue of Zulu)

Today is the 188th anniversary of his death. Take time to remember this great king today.

Videos involving Shaka Zulu

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mRz1JlF87c  “Shaka Zulu Intro”
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHvykMGGkuY  “Shaka Zulu -- Trailer”

Record Review: "Live at the Apollo" by James Brown

“All aboard for night train” - James Brown

Title: Live at the Apollo

Artist: James Brown

Release Year: 1963

Genre: R&B

Status: Gold (about 500,000 sold)

Number of Tracks: 14 (5 Side one, 9 Side two)

Record Label: King

Number Album Released: 8th

What I think

    This is the 1st James Brown album that I acquired and this is a good album to start with. This is also a live album by James Brown of his performance at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem, NY. The album begins with James Brown being introduced. In between each song is an interlude of the band playing. The 1st song is “I’ll Go Crazy”. Brown’s singing is strong and so is the backup vocals. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a mid tempo. The message is about a man telling his woman that if she leaves him that he will go crazy without her and the man telling himself that he has to live for himself and nobody else if she leaves him. The 2nd song is “Try Me”. Brown’s singing is smooth and so is the backup vocals. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man asking a woman to try to be with him because he needs her and wants to be with her. The 3rd song is “Think”. Brown’s singing is strong. The band is playing a somewhat complicated beat and rhythm with a saxophone solo at a fast tempo. The message is about a man telling his woman to think about it before leaving him because he is the one that truly loves her and for her to think about the good he has done for her and the bad that he tried not to do. The 4th song is “I Don’t Mind”. Brown’s singing is strong and slow. The backup vocals are smooth. The band is playing a simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man telling a woman that he doesn't mind if her love for him is going away because he knows that she will miss him. The 5th song is “Lost Someone”. Brown’s singing is smooth and strong with trademark James Brown screams. The band is playing a simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man who has lost someone that he loved so much, how it's affecting him and how much he misses that someone. The 6th song is “Please Please Please”. Brown’s singing is strong. The backup vocals are smooth. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man begging his woman to stay with him because of how much he loves her. The 7th song is “You've Got the Power”. Brown’s singing is smooth and slow. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a woman leaving her man and telling him that she won't be back and he telling her that he needs her back and she has the power to keep them together.   The 8th song is “I Found Someone”. Brown’s singing is slow and strong. The band is playing a simple beat and rhythm at a mid tempo. The message is about a man finding someone to love. The 9th song is “Why Do You Do Me?”. Brown’s singing is slow and smooth. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man that gave his all to his woman and his woman leaving him. The 10th song is “I Want You So Bad”. Brown’s singing is slow and smooth. The band is playing a simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man that wants a woman very bad and he is wondering if he will ever stop being all alone. The 11th song is “I Love You Yes I Do”. Brown’s singing is smooth and slow. The band is playing a simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man telling a woman how much he loves her, how much he needs her and how he has loved her from when he laid eyes on her. The 12th song is “Why Does Everything Happen To Me”. Brown’s singing is slow and strong. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message of the song is about a guy asking why do all these bad things happen to him and he contemplates suicide because of all the bad things happening to him. The 12th song is “Bewildered”. Brown’s singing is slow and strong. The backup vocals are smooth. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a slow tempo. The message is about a man who broke up with his woman and now he is confused and bewildered about why they left each other even though they loved each other so much. The 13th song is “Please Please Please” again sang and played the same way as last time. The 14th song is “Night Train”. Brown’s singing is strong. The band is playing a somewhat simple beat and rhythm at a fast tempo. The message is about a train going around the USA and stopping at notable cities with a high Black population such as New York City, NY, Miami, FL, Baltimore, MD etc.         

Scoring (Out of 10)

• How well the album did (Diamond 10/10, Platinum 8/10, Gold 6/10): 6/10
• How well is the singing: 6.5/10
• How well is the band: 7/10
• How impactful the messages of the songs are: 5.5/10
• How appealing is the cover: 7/10
• How creative is the cover: 8/10
• How relevant is the album after 10+ years since release: 6/10
• How much did it revolutionize its genre of music: 5/10
• How creative are the instruments: 4/10
• How creative are the lyrics: 3/10

Total Score: 5.8/10

Percentage: 58%

My Favorite Songs

1. Night Train
2. Please Please Please
3. Please Don’t Go (Please Please Please)
4. Try Me
5. Think
6. I’ll Go Crazy
7. Bewildered
8. I Don’t Mind
9. Why Do You Do Me?
10. You’ve Got The Power
11. I Want You So Bad
12. I Love You Yes I Do
13. Lost Someone
14. I Found Someone

Videos of James Brown performing songs from the album

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDtYdwQx_OQ  “Joe Cocker, James Brown - I'll Go Crazy (LIVE in Detroit) HD”
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Owl9LZn_RGI  “James Brown performs "Try Me". Live at the Apollo Theater, March 1968”
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vruy2GRUsV8  “James Brown performs "Please Please Please" to a live audience on the TAMI Show”
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZF_rZrH4yBY  “James Brown performs and dances to "Night Train" to a live audience on TAMI Show”

Comment what you think of this album and if you agree with me or not and stay tuned for my next record review which will be “The 12 Year Old Genius” by Stevie Wonder.