Carol Simpson

My dream was to write a song for the people of the 21st century emphasizing the idea that only we, the people, can stand up and ensure the sanctity and protection of human life. It is a plea for non-violence and a song of hope for the future. I especially love the beautiful choral harmonies of South African music and I believe Africa will play a crucial role in humanity's future. I chose this genre in hopes of it becoming a world anthem. The song was written at home a few months after attending a WOMAD Festival in Seattle where I heard lots of live African music. An earlier version was recorded in six hours on Christmas Eve, then performed on New Year's Eve with dance and costumes by about 20 children. Several months later,I happened to be in London and invited to a dinner hosted by some South African friends and artists under the Sony and Real World Music labels. We decided to record a new version of the song. The day before we recorded, the horrific student killing incident was taking place at Columbine High School. That, together with many racial terrorists acts happening that same week in London, filled us with emotion and an urgency to express our plea for non-violence through our music. This is the soul behind this recording. It was recorded in about 15 hours with the final mix almost entirely made up of the first vocal takes so it contains a sense of the original pure emotional quality. ---The medley cover tune is not my own and I'm probably going to have to remove it. Suddenly is composed by Eumir Deodato, with lyrics by Norman Gimbel and So Tinha de Ser com Voce is of course Antonio Carlos Jobim's music with Portuguese lyrics by Aloysio de Oliveira. It is from the motion picture soundtrack, 1999: “Bossa Nova.” I adore Brazilian music and am currently working on a CD with Brazilian music by various friends and my own lyrics. ---We Wanna Be Happy was recorded right after 9/11 and was written from children's remarks regarding the retaliatory violence that was taking place in Afghanastan. I was so fortunate to have live percussionist Juno Lewis (composer, percussionist, vocalist of Kulu Se Mama with John Coltrane, 1965) record with me. The children were amazing as you can hear for yourself.