Wimoweh tokens download#

The thread was picked up in a Rolling Stone article by journalist Rian Malan, in which he estimated the royalties from the film alone at $15 million. And is still in the top 25 highest grossing animated films of all time. With an initial worldwide gross of $766 million, it finished its theatrical run as the highest-grossing release of 1994. The Lion King was originally released on June 15, 1994, with a positive reaction from critics, who praised the film for its music, story, and animation. The next twist was in 1994 when the song was featured in American animated musical film The Lion King, produced and released by Disney. He sent Linda some money then copyrighted The Weavers’ arrangement and sent The Weavers some money.” When Seeger realised the error, he arranged a donation of $1000 and his share of ongoing royalties to Linda, but it seemed even this never found its way back. As Seeger has put it: “The big mistake I made was not making sure my publisher signed a regular songwriters’ contract with Linda. It seems in the complicated process of licensing and publishing, either Linda’s ownership of the composition was ignored, or nobody quite followed the legal trail back to the original composer. The trouble was that as the song evolved, no provision was made for recognising Linda’s original work. The song now-named “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” reached number one at the end of 1961 and inspired a seemingly endless string of covers. Unfortunately, as Gallo had purchased the recording from Linda (for a reported ten shillings), Linda never earned anything from the sales. It became a big hit and made Linda a star among black audiences. One night after his shift he was permitted to use the studio to record a song he called “Mbube”, meaning Lion in Zulu. In 1939 Linda worked as a cleaner at the Gallo Record Company. Inspired by traditional call-and-response chants, they built four-part harmonies with Linda’s improvised vocals soaring over the top. He moved to Johannesburg in his 20s and formed an a cappella band he called the Evening Birds, who built a popular following with their distinctive style. He never learned to read or write, but he was much admired as a singer. Music has its share of “unsung” heroes, although occasionally they achieve recognition in unexpected ways and at unexpected times.īorn in 1909, Solomon Linda grew up in Zulu country in South Africa. With the new CGI animated Lion King coming to cinemas this summer, what better time to look at the creation and history of a timeless song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight? Join us as we dive into the rich history of this well known classic. Music, like most art, is not as original as it may seem. Album DescriptionStory of a Song – The Lion Sleeps Tonight See More Your browser does not support the audio element. For those who couldn't get enough of the Tokens, several additional recordings from their RCA period were made available the same year on a budget collection, The Lion Sleeps Tonight.

Wimoweh: The Best of the Tokens also includes three previously unreleased songs for collectors. The anthology also compiles a number of choice cuts and oddities that fall in-between, from the gorgeous 'Somewhere There's a Girl' to the weirdly insulting love song 'You're Nothing But a Girl.' There's a 'Little Darlin'' retread titled 'Dry Your Eyes' and several songs with 'night' or 'tonight' in the title in apparent reference to the group's first two hits. When those failed, the Tokens returned to straightforward doo wop material ('Tonight I Met an Angel'), covers of other vocal groups' hits ('Sincerely,' 'A Thousand Miles Away'), and, finally, Beach Boys-style car songs ('My Friend's Car'). Wimoweh: The Best of the Tokens rounds up all six of their chart entries, some of which - like 'B'Wanina (Pretty Girl)' and 'La Bamba' - repeated the 'Wimoweh' formula.

The Tokens' unlikely blend of doo wop and what was, in folk circles, termed 'ethnic music,' resulted in one enormous and enduring hit: 'The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Wimoweh).' After that, it was all downhill for the group during their RCA tenure - the biggest of their followup hits reached a modest number 55 on the charts.

Wimoweh tokens download#

Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.