Unwinding With The Cool Crooners Of Bulawayo--By Ndaba Sibanda--Saudi Arabia

Unwinding With The Cool Crooners Of Bulawayo

One lazy afternoon I listened to a light track,
It cruised into my ears and heart and crooned
Its way down my spine and vibrated my legs
Till they made some calculated cool swings.

The radio personality intercepted
The mellifluousness of it and said,
“Welcome, welcome to the music
And the magic of the Cool Crooners”.

The Cool Crooners were formed in 1998
By longtime friends -Abel, Lucky and Ben;
In 2001 their album -Blue Sky-about a South African jail
‘Inside of which one only sees the blue sky’-- cooled ears.

Their melodies are mesmerizing and soothing,
They mix African rhythms with western music;
They blend SiNdebele, SiZulu and KiSwahili --
Wowing the audiences with their classy voices.

Foot-tapping their way into international stardom,
Sweet smart men in suits, singing Bulugwe Lami,
(The fate of ‘my’ tattered trousers haye haye!)
These young old boys` laid back music is cool!

Ndaba Sibanda is a Zimbabwean-born writer. His poems, essays and short stories have been published in Africa and the USA. Ndaba currently lives and teaches in Saudi Arabia. Of his career, he says, "writing is my life, and my second wife".