The Rough Guide to African Music for Children

As the grandfather of a one-year-old, with a second grandchild on the way, this reviewer has been eagerly searching for an alternative to ‘Three Blind Mice’ and ‘Humpty Dumpty’ – and this lovely collection from the good people at World Music Network fits the bill perfectly. The swaying rhythms of South African township music have an innate ability to rock the cradle and the lovely offerings here from Vusi Mahlasela and the late Busi Mhlongo prove the point. Gentle lullabies from Amadou & Mariam and Mabulu will soothe and relax at bedtime – although in general this is a collection to get tiny feet tapping rather than send them to sleep.

Stirring tracks by Malagasy maestro Lala Njava, Staff Benda Bilili and Kenya’s Sauti Sol will serve well as an alternative to ‘The Wheels on the Bus’ at youthful birthday parties; I’ve already got the infectious highlife rhythms of Ghana’s Seprewa Kasa teed up as the soundtrack for the game of pass the parcel. Credit, too, to the compilers for not including ‘Wimoweh’ and ‘Hakuna Matata’ – already over-familiar to kids the world over thanks to Disney’s The Lion King. As is now customary with Rough Guide releases, a second disc is bundled into the package to re-kindle interest in a release from World Music Network’s back catalogue. In this instance, it’s the Somalian-Italian singer Saba’s 2007 album, Jidka. It’s a decent enough global girl-pop album, but its re-promotion alongside the children’s disc seems quite arbitrary.