Episode 23: Thanksgiving Jive 2019

Today we will repeat a tradition from the former show The Adventures of Encyclopedia Sound. I can think of no better music for Thanksgiving than jazz and jive from Apartheid-era South Africa.

For those too young to remember Apartheid South Africa, it may be tempting to think that government-sanctioned segregation, discrimination, and repression in the Western world was a thing of the distant past. But it was just 1994 when Africans in South Africa were granted voting rights; prior to that the government was dominated by the small minority of whites in South Africa; Africans in that country lived in segregated housing, were barred from owning businesses, and interracial marriage was forbidden. 

In spite of this oppression, South Africans produced profoundly beautiful, spiritual, and peaceful music during the Apartheid era. I find it to be an inspiring testament to the strength of the human spirit and the eternal hope for social justice and a better future. 

What better music for Thanksgiving??