Search - Little Steven, Bruce Springsteen, David Ruffin :: Sun City

Outstanding effort in writing, mixing, and performance.

08/27/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I originally purchased this recording as a vinyl record in 1985. Being a fan of Little Steven, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, and Pat Benatar, I was interested in what the song would sound like. The information I got with the album about apartheid really open my eyes to a problem that though half a world away, threatened the very fabric of what my own country was founded on. The music on the recording is very moving. The title cut, "Sun City", combines recording artists from across the genres or rock, rap, and soul in a truly inspiring work of art. Little Steven and his group of engineers managed to find great combinations of voices that bring the music to life. To this day, this is one of my favorite songs. Not just because of the artists involved, but because this song truly means something. There are other accounts of apartheid on this album as well that make this a well-rounded style-crossing album that is not just a compliation of previously recorded material.If this recording interests you you would be well advised to look into Little Steven's other albums, Voice of America, Men Without Women, and Freedom - No Compromise. Also listen to Bruce Springsteen's The Ghost of Tom Joad. All of these albums have very moving accounts of our society and the darker sides of the people in it."

We ain't gonna play Sun City!

Daniel J. Hamlow | Narita, Japan | 02/03/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Concert for Bangladesh may have been the start of benefit albums, and for a worthy cause. Sun City though, was the most militant, and demonstrated that rock and roll was about rebellion, not the Twisted Sister "We're Gonna Take It" or the whiny punk rock "I don't wanna..." attitude, but about social protest. The Sun City album took on the humanitarian crimes (read human rights violations, lack of voting rights, "relocation to phony homelands") committed by the white-minority government of South Africa from 1948, when the policy of apartheid (rhymes with both white and hate) was first introduced. Steve Van Zandt, late of the E Street Band and Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, produced and organized this indictment of the totalitarian regime. The title refers to a whites-only "Vegas in the desert" entertainment resort symbolizing the privileges of the white minority.There are three versions of the title song, of which the opening track is the original. "Rockers and rappers united and strong" take turns singing the verses a la We Are The World, condemning Reagan's "quiet diplomacy" and phony homelands like Bophuthatswana. Pete Townshend's guitar, Ringo Starr's drums, Clarence Clemons' saxophone, and Miles Davis's trumpet contribute to the backing instrumentation.The droning guitar and Peter Gabriel's wailing vocals form "No More Apartheid." That is followed by "Revolutionary Situation," a collage of music, bits of audio from press statements, and other revolutionary anthems compiled and edited by Keith LeBlanc and the News Dissector. Sounds of barking police dogs, protesters calling for both peace and violence, audio bits from Nelson Mandela, Piet Botha, and Ronald Reagan are put together. The ominous voice of "I am an Afrikaaner" demonstrates the powerful aura of oppression dominating the country.The alternately energetic and laid back "Let Me See Your ID" is a series of righteously enraged raps, with even Peter Wolf and Midnight Oil's Peter Garrett contributing, with some musing, biting ironic commentary by Gil Scott-Heron, such as getting vocabulary from the media, such as Third World or casualties. On the latter, he says "nothing casual about dying, nothing casual about standing for freedom". Miles's magical trumpet-playing can be heard.The instrumental jam "The Struggle Continues" was the first time I heard Miles Davis and this fits squarely in his post-fusion era, with support from drummer Sonny Okosuns, guitarist Stanley Jordan and keyboardist Herbie Hancock, whose instrumental solo bit is a highlight the same as Davis's trumpet was in the beginning moment of the jam."Silver And Gold" began life here before its inclusion on Rattle And Hum. Bono sings here without U2, aided by Rolling Stones Keith Richards and Ron Wood, about mining the above metals. The U2 frontman's voice becomes a barely contained whisper in parts, intense angst and anger in other places.While benefit group collaborations like Band Aid, Live Aid, and USA For Africa, formed the basis of mass culture, the global village, and cultural crossover in a corporately-sponsored world, Sun City was more serious in its intent, calling for the release of Nelson Mandela and supporting the UN-sponsored cultural boycott of South Africa. Eventually, in 1990, five years after the Sun City album, Mandela was freed and became South Africa's first black African president, and I can't help thinking that Steve Van Zandt and the musicians here had a hand in that."

Great album, so stop overpaying

Chazzzbo | Johnstown, PA | 09/30/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Just a quick heads up to fans of this great song and album. The complete album plus some remixes are now available on iTunes for only $3.99. Get it now, before someone important changes their mind. Stop paying ridiculous amounts of money (that would include triple digits for the CD). I'm as capitalist as the next guy, but enough is enough. It's not like the sellers here are donating mass amounts of their profit to the cause. Peace.



UPDATE JULY 2010: Sadly, it appears that the album has been removed from the ITMS. I'm not sure when this took place, but truly sad and frustrating for music fans everywhere."