Boney M "Jambo - Hakuna Matata" (Video & Lyrics)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part III in a three part series of posts on songs other than the Broadway show or movie Lion King that contain the word "Jambo" and/or "Hakuna Matata".

This post showcases the lyrics and a video example of the German group Boney M's early 1980s song "Jambo Hakuna Matata".

For Part I of this series, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/10/jambo-ella-jenkins-lyric-sound-file.html for a post on Ella Jenkins' 1974 song "Jambo".

For Part II of this series, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/10/them-mushrooms-jambo-bwana-video-lyrics.html.

The content of this post is presented for folkloric, aesthetic, and entertainment purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE WORD "JAMBO"
"Jambo" is a shortened form of various Swahili greetings.
From http://www.jambokenya.com/jambo/swahili/swahil03.htm
..."Jambo greetings change according to number and person.
hujambo, bwana - hello, sir
sijambo, bibi - I'm fine, madam
hamjambo, mabwana - hello, gentlemen
hatujambo, bibi -we're fine, madam

For tourist the shortened form is commonly used.
jambo - hello
(reply) jambo -hello"

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE SWAHILI PHRASE "HAKUNA MATATA"
From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakuna_matata
"Hakuna Matata is a Swahili phrase that can be translated literally as "There are no worries." Its meaning is similar to the American English phrase "no problem" or Australian English phrase "no worries" and is akin to "don't worry, be happy". The phrase was made famous by the movie The Lion King...

In 1980, the music of Kenyan hotel band Them Mushrooms (now known as Uyoga) released the Swahili song "Jambo Bwana" ("Hello Mister"), which repeats the phrase "Hakuna matata" in its refrain. The song was written by band leader Teddy Kalanda Harrison.

A few years later, German group Boney M. released "Jambo - Hakuna Matata", an English-language song...

In 1994 the Walt Disney Animation Studios animated movie The Lion King brought the phrase international recognition, featuring it prominently in the plot and devoting a song to it. A meerkat and a warthog, named Timon and Pumbaa respectively, teach the main character, a lion cub named Simba, that he should forget his troubled past and live in the present. The song was written by Elton John (music) and Tim Rice (lyrics), who found the term in a Swahili phrase book."
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Click http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abjAqvdGZgM for a video of The Lion Kings' song "Hakuna Matata". Also, click http://www.lionking.org/lyrics/OBCR/HakunaMatata.html for the lyrics to that song.

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LYRIC EXCERPT - JAMBO - HAKUNA MATATA
Jambo, jambo bwana - jambo, jambo bwana, hakuna matata.

Jambo, jambo bwana - have a good time, enjoy the samba.
Jambo, jambo bwana - you are welcome, hakuna matata.
Jambo, jambo bwana - have a good time, enjoy the samba.
Jambo, jambo bwana - take it easy, hakuna matata.

Can you hear the drum beat? hakuna matata.
Can you hear the singing? hakuna matata.
Can you see the dancing? hakuna matata.
If you want romancing. hakuna matata.

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Click http://www.poemhunter.com/song/jambo-hakuna-matata/ for the lyrics to this song.

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FEATURED VIDEO

VIEWING ALERT
Unfortunately, the song and images of the group singing aren’t synchronized, but I consider the scenes of African music and dance in this video to be worth that irritant.

However, administrators/teachers may want to pre-screen this video before showing it to students of certain ages because because of the inclusion of very brief scenes of topless women & very brief scenes of the back of women’s unclothed butts. There's also a very brief scene of a man dancing over fire which might be problematic for viewing by school students.

It's important to note that although the Swahili words "Jambo" and "Hakuna Matata" might lead you to think that the scenes in the video are from Central Africa or East Africa, the musical instruments, clothing styles, and dance styles in many of those scenes appear to me to indicate that the people shown in those scenes are West Africans. For instance, compare the clothing styles of the Kenyans in the video in Part III with the clothing styles in this video.
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Boney M - Jambo Hakuna Matata



Uploaded by BicakResat on Dec 7, 2008

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Thanks to the composers and performers of this song. Thanks also to those whose quotes & comments are included in this post as well as the producers and uploaders of this video.

Finally, thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Viewer comments are welcome.