Kalimba’s ‘Sometimes I wonder’ inspires book
Kalimba Band remains one of the country’s greatest musical acts to date owing to the success of their album Make Friends With The World.
The album has songs such as Sometimes I Wonder which went as far as being in the top 10 on the BBC Radio Top 40 chart. Now, 40 years since the release of the song, a former member of the group Vita Chirwa has published a book titled Sometimes I Wonder.
The book is a detailed account of Kalimba Band’s extraordinary music journey from the group’s genesis, the recording, the rise to fame, their international breakthrough, their split and the memories the group created.
The book is Chirwa’s personal account of events and contains details passed on to him by the original members. It is a tell-all about Kalimba Band history.
“It is the story that I have always wanted to tell and I am glad that I got it off through this book. That was my biggest inspiration to publish this book,” said Chirwa.
The original Kalimba Band had nine members, including Griffin Mhango, Bright Nkhata, Francis Chimtembo, Isaac Nyirenda and Kidd Mkandawire. Chirwa only joined the group in the later years and in 2010, he produced the video for the song Sometimes I Wonder.
The artist, who is also Musicians Union of Malawi president, said the book highlights the success the group achieved mainly through their album Make Friends With The World.
“The book aims at paying a special tribute to Kalimba [Class of 1983], immortalising the band and preserving its legacy for achieving unprecedented international success. What they managed to achieve was simply unbelievable,” he said in an interview yesterday.
In the book, Chirwa discloses details of the band’s experiences when they travelled to South Africa to record their platinum album.
In 2019, Mkandawire, who is now based in Denmark, described their performances as electrifying.
He said: “The band’s live shows were electrifying and the stage dress was also in a class of its own. Most importantly, their song writing and arrangement was beyond the bar.”
After the original members left the group, the band was rejuvenated following the inclusion of new members such as Godfrey Mbidzi, Reuben Tchongwe and Chirwa under the tutelage of Bright Nkhata.
The book will be launched during the group’s 40th anniversary at Sunbird Capital in Lilongwe. The book has been published by Design Printers.
