WATCH Epic Remake of ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight’
Nashville singer Beau Davidson has released an epic version of ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight‘ in collaboration with the very band that made it a worldwide hit in 36 countries. The song, which had its roots in South Africa, was made famous in 1961 after The Tokens performed it in America. Speaking in a documentary about the new […]
Nashville singer Beau Davidson has released an epic version of ‘The Lion Sleeps Tonight‘ in collaboration with the very band that made it a worldwide hit in 36 countries.
The song, which had its roots in South Africa, was made famous in 1961 after The Tokens performed it in America.
Speaking in a documentary about the new version, The Tokens’ lead singer Jay Siegel says: “When the record first came out in 1961 it was one of the most unusual records to ever be released. It was the number one record in 36 countries. When ‘The Lion King’ came out, it was a wordwide hit for the second time in a row…”
They’re hoping for a third time. This version is bigger and more universal than its predecessor with African percussion and real instrumentation.
“It’s as different now as it was when it came out in 1961!” says Siegel.
The song was originally titled ‘Mbube’ (meaning lion in isiZulu), and was written and recorded back in the 1930s by Solomon Linda from Ladysmith, South Africa.
American lyricist George David Weiss wrote the words for the English version and The Tokens made it famous as “Wimoweh” or “The Lions Sleeps Tonight”.
Davidson said his new version respects what The Tokens did but “refreshes” it, and is over the moon that The Tokens made the trip down to Nashville from New York to be a part of the record. It’s “truly something special” he says.
The gorgeous wildlife footage comes courtesy of Dereck and Beverly Joubert (who recently appeared on Ellen) and their National Geographic’s Big Cats Initiative.
We agreed to help “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” project, and a short film, cut by our editor Candice Odgers, helpd give the song another life, placing it in context with footage of lions.
The song is dedicated to ‘Cecil‘ (the Zimbabwe lion that was killed by an American dentist), and according to Dereck Joubert “Beau has offered that all the money raised by his venture will be donated to the Big Cats Initiative“. Joubert says in a National Geographic article that we’re at “a tipping point in the world of conservation now” and that he hopes the collaboration will steer even more people to helping conserve lions so that the words “the lion sleeps tonight” never become the lion sleeps forever…
Watch Video: Epic remake of The Lion Sleeps Tonight
Artists: Beau Davidson featuring Jay Siegel’s “Tokens”