Origins: Sweet Honey in the Rock song

Subject: Origins: Sweet Honey in the Rock song
From: GUEST
Date: 08 Feb 06 - 10:32 PM

I recently learned an African chant who's lyrics are:
Ama ebu oh-ee-eh-ee, Ama ebu oh-ee-eh
Sweet Honey in The Rocks sings this and I see in their discography something called "Fulani Chant". Does anyone know if this is the same song?

About the song I've been singing, I want to find out:
if the song is recently composed or traditional
Where it's from
If the words have meaning, what is their meaning
In what context is it sung

Does anybody have any information?
Thanks!

Subject: RE: Origins: Sweet Honey in the Rock song
From: Peace
Date: 08 Feb 06 - 10:43 PM

Reach Bernice at the Smithsonian and ask her. She is a neat woman and she'll send you an answer I have no doubt.

Subject: RE: Origins: Sweet Honey in the Rock song
From: Joe Offer
Date: 09 Feb 06 - 03:18 AM

Hi - "Fulani Chant" appears on three Sweet Honey in the Rock albums - Climb Against the Odds, Raise Your Voice, and In This Land. The CD booklet for In This Land has lyrics for all the songs on the CD except for this one - and no background notes, except to say the song was attributed to Aisha Kahlil. As close as I can approximate, the background sound for the song is "boodledoo boodledoo boodledoo," repeated over and over again, with a woman singing a tune in "ooh" over it. Interesting recording.

Good luck with "ama ebu." You might want to try to contact the group at the e-mail address on the Sweet Honey Website, http://www.sweethoney.com/. The "Fulani Chant" song is included in their Continuum songbook.

-Joe Offer-