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MUSIC | _ .
Olu heals with his new album: Soul Catcher
Captivating. Inspiring. In
sightful. Soulful. These are
among the multitude of adjec
tives that come to mind when
one experiences the sheer
magic of 25-year-old Harlem
born singer/songwriter/musi
cian Olu’s debut LP Soul
Catcher(Gee Street/V2). Filled
with songs ofintrospection and
meditation on the totality of
the human condition, Soul
Catcher is a stunning collec
tion of original material that
weaves diverse musical ele
ments such asjazz,r&b, blues,
hip hop and world beat music
into a wonderful aural tapes
try that touches the heart and
soul. :
Olu’s concerns with social
issues grow out of his deep
seated quest for spiritual so
lace in a fast-pace, increas
ingly hi-tech world that has
forgotten to be mindful of the
creator. Toremain mindful of
the spiritual path, Oludivides
his time between his Harlem
home and his cabin in the
Catskill mountains, where he
finds the spiritual insight to
continue his journey through
this phase called life.
But as humble and soft-spo
ken as Olu is, he is certainly
not shy about using his music
to address social issues con
fronting humanity today. One
example is the first single
“Baby Can’t Leaveit Alone,” a
soul-stirring tune about a
beautiful young girl going
through the painful agony of
an addition. Augmented by a
crisp guitar lick and rich
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IREGENcY EXCHANGEI
| 26870 REGENCY BLVD. 790-7460 |
THE HAUNTING (PG-13)
11:45 2:10 4:35 7:00 9:25 (11:50
THE WOOD (R) |
12:00 2:15 4:30 7:15 9:45 (12:00
= EYES WIDE SHUT (R) ‘
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MUPPETS FROM SPACE (G)
11:30 1:25 3:20 5:15 7:30
ARLINGTON RD (R)
9:30 (12:00
AMERICAN PIE (R)
12:15 2:30 4:35 7:15 9:40 (11:45)
TARZAN (G)
11:40 1:40 3:40 5:40 7:40
WILD WILD WEST (PG-13)
12:00 2:20 4:40 7:00 9:20 (11:40)
; BiG DADDY (PG-13)
12:30 3:00 5:00 7:10 9:20 (11:25
( ) times for Fri. & Sat. night showings
| SmmrMovieCm;p:
| o ge T aoe 12:00
| Tickets are only $1.25
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The humble and soft-spoken,Olu. Photo by Kate Swan.
melody, “Baby Can’t Leave it
Alone” has lyrics that are
crafted to appeal to anyone
who has had a bout with a bad
habit that they can’t seem to
shake (“I know it seems there’s
no way out, but ask yourself a
question before you score. Will
I raise a child who’s free from
doubt, or will I be resting for
ever more?”), and falls in the
tradition of soul master Curtis
Mayfield’s classic “Stone
Junkie” or “Superfly.”
Olu says that the universal
appeal of “Baby Can’t Leaveit
Alone” has a lot to do with the
way the song is written. “I
tried to write the song so that
the thing that she’s trying to
let go of may be a number of
EBarnes & Noble, 1336 Au
gusta West Pkwy. of Augusta,
will hold a home schooling fo
rumon Thurs.,July 22,at 7:30
p.m. Members of the Augusta
Area Home Education Net
work will look at the laws,
myths and realities of educat
ing your children at home.
EBorders Books & Mu
sic, 257 Robert C. Daniel Jr.
Pkwy. of Augusta, will host
live music on July 23 and 24.
On July 23, Martha’s Trouble
will play agressive folk music
at 8 p.m. and on July 24,
Caroline Williams will play
folk music at 7:30 p.m.
~ HAppleby Library, Walton
Way at Johns Rd., will hold a
Garden Concerton Tues.,July
127, at 8 p.m. Featured will be
|Keith Gehle. Bring your own
|lawn chairs or blankets for
seating. A limited number of
Irental chairs will be available.
JULY 22, 1999 AUGUSTA FOCUS
different subjects: a lover, an
object, a lifestyle, it could be
any number of scenarios.”
On the haunting ballad
“Sista Why,” Olu sings of his
undying love and loyalty to
the object of his affection
against a soundscape of a slow
winding sensuous jazz-in
formed groove that is sure to
be a favorite on jazz on adult
oriented radio.
On the ethereal “High
Desert Woman,” Olu finds in
spiration in a Native Ameri
can myth about the buffalo
woman to create a haunting
and beautiful song, with a
Native American chant for the
song’s powerful finale. “Sweet
Melody” is an infectious track,
®The Augusta Metropoli
tan Convention and Visi
tors Bureau will host addi
tional walking and van tours
of the historic downtown area
for Thurs. through Sat., July
22-24. Cost of the walking
tours will be $5 per person and
van tours will be $lO each
adult, $5 for children under
12. For reservations, please
contact Marilyn Dunbar at
(706) 724-4067.
EBarnes & Noble will host
a visit for children by the
Berenstain Bear Brother &
Sister on Sat., July 24, at 2
p-m.
EBorders Books & Music
will hold Adult Craft Times
featuring reverse painting on
glass on Tues.,July 20, at 7:30
p.m. and on Fri., July 23, at 7
p-m. Pre-registration is re
quired. Call 737-6962. An
Estate Planning Workshop
with a strong and jazzy mid
tempo groove that lingers in
your mind long after the last
note has been played. The
same can be said about other
tracks such as “My World,”
“Don’t Cry” and the lovely
acoustic ballad “A Change,”
proving beyond a shadow of a
doubt that in Olu, the world is
bearing witness to the pres
ence of not just a great
songwriter, but a master sto
ryteller as well.
A gifted musician, Oluis flu
ent on keyboards, guitar, bass
and drums. He grew up in a
house that was filled with
music of all kinds. “My dad
was a real connoisseur of mu
sic,” recalls Olu. “My mom
liked to sing. She would mess
around on the piano and sight
read a little bit. She had a
really nice voice and sang in
the church choir. My dad
would just listen to a lot of
great musiclike Nat Cole, Ray
Charles, Thelonious Monk,
Paul Robeson and little bit of
Sam Cooke.” Fortunately,
Olu’s exposure to musicdidn’t
stop there, ashis parents made
sure that he receive a thor
ough background in the musi
cal arts. Olu started studying
music at the tender age of five
when he was admitted into
the Manhattan School of Mu
sic under a special program
for gifted children.
Olu was later selected as a
member of the world-re
nowned Boys Choir of Harlem,
touring Japan and the Far
East. As a young adult, Olu
will be held on Sat., July 24, at
11 a.m. by Sandra Gurley of
Robinson-Humphrey. On
Sun., July 25, at 1:30 p.m.,
Jessica Schneier will host an
Aromatherapy Workshop. Pre
register by calling 737-6962.
The African-American Read
ing Group will meet on Mon.,
July 26, at 7 p.m., to discuss
Another Country. The Horror
& Thriller Reading Group will
discuss Hannibal on July 27,
at 7 p.m.
mFOXIE 103 — Coca Cola
Pool party will be held at the
Augusta Recreation & Parks
Department at Druid Park
swimming pool on Fri., July
23, from noon to 3 p.m. Spon
sored by Foxie Street Team.
EThe Senior Center, 535
15% St. in Augusta, will hold a
Ndeita Aerobic Instructor
Training and Certification
course on Sat., July 24, from
has played in several bands
playing everything from jazz
torock. A history of close calls
with record deals all changed
when a chance meeting at the
gym where he studied Lama
Kung Fu led him to Stuart
Matthewman a member of the
Sade and Sweetback bands.
After developing a casual
friendship with the co-writer/
producer of both Maxwell al
bums, Matthewman discov
ered that Olu was a musician
and took his tape to Gee
Street’s president John Baker,
landing him a deal.
Soul Catcher takes its name
from the healing instrument
used by Native American sha
mans to remove negative spir
its believed to cause illness
(both mental and physical) in
a person. Likewise for Olu,
whose family heritageincludes
Seminole as well as African-
American blood, the title Soul
Catcher becomes a metaphor
for what he hopes his music
will do to his listeners and his
world. In many ways, Oluis a
modern day healer soothing
the aching souls of a society
hooked on violence, hate and
materialism. “I think that the
world is sick and that music
can be used as ashaman’stool,
because that’s originally what
it was. It was used ceremoni
ously and for communicating
ideas to people who are right
there with you, and sometimes
to and from people who are
dead. Isl can do my little part
to help make people feel bet
ter, then so be it.”
8:15 a.m. to 5 p.m. Ndeita
gives the most thorough, one
day aerobic instructor certifi
cation in the industry. Ndeita
will also hold health/fitness
assessments on July 25 from
8:15 to 11:45 a.m. and warm
up/cool down training from
12:15 - 3:45 p.m. For more
information, registration and
registration fees for these
classes, call The Senior Cen
ter at (706) 826-4480.
EBorders Books & Music
will hold Borders Explorer Art
Camp July 26-30. Sessions
will be led by volunteers with
the Greater Augusta Arts
Council Arts Reading Program
volunteers. Freetothe first 20
children to register, ages 5-10
years. Call (706) 737-6962 to
pre-register or for more info.
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