05/02/2018
Copyright Jazz Safari
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MOWZEY RADIO - Mr. Honey Voice
The words 'Greatest Of All Time' are very hard to 'quantify' when it comes to the Arts, let alone Sport and other disciplines. Once you use the word 'Greatest', that means there is no other, but the one you've given that accolade. There can only be one 'Greatest Of All Time'.
That's where comparisons based on technical parameters are warranted. Remember, when it comes to Music, it does different things to/for different people. For example, who's greater as a guitarist; Jimi Hendrix or Eddie Van Halen? Slash? That's where guitar players will come out with informed parameters as to who of all these great players, is the 'Greatest'.
**It's also important that there's a difference between 'greatest' and 'most popular'.
I'm going to attempt to use some parameters to try and place the recently departed (to another place) singer, Mowzey Radio.
**Very important to note, these are only personal parameters that I'm using, and are open to debate.
1. Quantity/Body of work.
The sheer number of songs that this young man wrote is frightening. Looks like he never stopped writing. A lot of people have written a lot of songs; that's not unique. What is unique is, his songs did not remain in the book or in his head. He recorded and released them.
I'll give him a 10/10 for bringing his songs out of the head to fruition.
2(a). Vocal ID.
When you listen to his song 'Jennifer', you really cannot tell who the singer is. It could have been just about anybody. It was after that, that he came out with an unmistakable vocal ID. I remember Maxi Priest telling me that this is one of the best assets that a singer must possess.
I'll give Mowzey 5/5 on this one.
2(b). The Ability To Sing Live On Stage
In life, rarely is anyone perfect. This here is one of Mowzey's 'Achilles heels', as the adage goes. His ability to sound as good live as he did on 'wax'/on record/in studio, was abysmal. The reality is, he's not alone with this weakness. Many of our mainstream artists struggle heavily, when it comes to singing live on stage.
I'll give him 1/5 on this one.
That makes 6/10 in total, for this two part parameter.
3. Melody
For one to have memorable music for the masses and connoisseurs alike, it's important to create great melodies. Mowzey has a gift for melody. I remember posting this about him a couple of years ago. The vast majority of his songs have memorable melodies that help carry the songs. There were times where monotony was setting in, but I'll blame this on the sheer number of songs he wrote.
I'll give him 9/10 on this one.
4. Lyrics/Wordplay
Now it makes sense to me. Mowzey was an English Literature major. I'm almost sure, he converted so many English literature works and poems into his Luganda lyrics. "Njagala kuwandiika linnya lyo kunjuba", was one among many other memorable lines he sang.
I'll definitely give him 10/10 for lyrical prowess.
5. Song Arrangements
This is where a lot of mainstream music seems to struggle, since around the year 2,000. Out went great intros, guitar and piano solos, horns sections etc, and in came 'the Beat'. Contemporary Music became Beat driven and lacked any semblance of good arrangements. I cannot blame this on Mowzey alone, it was the 'in thing' to do I guess.
There are songs that he wrote that show me that with better arrangers and producers, Mowzey would still tower above the rest of his contemporaries. The songs; Nkwagala, Neera Neera and the song 'Sembera' which he wrote for Irene Ntale are perfect examples.
Due to the monotony in the Beat driven songs that he recorded, I'll give him 6/10 for arrangements.
***However, based on the songs I've mentioned above, I'm absolutely sure that with a change in his production team, Mowzey would have churned out a lot more songs, arranged better.
6. The Ability To Play A Musical Instrument
Well, I don't think Mowzey was very proficient at this (I stand to be corrected), but, the voice is an instrument too. I shudder to even imagine, just how good he would have been had he mastered a musical instrument. It wasn't to be.
He didn't 'sit for this paper', I'll give him no score on this one.
7. The Ability To Stay Musically Relevant
Oh well, even when he was written off, he kept dropping gems for Radio, TV and Clubs. It became impossible to write him off entirely, however much one tried to.
He scores 10/10 here.
8. Songwriting Versatility
He can write just about everything I reckon. He has the knack to annoy and give pleasure in equal measure. That's a gift by the way. He could write a 'diss song' and sing it with one side of the mouth, while singing a love song or a Gospel song with the other side of the mouth, and still hit the intended audience, equally.
He scores another 9/10
9. Equal Relevance Across Eras/Generations
This one is for the very chosen few. Obviously, there's no question about his ability to stay relevant from the day he had his first hit. From the days of Nakudata to the recent Gutamiiza. That's a span of exactly ten years, if I'm not mistaken. We can only determine this relevance in the next ten to fifteen years.
So, it's not possible to give a score on this one yet. It would not be fair.
10. The Ability/Need To Attract Top Musicians In Studio
The vast majority of Goodlyfe's releases were produced and arranged, possibly by the same Producer. Maybe two? I stand to be corrected. This means the music relied a lot on computer and Synth generated sounds. A couple did have guitarists on board I believe.
I'll give him 5/10 on this one.
Now, here's the crunch.
If was was to use the exact parameters I've used above to 'mark' Philly Lutaaya's 'paper' (out of the available one hundred marks), in order to determine who of the two icons I'd consider as 'Greatest Of All Time', Philly Lutaaya would come out as the victor.
How and why? Philly equally manages to get top marks in the parameters where Mowzey scores highly. And in addition, where Mowzey doesn't score highly or where he has no score, Philly Lutaaya still scores.
Philly Lutaaya also has an ace up his sleeves. He's the benchmark to which artists here are measured. I bet, even Mr. Honey Voice Mowzey would list Philly Lutaaya as his benchmark 😉.
Opinions are very welcome. In fact, you can even setting your own parameters.
In the end, and most importantly , both of them left a great body of work for us enjoy. They'll never be forgotten. It's a blessing to have witnessed both these two artists in my lifetime.
That's the beauty of music. For as long as your voice can still be heard through the songs, it means you live forever, outliving just about everyone else.
✊🏿🔥✊🏿
