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Karoonag EP celebrates 40 years of Coenie's signature song

 Digitally remastered and sounding as fresh as the day it was recorded - forty years ago!

At what point does one refer to a song as a standard? Perhaps if after 25 years it is still on the "turntables" of the radio stations?  When a song has been covered by numerous artists? Then Karoonag composed by Coenie de Villiers is a Afrikaans music standard.

Reworked artwork from Coenie's debut album, Skoppensboer.

It was first recorded (on analog 2-inch tape) in Cape Town by a young engineer, Kevin Shirley and produced by Paddy Lee-Thorp in Spaced Out Sound Studios.  Coenie de Villiers was also the singer and musical arranger. 

The track was a bit of a sleeper hit. Not until a follow-up recording of Kring om die Maan got radio attention almost ten years after the release of Karoonag, did fans of Afrikaans music fully discover the gem hidden on his debut album. 

Today Karoonag is his most requested song on streaming platforms from Canada to New Zealand, wherever South Africans (SA) have moved to, and on radio especially in SA. This is not only because of the musicality of the work but also because of the emotional rendition Coenie gave in the studio in that autumn of 1981. He has re-recorded the song a number of times with different arrangements, but the original remains the favourite.

The vivid text, a poem on the subject of the the night in the semi-desert region of southern Africa, is beautifully highlighted by the performance he gave. 

We have re-mastered the original version for this release as well a live version he recorded some years later. In addition we have include an edited version of the inspired instrumental intro for the song he recorded live. The edit, titled Karoonag (Hantam Edit) also shows the brilliance of Coenie as a piano player.

The EP (single) collecting the three tracks will be released to digital platforms (download and streaming) on his birthday, the 11th of October. Happy birthday Coenie.

Links to the EP > https://orcd.co/jr69e71

Best of > https://orcd.co/kppd8rb










Mountain Records.


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