This is the second of Garth’s albums in the ‘Journeys’ series. The first featured the Holy Land, this one is about Africa, the third - Asia and the final album is Latin America.
This album reflects Garth’s many visits to Africa since the 1970s – to places of conflict and suffering which have still reflected hope and joy. The most recent song ‘Wings of love over Africa’ was written in April 2007, and symbolises the hope seen in Durban where Umthombo’s Street Team, working with the street children, are an inspiration. This song sets the theme and tone of the album. Garth has also chosen songs from every part of his recording journey.
Garth says, “These songs were written over a period of many years – I first went to Africa in the late seventies and have been going regularly ever since. These songs tell the stories of different places I visited. Uganda has been a key place for me – I first went there in ’82 in times of pain and suffering and war and yet it’s a country that in many ways for me symbioses hope and joy against all the odds. Likewise, Mozambique where I went in the time of the civil war and yet such was the example of Bishop Dinis Singulane and other Christians that I met, that again I saw hope amidst the struggle. ‘Isaiah 58’ is the story of a street kids shelter in Duncan Village Township, East London, South Africa, where 130 children rescued from the streets and from a local rubbish dump, find a chance of a home and a future.
The songs tell the story of some of the pain on the journey to dignity for those countries. I’ve also included some songs which have proved popular in concert in Africa, such as ‘That’s why we’re here (happy to share)’.”