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John Kongos — Tokoloshe Man
Album: Tokoloshe Man
Avg rating:
6.1

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1835









Released: 1971
Length: 5:01
Plays (last 30 days): 0
Make your bed up high
Pray into the sky
Close the window close the door
Makes no difference if you're rich or poor.
Get on your knees scream please
That man just love to tease.
Try to run
Get a gun
He just laugh it make it more fun.
Hard like rock ain't got no soul
He can make the sun feel cold.
Put an eclipse on the moon
Make a little cloud forty day monsoon.
Don't recognize no hawk
Don't recognize no dove
Bad tokoloshe man
He don't even recognize love
And it makes no difference
If you're yellow or you're red
When that bad man say
Tonight is the night you are dead.
And it makes...
Only thing I can say to you is
You gotta be good an'you gotta be true
Think about Jesus Christ.
And it makes...
Comments (177)add comment
wow, one of those hidden gems, this track sounds GREAT, those drums especially, Triggered a +1 to 8 so I can hear in My Favorites.
LLRP
 sjmorrison2 wrote:
This song is almost 50 years old?  Talk about holding up well!



And now 53... still a great sound.
 Relayer wrote:

In case you were wondering:

 "In Zulu mythologyTikolosheTokoloshe or Hili is a dwarf-like water sprite. It is considered a mischievous and evil spirit that can become invisible by drinking water. Tokoloshes are called upon by malevolent people to cause trouble for others. At its least harmful a tokoloshe can be used to scare children, but its power extends to causing illness and even death upon the victim. The way to get rid of him is to call in the n’anga (witch doctor), who has the power to banish him from the area"



In South Africa, the indigenous folk place the the legs of their beds on bricks or large paint tins because, of course, Tokoloshe's can't bridge these things.  Serious.
 TallCreative1 wrote:

Now that I'm listening to this with a decent set of headphones wife got me for Christmas, bumping this up to 8.


Cool wife!  Check it out in FLAC!  
My  teenage years... +9
 ecojot wrote:

memories of my birthplace



Are you Elon Musk? 
 Pound33 wrote:

Great song!  Hard to believe it's from 1971.



Best played LOUD.
Great song!  Hard to believe it's from 1971.
Now that I'm listening to this with a decent set of headphones wife got me for Christmas, bumping this up to 8.
memories of my birthplace
How is this a 5.9??  I'm desk dancing here!  
 Alastair wrote:

Average of 5.9?  Shame on you all



I had this as a 6 originally. I'm trying to figure out why. Bumped to 7.
Average of 5.9?  Shame on you all
 idiot_wind wrote:

Whoa.

I thought this was Slade!


This was out at the same time as "Coz I Luv You".  Good times to be a young 'un.
Why is this so poorly rated?! This rocks socks off! 
Whoa.

I thought this was Slade!
 Proclivities wrote:

I thought it was Ludovico Einaudi.


haha
This song is almost 50 years old?  Talk about holding up well!
Yep 10 /1 10 ~ no matter the skin tone!
 Relayer wrote:
In case you were wondering:

 "In Zulu mythologyTikolosheTokoloshe or Hili is a dwarf-like water sprite. It is considered a mischievous and evil spirit that can become invisible by drinking water. Tokoloshes are called upon by malevolent people to cause trouble for others. At its least harmful a tokoloshe can be used to scare children, but its power extends to causing illness and even death upon the victim. The way to get rid of him is to call in the n’anga (witch doctor), who has the power to banish him from the area"
 
I am African and can confirm.  Superstitious people put a brick under their bed at night to ward off the Tokoloshe.  Might explain the opening line of the song “make your bed up high”.

Also the Tokoloshe is known to have a large penis which he carries over his shoulder.
I wonder how John Kongos can sleep when the Beds Are Burning?
 joelbb wrote:
Actually amazing that "Christian Music" was this well arranged way back in '71!  This cut actually does qualify for serious rock 'n roll in a very serious era for the genre.  Gave it a 7.
Only a bad, bad pack of religious bigots would stick it with such low marks.

I'm not sure I follow.  What qualifies as low marks ? I gave it a 5 and had no idea what the song was about or who the artist is.  Was that low marks ? am I bigot ?
 drawcard wrote:
Got a strong "John Lennon scream therapy" sort of vibe...
 

Yup. 
Actually amazing that "Christian Music" was this well arranged way back in '71!  This cut actually does qualify for serious rock 'n roll in a very serious era for the genre.  Gave it a 7.
Only a bad, bad pack of religious bigots would stick it with such low marks.
Wait a minute.. 5.7 rating? Never heard it before but I like it way more than that!!
Got a strong "John Lennon scream therapy" sort of vibe...
recorded music's ability to resurrect a snapshot of an artist's life always wows me... eternal legacy esp. if encoded out into the universe on the ole EM spectrum
Have never heard this, or of him/this band. Sounds like a speeded up version of Led Zepplin.
I wonder how many on here know what the tokoloshe is lmfao
 wgsu_1978 wrote:
Interesting to hear this, but doesn't hold a candle to "He's Gonna Step On You Again".
 

Was just thinking, did the Happy Mondays cover this?  Or just use part of it ^^ that song?
 Johnny_Wave wrote:
I'll repeat my comment from almost 10 years ago - this still blows chunks.   A 1 from me
 

I gave it a 2.  Must have been feeling charitable.
 sdn wrote:
I thought this was The Who until I looked.
 
I thought it was Ludovico Einaudi.
Noddy Holder?
please make it stop!
Slade!!!!!!
This can't end soon enough. 
Liking this one
Get up and dance. Just a suggestion.

reindeer wrote:
This is such a repetitive and uninspired song.  Ugh.

 


The voice is irritatingly gulpy & the ending of the song has a kitchen sink quality to it.  

It's nice to hear it start but it's just as nice to hear it end.
Cum on feel the noize!
 yes{#Smile}On_The_Beach wrote:
Gettin' a bit of a CCR "Ramble Tamble" vibe; only not as good.

 


I remember him from decades ago, High school 70s, love the grinding beat and it's always a celebration.
Never heard of this guy before but was impressed enough to follow the iTunes Link, only to be told it wasn't available in the Ireland iTunes store. grrr. Will follow it up elsewhere - keep lifting the musical rocks for us to find the gems under! 
Gettin' a bit of a CCR "Ramble Tamble" vibe; only not as good.
 ajlept wrote:

Turned up to 11.

 
Indeed
 
As soon as I heard this I thought "Come With Me Now". Go figure... his kids.
This is such a repetitive and uninspired song.  Ugh.
 andrea924 wrote:
From the lost songs of David St. Hubbins.
 
Turned up to 11.
I'll repeat my comment from almost 10 years ago - this still blows chunks.   A 1 from me
 canadapaul wrote:
I like it: its got that sloppy groove that just rumbles along happily.

 
Nice post, my friend.  Takes me back to my younger years when everything was sloppy.
Tikoloshe, ist ein zwergenhaftes, böses Fabelwesen in der Mythologie der Zulu.
This song is awesome and inspired me to listen to the rest of this album.  The rest of the album is pretty different and for the most part does not rock this hard, but still seemed interesting enough to be worth some more listening.  I kept thinking this guy reminds me of a cross between John Lennon and Billy Joel.
Whew, new to me — different. I think I like it.
Interesting to hear this, but doesn't hold a candle to "He's Gonna Step On You Again".

No.

 

And especially not early in the morning.


What a gem! Thank you so much. Listened to this album in 1971 when I was a sophomore in high school. Awesome, awesome, awesome!!
I saw john Kongos' sons' band, Kongos, when visiting Salt Lake City last month. They put on a damn fine show. And finished with this song. Very cool.   
In case you were wondering:

 "In Zulu mythologyTikolosheTokoloshe or Hili is a dwarf-like water sprite. It is considered a mischievous and evil spirit that can become invisible by drinking water. Tokoloshes are called upon by malevolent people to cause trouble for others. At its least harmful a tokoloshe can be used to scare children, but its power extends to causing illness and even death upon the victim. The way to get rid of him is to call in the n’anga (witch doctor), who has the power to banish him from the area"
 sdn wrote:
I thought this was The Who until I looked.

 
I think it wants to be a Who song when it grows up.
headache,,,must ,,take,,, motrin
Way before my time, but I'm very much diggin' it. 
MUTE....<comes back in a few minutes>...still going. MUTE. {#Eek}
From the lost songs of David St. Hubbins.

I thought this was The Who until I looked.
One of those songs that I forgot I remembered from my youth. Lotta fun. Thanks Bill, you always remind of when FM radio used to be cool.
 Jimmy86 wrote:
I thought this was Slade for a moment! Not bad, not bad a'tall!
 
Same here, never heard these guys before, love it by the way!
I like John Kongos, but he should really fire that soprano sax player noodling hopelessly.
No more coffee for John Kongos!
rocklandlove wrote:
Dreadful. I'd rather hear John Lennon, since that's clearly what he's after. Maybe wouldn't even want to hear this from Lennon!

Stoopid, unnecessary comment! (Why bring Lennon into it, ffs? Some people talk about the bloke as though he were friggin' Jesus!)

This is a good song, with a great band, really well delivered: so 7.

Don't be so damn' "intellectual" man!

 OldFrenchie wrote:

very bad
 
very very bad

Just goes on and on...{#Headache}
Dude must have anger issues.  Just incomprehensible yelling.  Terrible.
I want to put the Tokoloshe Man in a jar with Donovan's Hurdy Gurdy Man, shake it up and watch them fight!
Dreadful. I'd rather hear John Lennon, since that's clearly what he's after. Maybe wouldn't even want to hear this from Lennon!

aaaahhhhh!!!!!!! The Goodness.
 
5.6?  Really?

Gotta be at least a 7 for the drums alone.
curtkare:  I'm pretty sure you're kidding about ELO, but, you're kidding, right?

 
curtkare wrote:

Hence the reason we love RP!  You'll never hear this overblown 70's Lennon knockoff shite anywhere else... Play me some ELO!
 


I like this! It's new to me.  Then, maybe things are too boring out in the heartland.
I like this!
Damn, will this ever end??

Just terrible. 
What a fun old gem!  Thanks Bill!
 walkerpub wrote:
Maybe the last place on earth that plays John Kongos...
 
Hence the reason we love RP!  You'll never hear this overblown 70's Lennon knockoff shite anywhere else... Play me some ELO!
 Jimmy86 wrote:
I thought this was Slade for a moment! Not bad, not bad a'tall!
  When I first heard it,  Slade came into my mind also.


sounds like hairy 70s rock mash with too much going on, is this a supergroup jam thing?
PeterRigg wrote:
Bad.
very bad
I thought this was Slade for a moment! Not bad, not bad a'tall!
As if John Lennon had jammed with ZZ Top. Pretty special, I give it an 8.
In Zulu mythology, Tikoloshe, Tokoloshe or Hili (from the Xhosa word utyreeci ukujamaal) is a dwarf-like water sprite. They have only one arm and one leg, the face of an old man on a boy's body. They are considered a mischievous and evil spirit. They can become invisible by swallowing a pebble. (In case anyone cares...!)
Bad.
pinto wrote:
Sounds like an angry Lindsey Buckingham
you are right but at least LB you can understand the words
calray wrote:
great song very underrated by RP listeners... not sure why...
Ditto.
cathenley wrote:
Sounds like John Lennon to me...a bit...
Dontcha mean looks like John Lennon a bit? (and uses an echo like JL) Aside, from that -- g-r-r-r-eat - "sloppy groove" is right - real chair-bouncing stuff.
I like it: its got that sloppy groove that just rumbles along happily.
japanmoran wrote:
Make it stop!
X2
no
For a minute I thought it was Slade.
This guy works better with this song... Sounds like John Lennon to me...a bit...
I don\'t care if I can\'t understand him; it gets me rockin\' out at my desk!
Sounds like Slade, bad 70\'s Glam rock with tartan outfits. Yu bold!
pannaramma wrote:
You got my vote. Jeez- really bad.
Please try again when you are in a different mood--rebellious, cranky, ready to cut loose after an uptight day in a tightlaced office with unimaginative accountant types! You might feel differently!
Wow, why is everyone so down on this song? I think it's pretty catchy
Groovy'ish ?
Sounds like an angry Lindsey Buckingham
Maybe the last place on earth that plays John Kongos...
CRAZY lyrics, interesting legend
The voice reminds me of how the lead singer of Midnight Oil used his voice on "Beds are Burning" in the earlier part. Otherwise, this is very 70s, Lennonesque.
great song very underrated by RP listeners... not sure why...
Make it stop!
Arun wrote:
Oh my gawd that was bad! Is there a way to get stuff voted off the list? Like forever.
You got my vote. Jeez- really bad.
Oh my gawd that was bad! Is there a way to get stuff voted off the list? Like forever.
dogdokken wrote:
Sounds like Slade and Mott the Hoople, but not as slick.
Exactly like Slade. More like Slade than Quiet Riot.
Roverfish wrote:
I'm officially serving notice that I would like the last 5 minutes of my life back. What a waste of a song.
I agree! I think this thing (it ain't music) is awful. It's like one of those awful hypersonic tv commercials by an over enthusiastic fast talking loud muscle bound man selling exercise equipment.
this is good - but the anthemic he's gonna step on you - is just too dam good - got the actual vinyl in the collection somewhere.
mojoman wrote:
These lyrics are more significant when you consider that he's South African writing during the deep dark days of Apartheid.
Additional info from Wikipedia (click here):
The Tokoloshe, or Tikoloshe, according to the Zulu shaman Credo Mutwa, is widely known as a bear-like humanoid being ... The Tokoloshe myth is well known and feared in most southern African countries. Many people place their beds on bricks in order to lift them higher off the ground so that the Tokoloshe cannot hide underneath and attack them. Some people are afraid to mention its name.
Sounds like a scary dude!
Sounds like Slade and Mott the Hoople, but not as slick.
At first I wanted to protest this nauseating change of pace, but as I was typing I realized my foot was tapping...hmmm...
This pretty much blows big chunks
Thought I was listening to Foghat for a moment there. Get down...get back up again.
I define this as a wannabe Zepplen gone miserably..horribly..terribly wrong....
Welcome to Thrash aerobics.....feel the burn