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After a creative spurt of two books and two CDs in the space of two years, Koos Kombuis has come to the point in his life where he needed to step back and look at the bigger picture.
"I have had some surprising reactions to my recent biography of the Voelvry era," he admitted. "Instead of bringing musicians together for a common purpose, it has caused more divisions. It seems as if not everyone remembers that era in the same way, and the differences of opinion are far greater than I imagined."
Koos says that he felt that musicians needed a larger focus to help them forget about local politics, the past, and the old forms of protest. "The issues at stake right now are so much bigger than the things which divided us in the past. It is no longer relevant to worry about who did what to whom, and who disliked whom, for whatever reason. We are living in a time of global crisis."
Koos set about rewriting the lyrics of the famous "Fokkol Song", and produced an entirely new text, "Die Groen Fokkol Song", which addresses global warming and other relevant problems.
The song was an instant hit with audiences, and Koos sent our editor, Jean Barker a Twitter message, suggesting a possible MP3 release. When Jean suggested he did a proper studio recording of the new song, Koos got the brainwave to use the same instrumental track which was used on the original "Fokkol Song" on the Bloedrivier album.
How does he respond to people who say his more recent work is "negative" about the new South Africa? "In spite of the problems we still face in SA, I am beginning to feel quite positive about the 2010 Soccer thing. Hopefully, the old Fokkol Song is outdated by now" says Koos. "Kids seem to like it, though of course I hope they read more into these songs than just the swear words. When my own kids heard the first "Fokkol Song" (by mistake), I had to sit down and explain to them exactly why I sang like that. For a while, they thought its OK to swear as long as you sing, and they'd break into song every time they wanted to use a naughty word. But by now, the novelty's worn off, I think. I hope. "That track belonged to us, but in an emotional sense it still also belongs to everyone who worked on the original recording," he adds. "I hope it will serve as a reminder that, even if we disagree about the past, we definitely agree about the future. I hope this is a wakeup call to all Afrikaans-speaking people to make them realise that they, too, are part of a world-wide community of nations, and that they are co-responsible for the welfare of our planet.
"The Groen Fokkol Song" is a cry of help, not on behalf of SA, but on behalf of the whole world. The problems facing Planet Earth are far more serious than whether we like Malema or not, or what people think of the new ANC leather jackets. Local issues like crime and corruption are still worth addressing, but they fade into insignificance when compared to stuff like the Haiti earthquake..."
Right, so what 'Fokkol' franchise can we expect next? "Fokkol more" he chuckles. "This is the Grand Finale of Fokkol."
What do you think of Koos' new song? Listen to and download an MP3 of "Die Groen Fokkol Song" for FREE by clicking HERE. Then post your thoughts and opinions below.
