Hugh Masekela

The man's doin' it -- and live, in South Africa's Market Theatre. Not that the venue matters when one of the lions of world jazz/soul/Afrobeat takes the stage. The world's best-known living trumpeter spreads his wings here, playing everything from extended Afrobeat jams (he covers Fela's "Lady") to traditional South African songs, all underscored by the joyful politics of a man who's seen his homeland freed in his lifetime. A trumpeter of incomparable skill, Masekela's no slouch in the singing department, either, and his versatility provides one of the unexpected delights of the release.