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Gimme Hope Jo'anna

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"Gimme Hope Jo'anna"
Single by Eddy Grant
from the album File Under Rock
B-side"Say Hello to Fidel"
Released1988 (1988)
RecordedBlue Wave Studios, Saint Philip, Barbados
GenreWorldbeat
Length4:04
LabelParlophone/EMI
Songwriter(s)Eddy Grant
Producer(s)Eddy Grant
Eddy Grant singles chronology
"Boys in the Street"
(1984) 		"Gimme Hope Jo'anna"
(1988) 		"Harmless Piece of Fun"
(1988)
Music video
"Gimme Hope Jo'anna" on YouTube
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Number One[1]

"Gimme Hope Jo'anna" is a British anti-apartheid song written and originally released by Guyanese-British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Eddy Grant in 1988, during the apartheid era in South Africa. The song was banned by the South African government when it was released, but was widely played there nonetheless.[2] It reached number seven on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Grant's first British top 10 hit for five years.[3]

Background

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Eddy Grant is a Guyanese-British singer.[2] He had chart hits in the 1980s, his most recent one prior to this single in 1984. "Gimme Hope Jo'anna" was targeted at the South African apartheid National Party government and apartheid culture after Grant had visited Africa.[2] It included several references to South African culture. The song ends on an optimistic note of hope that the apartheid system would end soon, which it ultimately did in 1991.[4] The song was Grant's first release in over a year.[5]

Production

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"Gimme Hope Jo'anna" was not originally envisaged to become a hit.[6] The song gained international attention and charted at number 7 in the UK Singles Charts and at number 1 in a number of European countries.[6] It did not chart in the United States.[6] It gained widespread popularity in the United Kingdom.[7] The National Party government banned the song in South Africa upon release.[8]

Lyrics

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Though the lyrics are worded as if the singer is addressing a person, "Jo'anna" is a reference to Johannesburg, the largest city in South Africa and symbolic of the apartheid government.[9] "The preacher who works for Jesus, the Archbishop who's a peaceful man" is a reference to the Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town Desmond Tutu, who received the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize for his fight against apartheid.[10] The song references Durban, Soweto, the Province of the Transvaal,[10] and was declared as the "national anthem of Mitchells Plain".[11] It expressed hope for change in South Africa.[12]

Reception

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Bill Coleman from Billboard described the song as "sprightly pop with a meaningful anti-apartheid message".[13] Kate Davies from Number One noted that here, "he's taken the exquisite flavour of southern African music and shaped it into a bouncy song which no one will be able to hear without singing along to. Listen carefully to the lyrics—thought provoking stuff."[1] Its inclusion on Grant's 1990 album, Barefoot Soldier, was considered by Pensacola News Journal as a good song on a "pedestrian" album.[14] Roger Morton from Record Mirror wrote, "Eddy is still proving that he's got balls by re-entering the pop fray with an anti-apartheid single ('Jo'Anna' as in Johannesburg) which will no doubt be considered 'too political' by radio. Seek it out then, for as well as being right-on-brother it's a grinning piece of Afro-dance blessed as ever with Sir Edmond's infectious pop touch."[15] The song was Grant's last major hit to date.

It was sung at an African National Congress (ANC) rally at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town before the 1994 South African general election, despite the ANC DJ attempting to get people to sing other peace hymns.[11] The National Party used it during their campaign for the 1994 South African general election, despite having previously banned it.[16] In 2008 Grant was invited to perform the song at the Nelson Mandela 90th Birthday Tribute, held in Hyde Park, London, Grant's first live stage performance for twenty years.[2][17] He said that though the lyrics were outdated for their original meaning, they were still relevant due to cases of black South Africans attacking black Zimbabwean immigrants in the Alexandra township.[2] Later in the year, he was invited to perform the song in Hindi for the final of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament.[18] In 2021, Grant said that "Gimme Hope Jo'anna" was the song he was the most proud of due to its widespread recognition and that people understood what it was about.[17] A reviewer in The Age said the song was "possibly the most appealing anti-apartheid song since The Special AKA's "Free Nelson Mandela".[19] On release, The Guardian said it "promises moderately well" and that "it's not quite Electric Avenue", Grant's earlier release, "but he can still bash out a good tune".[5]

Later adaptions

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In 2004, McCann-Erickson adopted a version of "Gimme Hope Jo'anna" as an advertising jingle for Yoplait's Yop yoghurt drink in the United Kingdom, adapted to "Gimme Yop, Me Mama", sung with Jamaican accents.[20][21][22] There was criticism for Grant allowing his song to be used in such a way, with The Telegraph saying it had been "bastardised".[2] The Guardian stated they felt some might find it inappropriate that an anti-apartheid anthem had been appropriated to sell yoghurts but acknowledged the main reason for the song was no longer relevant.[23] Grant reportedly used the money from the campaign to help found his record label Ice Records with the intention of mentoring Caribbean musicians.[2] Grant stated in 2018 it was easier to gain money from advertising than from record sales in modern times.[24] The company later used the same advert in Canada.[25]

The song was adopted by fans of the Wales national football team as a football chant, for their midfielder Joe Allen, titled "Give Me Hope Joe Allen", during their UEFA Euro 2016 campaign.[26] In 2017, the British tabloid newspaper The Sun adapted the lyrics of the song into "Give Us Hope Johanna", to support the British tennis player Johanna Konta at Wimbledon and encouraged people to sing the new lyrics.[27] The Namibian Sun also did the same for the Namibian Paralympic athlete Johanna Benson in 2020, in preparation for the 2020 Summer Paralympics, which were later postponed.[28]

Track listings

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  • 7-inch single
  1. "Gimme Hope Jo'Anna" – 3:47
  2. "Say Hello to Fidel" – 4:41
  • 12-inch maxi
  1. "Gimme Hope Jo'Anna"
  2. "Say Hello to Fidel"
  3. "Living on the Frontline" (live version)

Charts and certifications

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References

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  1. ^ a b Davies, Kate (16 January 1988). "Singles". Number One. p. 42. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "How Eddy Grant gave hope to South Africa". The Telegraph. 27 June 2008. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  3. ^ "Eddy Grant". Official UK Chart. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  4. ^ Masterson, James. Charts Watch UK - Hits of 1988. Independent. ISBN 9780463270998.
  5. ^ a b "A great voice of Africa". The Guardian. 22 January 1988. Retrieved 4 July 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ a b c Wuench, Kevin (11 June 2016). Racial emotions stirred in Eddy Grant's 'Gimme Hope Jo'anna'. Retrieved 4 July 2021. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  7. ^ "Hope springs eternal, but for it to flourish it must be shared". The Guardian. 27 December 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  8. ^ "30 Incredible songs inspired by places". American Express. June 2021. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  9. ^ "Empathy for the Enemy and the Oppressed: Political Pop Songs from the Eighties". Global Voices. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  10. ^ a b Wenhui, Qi (2006). Spoken English (in Chinese). Tsinghua University Press. pp. 128–129. ISBN 9787302126331.
  11. ^ a b Martin, Denis (1999). Coon Carnival: New Year in Cape Town : Past to Present. New Africa Books. p. 163. ISBN 9780864864482.
  12. ^ Williams, Elizabeth (2015). The Politics of Race in Britain and South Africa. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 160. ISBN 9780857726087.
  13. ^ Coleman, Bill (31 March 1990). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. p. 78. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  14. ^ "Barefoot Soldier". Pensacola News Journal. 12 June 1990. Retrieved 4 July 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Morton, Roger (16 January 1988). "Singles". Record Mirror. p. 13. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  16. ^ "Songs of Freedom". The Guardian. 10 May 1994. Retrieved 4 July 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ a b "Eddy Grant incapable of making 'dud' music". Metro. 11 June 2021. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  18. ^ "Eddy Grant meets Bollywood". Stabroek News. 23 May 2009. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  19. ^ "File under Rock". The Age. 10 June 1988. Retrieved 4 July 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Yop - Me Mama". YouTube. 16 May 2009.
  21. ^ "Yop seeks a place at breakfast table | News". The Grocer. 3 April 2004. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  22. ^ Lee, Jeremy (28 April 2004). "McCann relaunches Yoplait Yop drink". Campaign Live. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  23. ^ Delaney, Sam (16 July 2005). "The hard sell: Yop". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  24. ^ Wintle, Angela (20 April 2018). "Eddy Grant: 'These days, advertising is worth more than hit records'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 9 July 2021.
  25. ^ Krashninsky, Susan (23 December 2015). "'Yop Fuels' campaign yielding profit from ambitious Generation Z teens". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  26. ^ Owens, David (3 July 2016). "13 Welsh football songs you need to know before Wales' Euro 2016 semi final". Wales Online. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  27. ^ "Newspaper headlines: 'Give us hope Johanna' and Brexit 'threat'". BBC News. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  28. ^ "Give us hope Johanna". Namibian Sun. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  29. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  30. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  31. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  32. ^ Danish Singles Chart. 27 May 1988.
  33. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 5, no. 28. 9 July 1988. p. 14. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  34. ^ Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  35. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  36. ^ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Eddy Grant".
  37. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 15, 1988" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  38. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  39. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  40. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  41. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  42. ^ "Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  43. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  44. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  45. ^ * Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: singles chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  46. ^ "Jahreshitparade Singles 1988" (in German). Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  47. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1988" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  48. ^ "1988 Year End Eurocharts" (PDF). Music & Media. 1 January 1988. p. 30. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  49. ^ "TOP - 1988". Top.france.free.fr. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  50. ^ "Single top 100 over 1988" (PDF) (in Dutch). Top40. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
  51. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1988" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  52. ^ "End of Year Charts 1988". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 4 April 2018.
  53. ^ "Swiss Year-End Charts 1988" (in German). Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  54. ^ "Top 100 Singles: Year-End Chart 1988". Music Week. 4 March 1989. p. 12.
  55. ^ "Top 100 Singles–Jahrescharts 1988" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  56. ^ "French single certifications – Eddy Grant – Gimme Hope Jo'anna" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved 9 April 2022. Select EDDY GRANT and click OK. 
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