Africa (The Toto Song in Latin)

A Classics Take on a Classic 80s Song

[Editor’s Note: Students have been asking for a Latin version of Toto’s “Africa” ever since the Weezer cover came out in 2018. But the difficulty of the lyrics slowed down the production of a Latin version. I sent a small fragment of a version of the chorus (“beat[i] imbres in Africa”) to Jason Pedicone, who composed the version you see below, which was used for Living Latin in Rome 2019. Not completely satisfied with the results, it received some more edits this fall. It’s a difficult song — how does one say “her moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me toward salvation” in one Latin line? It’d be hard to do better than “speculo alarum vidi stellas me servantes” (“in the mirror of her wings I saw the stars that are saving me”). As far as singing the song goes, it should be prepped and practiced beforehand. The original and this Latin version both have large numbers of quick syllables: right from the beginning, you have to get four quick syllables out (“Ego REso”) and later “utpote” is almost disyllabic it has to be so fast (matching the original “as sure as,” which sounds like “sure as”). The chorus can be done effectively only with practice, but it’s worth it.]

AFRICA (Toto)(Painch/Porcaro)(tr. Pedicone/Kuhner)[1981]

Ego resonare tympana

Sub noct’ audio sed illa modo murmurantes

Advolat nocte media

Speculo alarum vidi stellas me servantes

Senem in via constiti

Carmina neglecta quaesitans vel verba vetera

Vertit ut dicturus mihi “Propera, expectat te, puer”

[chorus]

Vix me posses a te distrahere

Hoc non possent sescenti vel plures agere

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

Tempus erat numquam habenda facere-e-e-e-e-e-e (utique)

Ululant catuli foras

Inquieti avium convivium volentes

Et faciendum’st mihi fas

Utpote Kilimanjaro surgens par Olympo imminet Serenghetis

Conor ut intus medicer, timeo ne ips’ ego fiam

[chorus]

Vix me posses a te distrahere

Hoc non possent sescenti vel plures agere

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

Tempus erat numquam habenda facere-e-e-e-e-e-e (utique)

[instrumentis]

Propera, expectat te, puer

Vix me posses a te distrahere

Hoc non possent sescenti vel plures agere

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

(Beat’ imbres)

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

(Beat’ imbres)

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

Benedic’ imbres in Africa

Tempus erat numquam habenda petere (utique)