tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71887194559269291072024-03-17T11:30:08.862+02:00Afro-SynthSouth African bubblegum/disco from the 80s & early 90sDJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comBlogger716125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-48917559871732913122023-12-13T13:28:00.003+02:002023-12-14T14:04:26.593+02:00Interview with Danny Bridgens, producer of PT House<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG2udy_d00zN7VZTkiBErfoEGxmWUhrYZVvxoUxDJRV364wcKUpp4VBQk2xvMZ7Bwoj4KnC36HDMk89pnsFvWSsG1I8W5MBWdwk-ko76oM9TTqZLi3KD9Z9l7hncNb7afO-ebuifUmnqILe-Qt51bQDsCSqQRg_8Rokxg-x0cT1eSlCn0dijQbHYyDBwg/s302/danny%20bridgens%202%20via%20vetera.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="302" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG2udy_d00zN7VZTkiBErfoEGxmWUhrYZVvxoUxDJRV364wcKUpp4VBQk2xvMZ7Bwoj4KnC36HDMk89pnsFvWSsG1I8W5MBWdwk-ko76oM9TTqZLi3KD9Z9l7hncNb7afO-ebuifUmnqILe-Qt51bQDsCSqQRg_8Rokxg-x0cT1eSlCn0dijQbHYyDBwg/s1600/danny%20bridgens%202%20via%20vetera.png" width="302" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo: viavetera.com</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><i>Producer Danilo 'Danny' Bridgens established himself in the 1980s as a session guitarist for the likes of Yvonne Chaka Chaka and Margino, also releasing as The Stone and Leroy Stone. By the early 90s he was experimenting in his studio with new house influences, including working with Nelson Phetole Mohale on PT House. The pair drew influence from US & UK hip-house contemporaries but were determined to give their sound a local flavour, as well as a positive vibe that looked forward to a brighter future as democracy dawned in South Africa. Bridgens currently lives in California, US. The following is a Zoom interview conducted on September 20 2023, it has been edited for clarity.</i></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How did you get into music and production?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I grew up in Linmeyer, an area in the south of Johannesburg ... I started in garage bands and stuff like that. And in those days we all had to go to the army, so I went to the army. While I was in the army, it was the weirdest thing, I managed to wangle a transfer to the entertainment unit, where I met a lot of guys… and then as we left the army, there was a guy called Gary van Zyl, who was starting a band, and he was about 10 years older than me.. he’d had success in the club scene… I don’t know how they found out about me but he came to find me and Franco Del Mei, a drummer I played with, and Eric Bush (?), and we started a club band. That’s when I got into the professional thing.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Gary was the best guy to have as a leader of your first band, because he would kick your butt! We were gonna get ready for our first gig, and we gotta learn 40 songs or whatever, and boy, he would hand you the cassette, ‘know these songs by tomorrow’. You’d do your homework at night, and the next day, you’d know them. I still remember the first solo I took, I took a solo – I think it was on ‘Baker Street’ – it was one of those songs… and he stopped the band and he said to me, ‘What the hell was that?’ And I said, ‘It’s my solo’. And he said, ‘Don’t play crap, man’! He’d crack the whip! And it was professional. We started at 10, we had lunch, and we had tea. It was so pro, it was the best education into the professional world I could have. I’m still grateful for that, to this day, because he just whipped me into shape.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So I was doing clubs, the usual club thing, I played in PE, Durban, the usual thing. But I got married, and while we had our first baby, we could still travel. But when my wife fell pregnant with our second baby, we knew we couldn’t stay on the road, so that’s when I looked for opportunities to try and get into the studio, by becoming a session player. And that took a while, it took almost a year to get the first call, before I could even get in. And then it slowly progressed from there. I was a session player for quite a few years. But I really wanted to be a producer-writer guy. That’s really what I wanted to be. Once I discovered that studio world, it was like, ‘Playing is great, but there’s so many good players.’ So I really wanted to get into writing and producing.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We had a little band in the army, because you know we were the entertainment unit, we were playing all over … and a friend of mine, the keyboard player in our band, wrote this song.. and I thought the music was great but the lyric wasn’t so great, and whatever. I couldn’t remember what it was. But we wrong this song, and we started playing the song live. And I don’t know if you remember a guy called Richard Loring, back then we was like a cabaret kind of guy. We played this song, and he would hire us to back him up on different gigs. And he said ‘man, I really like that song, can I record it?’ And so he put it on an album of his. Zane Cronje was the producer at the time, and he invited my friend Craig, who’d written the song, to the studio on the day they recorded. And the thing about it for me was, they were playing the song and I realized that because I’d done the music, they were playing a wrong chord in the one part. So I went to the producers, when they were playing, and said ‘this chord’s wrong, it should be this and not that’. So he said, ‘Just go quickly into the studio and tell the okes to change that chord, while I carry on doing some stuff here.’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I went in there, and they were all my heroes, playing in the studio. All the guys that I was going to watch, they were all in the studio. And I said to them, ‘by the way, that chord..’ So they all went, ‘ja, sure, we’ll change the chord’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I realised when I was standing outside that door at that moment that I was nobody, but because I’d written the song, they had to listen to what I had to say … and so the power and influence of the writer/producer just hit me like a ton of bricks that day. So once I got into studio, that’s what I wanted to be. I wanted to be in that writing/producing role., so that I could have that influence, so I could be part of that.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">***</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Fast-forward, my wife and I went overseas to America in 1980 for one year. We were gone for about 18 months. And then I came back. And you know, when you live in America, all you hear is American music. It’s amazing, but it’s all you hear. And of course I’d grown up with rock n roll and all that stuff, the usual – the Beatles and all that. But when I cam back, I ran into my friend Gary van Zyl again, the guy who was playing bass (in the army band). And he was playing bass with <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Juluka" target="_blank">JULUKA</a> — Johnny Clegg and Sipho Mchunu. He said, ‘We’re playing this gig, man, you must come and watch it.’</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And I went, and it blew me away. African music, and in particular South African music, that blew me away. It’s like from that day on, nothing else mattered … The realisation of the power of that, especially when you’ve been so inundated for the longest time by all forms of American music. And you hear that. For me — I guess not everybody responds to it that way — it blew me away. That’s all I wanted to do. I sat down and started trying to play Zulu guitar, trying to do all of that.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">***</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I had a band called <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Taxi" target="_blank">TAXI</a> … Taxi was my first attempt at getting into that space. But I couldn’t be an imitator; I had to kind of go in the way I knew how to go in, at least. Attie (van Wyk) produced our first album. And our first gigs were all like in shebeens in Katlehong township and places like that … and eventually we were playing all those things – we were playing Soweto and Alexandra, we were playing Thembisa.. New Brighton in PE. That was all that we were doing. It was among the best experiences of my life, just playing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And it was really weird, you know. I still remember in Ga-Rankuwa, we were playing there at the University in Bophuthatswana, and in this sort of sea of black South Africans, and us four were the only little white guys in the whole place — and loving every moment of it. And even in those dangerous days — because they were dangerous days, in the 80s — they looked after us. I remember we were playing a club in Thembisa, and we were doing well. But some of the guys in the crowd came to us and said, ‘listen, the bad types have just showed up here. We think you should go’. So we packed up our gear and left. So they looked after us and they kind of took care of us, while we were playing the music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;">***</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;">Eventually, as part of that whole progression, I ended up starting a little studio. I started at a little studio in Joburg from a guy called Adrian Strydom. He had this whole studio and it had a little room at the bottom, he was subletting that studio.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I started a little demo studio so that guys would come in and record their demos. And that’s how I learnt to record. I learnt how to actually work the desk and do all the stuff. I was programming, all that stuff. I called it Kitchen Sync. Because the very first demos I did were in my kitchen… that’s how I came up with the name. The first year, I took over the breakfast nook in a kitchen. I took all the furniture out and put some gear there.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And it was actually after that, the progression was out of Taxi and that, then working in studio, then eventually I started my own thing. So all my original demos there in the kitchen was stuff I was doing with Taxi.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Then I ended up moving to something a little bit more professional. The studio was called Syntrax. He gave me the opportunity. He said ‘look, I looking to rent this space’. So I took the chance and I moved my gear in there.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I started to do demos. And I particularly wanted to be involved in South African black music. I wasn’t into the rock and roll thing, or anything like that… I started to slowly make connections with different record companies</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[You worked at Dephon with big names like Yvonne Chaka Chaka and Margino, what was that like?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was on <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Yvonne%20Chaka%20Chaka" target="_blank">YVONNE</a>'S first track, ‘I’m in Love with a DJ’ – I’m the voice of the DJ.. I pretend to be this DJ: ‘I’m Leroy Stone…’ So I thought maybe we could use that character (for a solo album). And it actually did well. I remember doing a tour of Zimbabwe with Yvonne, I played with her and we did a tour of different parts of South Africa… I would do Taxi. She was always the headliner.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And then for those songs, she’d call me up and it was always this big shock that it was me who was the voice! For a while we were <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Margino" target="_blank">MARGINO</a>'s backing band. It was all coming out of that record company, Dephon. Attie was working for them, and Yvonne was signed to them, Taxi – they were distributing our stuff. So it was that connection. And Margino, Attie van Wyk had been producing her. So when she starting going live, for a while we were her backing band. So we’d back her, then we’d do our set.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNlHaV-QTbJpL6LL9D_-xOHw0hLe0LZvh8OxNAGktBTtxLDsII3dgGV-qnidw4r_R6lWELGnZSFwJQdjOjQ-L-nSJfxF7ug04yu3ShC7moMT5_-ZkUhX3M8JuhdcwIem7AU7eHE5gxm8ToXpFyT6hUJivns6f5Zz2Bvt42kW6ZkPM846uS80MNWijYYDk/s2942/danny%20bridgens%20the%20stone.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2942" data-original-width="2942" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNlHaV-QTbJpL6LL9D_-xOHw0hLe0LZvh8OxNAGktBTtxLDsII3dgGV-qnidw4r_R6lWELGnZSFwJQdjOjQ-L-nSJfxF7ug04yu3ShC7moMT5_-ZkUhX3M8JuhdcwIem7AU7eHE5gxm8ToXpFyT6hUJivns6f5Zz2Bvt42kW6ZkPM846uS80MNWijYYDk/s320/danny%20bridgens%20the%20stone.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Stone - Guilty (1985)</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We were very fortunate — I know we got in the top 10 a few times, two or three times maybe. And she [Margino] was big for a period of time. But Yvonne was just the queen of it all. She came into that scene and she took off like a bullet. To this day, she’s like that… all over Africa, not only South Africa.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was at least in the periphery. Because I think Attie produced that album. And they just needed someone to do that voice, you know. And at the time, one of the things I was doing was voiceovers. Because living in South Africa, you’ve got to do a whole lot of things if you want to make a living [from music]. So I was doing voiceovers, and because I’d lived in America I had a passable American accent — although when I listen back to it now, I think tjerrrr… terrible.. but ja —so Attie knew that I was doing that, and he said ‘listen, we need somebody to do this thing’. So I made that all up.. that part wasn’t written for me… he just said ‘we just need like a DJ kind of thing… So I came up with all that, Leroy Stone, just in the studio, we kind of did it there.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[Were you learning production from Attie at that time, like Chicco said he did?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was a beginner producer at that point. So by being in the studio with guys like that, that’s how you learn. You picked up, you started to learn how to do it. You started to learn about the engineers, and you learned how to do that. And I was always curious about that, so I used to ask a lot of questions, and I used to really pay attention. I used to love being in the studio, I really did. Because I’m an introvert, so the studio feels safe and small, as opposed to the stage. So I used to love being in the studio. And I loved everything about it. I loved the vibe of it, and I loved the collaboration and the interaction, love ‘how do we get that sound? How do we get the kick drum to sound like that?’ …<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And my session days helped me a lot with that… because what would happen is we would do the session, and a lot of the musicians would leave after they’d played, but I’d go hang out in the studio to listen, because I really wanted to know, I wanted to watch the guys working and doing their stuff.. and that’s how I learnt...</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So Attie, certainly, I learnt a lot from him. Especially I loved the way he ran his sessions.. everything was really relaxed, but professional.. ‘OK, we’re moving on to this next thing’.. stuff like that. He was one of the guys I learnt from, among others.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[Were politics front of mind in studio, or not so much?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Look, it was impossible to live in South Africa at the time and not be aware of what was happening… Especially, once again, being out of South Africa, and you come back and suddenly everything looks really stark, the way it is. But you kind of feel helpless, you know, like what can I do? What can’t I do? And I fell in love with South African music. For me, it was a natural progression to get to know guys and to do music together… For me it wasn’t a political statement; it was like, I’m meeting these guys, we’re having such a good time..</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I remember doing a bunch of recordings of traditional music, like traditional Zulu guitar, and Sotho musicians, and stuff like that. And just the vibe of that, just being connected to all of that was amazing. And the conversations.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I remember being on a plane once, going to Mozambique, I was filling in for <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/PJ%20Powers" target="_blank">PJ POWERS</a>’ band, I was playing guitar in her band, and we flew on a little private plane, with Sipho Mchunu’s band. So it was just us, PJ’s band and Sipho’s band. I’d been listening diligently to a lot of this stuff [traditional Zulu guitar music] and he was one of my heroes, you know. So I couldn’t believe I was on the plane with him. When you listen to Zulu music, a lot of Zulu music, there’s like an intro that doesn’t seem like it’s got anything to do with the song, it’s like a little thing [of it’s own]… So I remember going to Sipho and saying ‘excuse me, mr Mchunu, I’ve always wanted to ask you this question – what is that about? How does that work?’ And he just laughed, and he said to me, ‘Listen, all I’m doing is I’m saying I’m beginning here, now you must get in. Now you must get in, I’m just letting you know we’re going to play, and now you must get in’… So it wasn’t like a heavily rehearsed thing, it’s like a setup, and then he’d give the nod and the band would come in.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So it was always unbelievable. I learnt a lot from his records, the Juluka records. And because I was recording like Zulu guitarists and Sotho [musicians], the influence was huge. I couldn’t get enough of it, understanding how that all worked together … because that stuff had a certain way of working together. Whereas a lot of things in sort of pop music are ultra tight, there’s a looseness in that music that without it, it’s not alive, it’s not living. So it’s just awesome.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Now, the only political music I did was — I was and still am a Christian guy — there was a bunch of guys who invited me to a kind of collective called F<a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Friends%20First" target="_blank">RIENDS FIRST</a>, in Durban. And that was squarely aimed at making a political statement. It was a multiracial band. We had guys – one of my best friends to this day is Victor Masondo – a producer and writer and killer bass player. And so, that band was created specifically to make a statement… And actually the band was on the radio. We toured heavily, all over, all the townships.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How did PT House with Nelson Mohale come about?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So I’d already started doing some little projects for Maurice [Horwitz of Music Team]. And there were some projects where guys came to me to do demos. And if I thought they had something, I would go to somebody like Maurice and say, ‘Hey, I think this guy’s got something’. And they would listen and decide whether they wanna release it or not. I can’t remember if that’s what happened with Nelson, or if they sent him to me. I can’t remember how we met, but we did meet in my studio. The first time we met was in my studio.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">He had this idea for PT House. To this day, I still don’t know why it’s called PT House! I was just listening to the tracks in preparation for us being together, and I thought, but why was it called PT House? My job was to try and capture what he was thinking, this kind of sound, and then to try and create something that leaned South African. Because he was a rapper, right. So he’s rapping – and actually one thing I really remember was that he was [initially] rapping all in English. And I said to him, ‘Dude, you must actually do some stuff [that shows] where you’re from, man.’ And so he started to throw in what eventually kind of became a kind of street pidgin, where he was mixing up English and Sotho, where he was mixing up that kind of Soweto slang, and things like that. And I think that made it really unique.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I loved the fact that I felt like we were doing something a little new, because there weren’t a lot of rappers around then. I loved it because I thought we were kind of doing something that’s a known thing, the rap genre, and we were leaning it [to SA]. So that was kind of the challenge for me, to kind of create a musical setting for his rap ideas, and then move them into [SA]. Sometime he’d have an idea for a bassline, but I could never tell you who thought of what, because we worked so intricately together.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I know that probably my biggest influence was just like in a lot of the bridges of the songs, Felicia Marion on some of the tracks, and when you get to the female vocal, like in between the verses and stuff, you’ll hear that female vocal … those tended to be part of my contribution to kind of break the song up, so that it had these sung parts that created a particular atmosphere.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And then of course I kind of programmed everything. I literally wrote all the keyboard lines, the basslines, the drums, everything. I kind of came up with the majority of that. But sometimes he’d say, ‘Wait, I want something that feels like this’, and he’d play me something from a cassette. And I’d kind of take that and we’d adapt what we were doing to make it African.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was Mohale learning about production?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For sure. I’m pretty sure that was his first – if not the first, one of his first studio experiences.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[He was younger than you, right?]</b> Ja, about 10 years younger, at least.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How was ‘Big World’ received when it was released?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I’m not sure what happened with that. I did the first two albums.. I did <i>Big World</i> and <i>Big City Taste</i>. Actually, I like Big City Taste (more)… of the two albums, that’s the one I prefer… I think they’re both great, don’t get me wrong … If I listen back, it’s very 90s — you can hear the sounds – the sounds were very hip in the 90s..</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I’m proud of what we did. If I had to do it now, would it be exactly the same? The sounds would be different, whatever. But if I listen back to it now, I think that’s good work. I think we did good work, between him and I. there’s something to be proud of. There’s always room for improvement. But when you listen back with the perspective of what that was — you can’t have today’s ears and say, compared to… — you have to say, at that time, what was that like, at that time? And I think it had a space of its own, I think it was unique.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It got some play… [but] I think it was his third album, when we changed to Dr House… I think the first two kind of knocked the door open, and then the third one was the one that kind of took it bigger. So I’m happy to have been the guy to be part of the beginning of that journey.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>© 2023 Afrosynth</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Big World (AFS056) will be out in early 2024, reissued by Afrosynth Records. <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/big-world" style="color: #661199; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Pre-order it here</a>.</span></i></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-41127614058581674102023-12-08T10:32:00.005+02:002023-12-20T22:15:06.998+02:00Interview with Nelson Phetole Mohale, aka 'Dr House' <p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"></span></span></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIVcakpIOCzTNLosqSUzVYDuiL0f8J8bqnkaglbpkuqH4zbBCcCVf5XhfMMUMOBh-9jCfjx2hyphenhyphenaZvFRg5LxO61byVGhMT3L6sGhdkneDbtMc7P7o_Vc_mcFiiuidUGrWJ2L61X-hUTax7t3s6BFRxy9ARMpOrpQQgUX1vmYgR5Kv1zZQja8IaTBx2tlA4/s487/Dr%20House%202%20sq.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="486" data-original-width="487" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIVcakpIOCzTNLosqSUzVYDuiL0f8J8bqnkaglbpkuqH4zbBCcCVf5XhfMMUMOBh-9jCfjx2hyphenhyphenaZvFRg5LxO61byVGhMT3L6sGhdkneDbtMc7P7o_Vc_mcFiiuidUGrWJ2L61X-hUTax7t3s6BFRxy9ARMpOrpQQgUX1vmYgR5Kv1zZQja8IaTBx2tlA4/w400-h399/Dr%20House%202%20sq.jpeg" width="400" /></a></span></i></div><i><span style="font-family: arial;"><br />An influential figure on South Africa's early house and kwaito scene, Nelson Phetole Mohale released a series of albums as Dr House (most notably 'Mix To Groove') as well as Dr Mkhukhu. Cutting his teeth in the 80s as a session player for a host of big names like Volcano, Senyaka and Obed Ngobeni, he moved on to programming for acts like La Viva and Jivaro, also contributing to Carlos Djedje and others. Still barely out of his teens he became one of South Africa’s first rappers as part of PT House, co-written and produced by Danny Bridgens. Their debut album <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/2023/10/pt-house-big-world.html" target="_blank">Big World</a> was released in 1991 and followed by Big City Taste a year later.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></i><i><span style="font-family: arial;">The following is a telephone interview conducted in December 1 2023. It has been edited for clarity.</span></i><div><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">[How did you get started in music and who were your influences?]</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Thank you, and I thank God that I’m able to tell my story<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I could play any instrument from the age of 7, I could connect and plug in and play music, drums and everything. My father had a band at Turfloop University [now the University of Limpopo], so he brought all the instruments home. We played church songs, and my father was the one emphasising that I should always be online with everything that is happening [musically] in the house … including with the church songs. So we were always playing instruments, with my sisters and everything. My father actually donated that gene into us.</span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4k3HOfWOj3XMY0Xy1eshpxRP7KLBnsAiAeQvTbcVF8xISXdgf6_nFfTkFjATCNoQH4O8V0ux3DGSYHZ_6tBxrudZ6lka3-co-XCIJlsOEAMJSspudaHbhCoNi_j7tfR9U_9xReZCOA9nhy9TOPMtbcgqopJzrV1g-TmxpFtfmUdhKZSGvajzw7Mv9AcI/s709/jivaro.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="666" data-original-width="709" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4k3HOfWOj3XMY0Xy1eshpxRP7KLBnsAiAeQvTbcVF8xISXdgf6_nFfTkFjATCNoQH4O8V0ux3DGSYHZ_6tBxrudZ6lka3-co-XCIJlsOEAMJSspudaHbhCoNi_j7tfR9U_9xReZCOA9nhy9TOPMtbcgqopJzrV1g-TmxpFtfmUdhKZSGvajzw7Mv9AcI/w320-h301/jivaro.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nelson Mohale (middle) in Jivaro</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">My father – in 1950, the newspaper called The World wrote he was the first black man to achieve 99% in a BSc degree. He wrote that candidacy test, he got 98. The white people said to him, ‘you can never [do] something like this’, they made him write it [again] the next day, he got 99 % … The origins of music started from Turfloop, where my father was a good student. He made a record also. So I could declare that I’m a template of kwaito, because the genes that I come from are very strong.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I used to be involved in bubblegum music. I started at 14 years [old]. I worked with <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Obed%20Ngobeni" target="_blank">OBED NGOBENI & THE KURHULA SISTERS</a> – the original ‘Ku Hluvukile Ka Zet’. I could tell you so much, you’d never believe me! That’s why I say, I was always in control. I could play any musical instrument. I could play anything. It’s just that I’d never held a mic till 1991… when I said, let me [show] the images that come through to me, as God speaks to me and says, ‘Go do this’. It was very new, but remember at that time, the KABELO’s, the MANDOZA’s [future kwaito stars], they were in school, and they were actually miming to the songs during any concert.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So, the bubblegum years – I started playing background keyboards for <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Volcano" target="_blank">VOLCANO</a>, I played for <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Peter%20Maringa" target="_blank">PETER MARINGA</a>, I know I played for SENYAKA. But I was an instrumentalist. Then in 1987, I did my first production. We did all the programming for LA VIVA. Then, when you get to <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Jivaro" target="_blank">JIVARO</a>, we were listening to a lot of BOB MARLEY.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>We were listening to UK music, THE CHIMES, K.G.B., we would go as far as German house, before the ROBIN S’s, because that’s where the underground house came from [in SA] – we had exclusive music in Pimville, not in Soweto but in our area. We were sophisticated, we listened to J.M SILK – ‘I Can’t Turn Around’, if you remember, [TIMEX SOCIAL CLUB’s] ‘Rumors’ – ‘Look at all these rumors’. We listened to PET SHOP BOYS, we listened to ENIGMA, we listened to – I played it last weekend, because I DJ sometimes – ‘You take my self-control’ [LAURA BRANIGAN] …<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">House, for us, it became house, and we owned it, and we made social parties about the house that we played. There’s a lot of collections that people don’t play in Soweto that we listened to [in Pimville] – LOOSE ENDS, IMAGINATION, ANITA BAKER – OK sharp, everyone listened to that. But remember the [New] Jack Swing that came in, BOBBY BROWN, that’s when the TV started exposing black Africans overseas in control. </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">I’ve also recorded CARLOS DJEDJE - ‘Let’s love one another’. I did his album, I programmed it. That’s why I say, people [in the music industry] found me here as a 14-year-old. At 21 already I was in control, to say this thing can be done.</span><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: arial;"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I became a template of South African music. But I was pompous [arrogant]. But I remembered the words of Maurice Horwitz [from Music Team], who warned me about it. I don’t regret it though.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">[How did PT House come about?]</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">When I did PT House, I started in 1990, and I did it in the township. I had a small studio with some other friends, putting heads together. We were hoping to come with something that is ‘transitional’ writing, which means using the slang of any language, put together. </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">They needed something local, something for the youth, and at 21 the youth came to me. I took a chance. I met Maurice Horwitz, he was very kind to me, and he saw something in me. He took me [on] as a PRO [public relations officer] for the company [Music Team] … I was always a promotional man. My music thing was that I was always promoting myself, hence I say I was almost the first independent artist. So I was a PRO at Music Team, promoting other artists, from across [all] spheres of genres. Along the line, I’d never held a microphone in my life …</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: arial;"> </span><span style="font-family: arial;">then I decided to write – transitionally, taking the slang, to give this thing of where we come from, as a political youth – complaining, enquiring about things, but using music. Marketing ourselves, politically almost, through music.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE51DehsvrOHFzsDK7PCVAvIPAnUz3fnyaZNrQXFcUv7og6F4bTq5XgPZEI65IEbj_Ocd6qP8KoHL8CawDbv0trIMLRzd-EjvApj3F0bqEZZZSPcwjJoW3Z22xcuLs_QI6ys0ihOm3cQoGAkPXujfEJRwhaxEmyOt4bCAsWcZb6sJX_SOJdyesS1eSb3U/s889/la%20viva.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="889" data-original-width="709" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE51DehsvrOHFzsDK7PCVAvIPAnUz3fnyaZNrQXFcUv7og6F4bTq5XgPZEI65IEbj_Ocd6qP8KoHL8CawDbv0trIMLRzd-EjvApj3F0bqEZZZSPcwjJoW3Z22xcuLs_QI6ys0ihOm3cQoGAkPXujfEJRwhaxEmyOt4bCAsWcZb6sJX_SOJdyesS1eSb3U/w254-h320/la%20viva.jpg" width="254" /></a></p></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Nelson Mohale (in blue t-shirt) in La Viva</span></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Then PT House came through. Maurice met Danny [Bridgens], one of the greatest champions, which I acknowledge very much – and I acknowledge Maurice too, for all this. I’d never done that [make music] before … so those are the guys that gave me foresight into music.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I was always in control. PT House had four songs in different languages [on Big World] – English-Afrikaans mixed together, Zulu, Sotho, Tsotsitaal, mixed… That had never been heard of. Maurice said I was ahead of my time. Party rhythms/social rhythms, and then socio-economic [message], uniting South Africans — that was basically how the album was structured.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Maurice and I did something [with PT House], I appreciate him and I love him, and I’m still alive and kicking. I’m waiting for the day when I get my opportunity, to say, this is what I started – can we finish this?</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">[Where did you grow up and how did this influence your music?]</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I was born in Meadowlands, moved to Mapetla, then we came to Pimville [all parts of Soweto, johannesburg], which had the first houses [in Soweto] with the bathroom inside, that was 1980 or something, I can’t remember. When I grew up in Pimville, the schools were very relevant, it became a more developed area. I grew up here playing soccer and being a good student and athletic; a troublemaker. The most troubled man you could ever meet is me, even now I’m still on a journey, but I never give up.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Years ago I realized, as a child, I really stuck to myself. I could’ve been a statistic. But I’m here. I avoided being a statistic.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">In Pimville, the people around here, we have our own identification per language. It’s not like when you’re in Diepkloof [another part of Soweto] you can speak like a Pimvillian, so the idea [with PT House] was to put Pimville on the map and say, this language I speak – when you go to another place, Mapetla, you find them speaking their own language – is our language here. I’m trying also to say to people, be formal. You should be able to speak to white people, be fluent in English.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I’m still in Pimville, I’ve got a small little room that I stay in. I’ve got seven kids – I’m separated with the mothers, but beautiful kids. I’m with my mother here, she had a stroke and is in bed, so I’m able to take care of her. Everybody is well and alive. I’m alive and kicking. Made my own mistakes, but I’ve learnt from them.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Every day of my life, as I walk out of my gates, I hear: ‘Dr House, why are you not going back to the music industry?’ At my front wall, all the time.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I’m in Pimville right now … I’m enjoying it. My culture, my background, mostly comes from how I’ve experienced life around Pimville.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">[How do you know Kamazu and did he influence your music?]</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Before [PT House], we listened to <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Kamazu" target="_blank">KAMAZU</a>, I loved Kamazu. Because of him, in our country, he was one [artist] that was showing the independence the Americans’ [music] gave us, the Bobby Browns. The people are free out there, why shouldn’t we be free? We were in apartheid.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He’s my brother, he’s older than me, he’s older generationally, but he’s the one who made us balance the United States – what we see, the Bobby Browns, and the UK – with [local influences]. What he gave me as a musician, I could identify myself with him on the microphone. I started making demo cassettes, and trying to sing, as his fan. And funnily enough people used to say I sounded like SOX, more than him!<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQoy6gcA1KrCiO95Vu5WukjjYKOaMmSI1f-GnV5Lhw24aMAGR2j7xIXOKpu6fisZpQwm2a6qI-8ogatazxX_561ASv7WeAz-SxvgLe14KnzefHdouiSCfnvODEPMgLwnJ7amdDFTWO1XpWFQUsfs2jGH2aNAs8h7FwJAEjwxpgLklHwQ9NuyExC97ob8I/s1032/Dr%20House%201.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1032" data-original-width="489" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQoy6gcA1KrCiO95Vu5WukjjYKOaMmSI1f-GnV5Lhw24aMAGR2j7xIXOKpu6fisZpQwm2a6qI-8ogatazxX_561ASv7WeAz-SxvgLe14KnzefHdouiSCfnvODEPMgLwnJ7amdDFTWO1XpWFQUsfs2jGH2aNAs8h7FwJAEjwxpgLklHwQ9NuyExC97ob8I/w304-h640/Dr%20House%201.jpeg" width="304" /></a></span></div><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But Kamazu drove me, patiently, when my father was not even interested in what I was trying to be — he was against that so much, and I was trying to prove to myself. At the time I passed my matric — he had written me off, he never thought I’d pass matric — I remember, he came and he hugged me and he said, ‘I don’t understand how you passed matric, I never saw you reading.’ He died in 1989, he was … shot and hijacked, and it really changed out lives, altogether. We were supposed to move [overseas].</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I was really against apartheid. I got a gunshot in my body, to prove that I was at the forefront of the COSAS [Congress of South African Students] movement. We were fighting the struggle. And the music of PT House has that influence.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Americans had their own thing … but the way they planned it, that’s how I structured it this time, this side [with PT House]. Not do what they do, but structure the visuals that they show us, and do it in our own pronunciation.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">[What inspired the lyrics in PT House ‘Big World’, why was there such a positive message?]</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Why I did it, it was the time. We were angry. We were students that come from school, and the system was stopping us, shooting us. Actually, 1990, that was the year I was shot, and 18 others. When we were fighting Inkatha (IFP). We were positioned in the corners, and I remember it was my sister’s birthday. A few of us were willing to cross the border to go [join the armed struggle outside SA], it’s just that my father was wise, he discovered that I wanted to cross the border and he stopped me by telling the guys I’m not here.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Coming from him, and learning from him, and being somebody who is not group-orientated, it’s easier for me to write from this background. Because I don’t boss anybody, and nobody bosses me. I love everybody equally, I listen to people, and I make them run a sentence [I hear them say something], and take another person, and combine with this one. Because the only way I know life is to help and by saying that, this was a plan. I was working hard, researching around with everybody, singing to my family, sisters, coloureds, I had to go to the Xhosa people [for Xhosa lyrics], say ‘this is how I want to say this in this song, with this type of punch’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Transitional writing — finding words that are musical — was a tactic on the rap, and saying it, flowing, in an African’s way. That’s how I saw the language.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Because we were breaking away from the [older] generation. In my family, I’m the first generation to be born in Soweto. My father came from somewhere else, when they ran away from other things. I’ve got creativity, that I could play around so easily. When the call came that they [Music Team] wanted someone who can give a rap in our local way, I believed in myself so much, since I’m the only one who’d had exposure at that level to do this. So that found me already with an intention, that God rated me. With PT House I was working with a plan, and the plan was really to give it in a way that it’s so Sowetan, so Pimville.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">What Americans are doing, daily, experiencing in their own lives, they don’t have different languages. But we have different languages, so I have to be flamboyant somehow, and also arrogant [confident], so that when I go to KwaZulu-Natal or Cape Town or anywhere, I can speak a little bit of Afrikaans, a little bit of everything. I was like a combined, complete South African, and looking at how our youth should actually send a message and address themselves. It’s a white-collar Tsotsitaal, this one.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Now, when you listen to it, or if you give it to young guys [to listen to], it’s the same language they are speaking [today]. We tried not to be personal, but put strong feelings on the topic, and we became emotional about our music, and the template was about that. That’s why nobody could touch me. I was very direct; I didn’t discuss useless matters.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1735106361&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe></p><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs056-pt-house-big-world" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AFS056 PT House - Big World">AFS056 PT House - Big World</a></div>
<p></p><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">[What was it like working with producer Danny Bridgens?]</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I was in a boat, in an ocean, going this way. So everything, I pressed. I started with coffee in the morning. Danny would like me, because I’d come with the present of humbleness. I’d never tested a microphone before, so I had a lot to go through. I couldn’t even wait for us to rap and do the songs, because they were buzzing in my head. Then I find this excellent guy [Danny] who’s willing to organise FELICIA MARION and all these guys as backing vocalists. He actually made sure. I also played some [instruments] there, I was always part of the playing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">He excelled, Danny, to a level where I remember Felicia Marion telling me that this is something amazing, and for the future, this is how now this thing will work. Remember, Maurice said I’m ahead of the times, people will never understand. But the lyrics and everything, they are really informing, and complaining, and inquiring — and they are marketing us. In a way they are still doing the same thing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I was actually not doing it to be a celebrity. I was doing this because there is music in me …. Two cultures coming together, basic chemistry. PT House was blended, I made sure it’s a template.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Artists should be into HR, administrators, within, PR, not just performing, so it’s easier. We are not celebrities but we are workers – building things, part of it. That’s at least what Maurice gave me, and really I love it. And working with Danny, somebody who’s not part of that bullcrap, you know I didn’t see it with Danny. Big ups to Maurice!</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: arial;">© Afrosynth Records 2023</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><span style="font-family: arial;">Big World (AFS056) will be out in early 2024, reissued by Afrosynth Records. <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/big-world" target="_blank">Pre-order it here</a>.</span></i></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-47267544970697010082023-10-27T10:16:00.003+02:002023-12-07T22:47:24.600+02:00PT HOUSE - Big World<p> <b>AFS056</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJ8uPgkSUrBJrxiV07JsZsAcEBp3W9EhpctLoIK-tHBJ1wyX1armyV8_f1IqBzxwc7bvsY0Of8jCIsYwtM1SD0Ral9XtxNmsDs5_Qi3aqs8G2_Rr0RZCJHtO9FsAXzFSoWcK7SISEKbzdigDykOU5qE-Jqt35_EigQVWco-ymJOtFDkFhYfG1gVr_nYI/s1175/AFS056%20Front2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1175" data-original-width="1175" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieJ8uPgkSUrBJrxiV07JsZsAcEBp3W9EhpctLoIK-tHBJ1wyX1armyV8_f1IqBzxwc7bvsY0Of8jCIsYwtM1SD0Ral9XtxNmsDs5_Qi3aqs8G2_Rr0RZCJHtO9FsAXzFSoWcK7SISEKbzdigDykOU5qE-Jqt35_EigQVWco-ymJOtFDkFhYfG1gVr_nYI/w400-h400/AFS056%20Front2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Calibri;">Originally released in <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/2013/03/pt-house-big-world-1991.html" target="_blank">1991</a>, PT House’s debut album ‘Big World’ signalled the arrival of a young Soweto rapper named Nelson Mohale (later better known as Dr House) on South Africa’s early house and kwaito scene. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Calibri;">
<iframe width="100%" height="300" scrolling="no" frameborder="no" allow="autoplay" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1735106361&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true"></iframe><div style="font-size: 10px; color: #cccccc;line-break: anywhere;word-break: normal;overflow: hidden;white-space: nowrap;text-overflow: ellipsis; font-family: Interstate,Lucida Grande,Lucida Sans Unicode,Lucida Sans,Garuda,Verdana,Tahoma,sans-serif;font-weight: 100;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" title="AfroSynth" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs056-pt-house-big-world" title="AFS056 PT House - Big World" target="_blank" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;">AFS056 PT House - Big World</a></div>
Teaming up with producer Danny Bridgens — an up-and-coming studio hand and session guitarist for the likes of <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Yvonne%20Chaka%20Chaka" target="_blank">Yvonne Chaka Chaka</a> and <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Margino" target="_blank">Margino</a>, also releasing as The Stone and Leroy Stone — the pair drew influence from US & UK hip-house contemporaries but were determined to give their sound a local flavour, as well as a positive vibe that looked forward to a brighter future. PT House’s four-track debut was a bold statement that still holds up today, reissued for the first time on Afrosynth Records.</span><div><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLDwX3Qow8E1zOUOBx2IceH4y3OD8DDCqA9essrjU5W1SncbMmyICoknKvyMTKHFSZ0dUKAaxWfK7rDdfHfPgPyVjW1USP8dLJ7ctH_CzBh-ndN7-XU6ysFFtvW-qv4XaQAiQHVVzGbM9trZVgBf2aEc8bbdsHXEaZpOANA1KeikLNr9ZLTmZ4c6S0T8/s3716/AFS056%20Back.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3716" data-original-width="3716" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLLDwX3Qow8E1zOUOBx2IceH4y3OD8DDCqA9essrjU5W1SncbMmyICoknKvyMTKHFSZ0dUKAaxWfK7rDdfHfPgPyVjW1USP8dLJ7ctH_CzBh-ndN7-XU6ysFFtvW-qv4XaQAiQHVVzGbM9trZVgBf2aEc8bbdsHXEaZpOANA1KeikLNr9ZLTmZ4c6S0T8/w400-h400/AFS056%20Back.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Calibri;"><div><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></div>Out on vinyl and digital platforms in early 2024. Pre-order via Rush Hour <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/pt-house" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span><p></p><p><br /></p></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-19667426384181655412023-08-04T11:48:00.005+02:002023-11-18T15:54:12.118+02:00QUENTIN FOSTER interview<p><i><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;"></span></i></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCoaeaNiTeTmjY0afWKVbashp2nraiiYi3x1B67UJ8uxY3DPsSMXpRw0uJ9lMHYtN6YvYCdplysLFviM9rsQFqGnxgwbBB1RV5pdHt2g5HD5rx_IM67mmOw7FMskCswCD-A3dhWbI_57_WSCXIdqXk_m1YgddaIedUyrUKf9i5MsTPcKl4o2UdecMsyKg/s1272/Quentin%20Foster%20(l)%20with%20Danny%20Tenaglia%20at%201995%20Winter%20Music%20Conference%20in%20Miami.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="854" data-original-width="1272" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCoaeaNiTeTmjY0afWKVbashp2nraiiYi3x1B67UJ8uxY3DPsSMXpRw0uJ9lMHYtN6YvYCdplysLFviM9rsQFqGnxgwbBB1RV5pdHt2g5HD5rx_IM67mmOw7FMskCswCD-A3dhWbI_57_WSCXIdqXk_m1YgddaIedUyrUKf9i5MsTPcKl4o2UdecMsyKg/w400-h269/Quentin%20Foster%20(l)%20with%20Danny%20Tenaglia%20at%201995%20Winter%20Music%20Conference%20in%20Miami.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quentin Foster (l) with US DJ Danny Tenaglia at the 1995 Winter Music Conference in Miami.</td></tr></tbody></table><i><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></i><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">The following is a phone interview on 14/2/2023 with QUENTIN FOSTER, producer of <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2023/05/citi-express-living-for-city.html" target="_blank">CITI EXPRESS - Living for the City (AFS055)</a>:</span></i></p><p><b style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;">[Tell us about the scene at the time and how Citi Express came about]</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was a DJ at the time, I used to play in nightclubs around Joburg, mainly in the kind of alternative dance clubs, like the Junction, that was really my core base of playing, but I really played everywhere.. from Plum Crazy through to the likes of Idols, Babylon, many many different clubs… but more on the underground scene, rather than the commercial - like Caesar’s Palace, I stayed away from places like that. I was more sort of into the indie dance, indie style.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Junction was originally Deco-Dance. It was owned by a guy named Shane Leith who is still around, he actually lives in George. I think he’s probably retired now… but Shane was very prominent in the clubbing scene, he was involved in Zips and Zanzibar, which were very prominent gay nightclubs.. Gay clubbing was very big at the time. And actually that’s how I met Patrick van Blerk was through those circles. I got involved in the music industry through Patrick, and Patrick at that time was involved – both Ronnie (Robot) and Patrick – were involved with Roots Records. Roots Records did basically the jazz stuff – so Blue Note and GRP Records – they did a lot of the jazz stuff, they released that in South Africa. And then at then at the same time they basically had little sister, umbrella, fledgling companies, like Ronnie On Records and Patrick van Blerk’s PVB Music..<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was more involved with Patrick van Blerk rather than Ronnie. I sort of came into the industry through Patrick. Patrick recognized some abilities, behind the turntables I guess, almost as a fledgling producer, and he saw that I had a flair for it. And kind of got the ball rolling, at that level, he took me under his wing. I worked with him for PVB Music, I was involved in production for him.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">This is mid to late 80s. That was sort of the waning of disco, and we just started getting into the house scene.. so Ital-disco, or Ital-house, started coming to the fore. And a lot of those influences you could already start to see. You call it bubblegum, that was pre-kwaito.. and a lot of those sort of Ital-disco sort of things were very much used in a lot of the bubblegum-type music that was around at the time.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Now, you must also bear in mind that Ital-disco, there were two kind of strains – mainly the western, sort of American house, American disco sort of thing that was going on… so Paradise Garage, up into Chicago, those areas, Detroit at well… so you’ve got that big, American feel going on … and then you had the Europeans which were doing their own thing, so the likes of Germany, but mainly Italy – Italy was very big, they obviously did all that Ital-disco stuff.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And if you can imagine, South Africa has traditionally been — the music industry has been kind of — forgive me for bringing colour into this, but — it was really, a lot of the white people had studios. Those were the guys that had the resources.. So you can see already that a lot of our inspirations were drawn from more European than it was from the American side of things. Even though 90% of the country was black, and there was still a community or fraternity of people that were very into that American thing … but a lot of the productions that were being done, a lot of the releases that were coming out, were all driven through Europe, and through European eyes, if that makes any sense.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was very much a rebel in the scene. I wasn’t very well liked by a lot of the producers … a lot of the community. I was always trying to do things differently. I was playing alternative music. I was a straight guy playing in gay nightclubs, and just trying to do different things. And I had very much adopted that sort of American feel. For me it was all about the soul – the soul in the music. And the European stuff just didn’t do it for me. There was no soul in that European music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And all the stuff that came after that.. you’ve got that whole acid-house thing, which was derived originally from America. In fact, almost all the sources always came from the American side. Even that whole acid-house thing that was a huge wave in Europe at the time, which again had massive influence into bubblegum, and even kwaito as well, there’s some elements of acid as well.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But [I was interested in] more the America, the Detroit scene – they had it going on with that acid house thing as well. It was basically called Detroit techno… the likes of Juan Atkins… there’s some really good DJs still around now … that are still producing, that came out of that acid-house era. Todd Terry for instance, he’s a classic one. Todd Terry was behind Everything but the Girl..</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So you can see, all of these inspirations, it’s all interlinked.. I think one of the epicentres of it all, it comes down to a place called the Winter Music Conference, which is in Miami.. In the early 90s … in fact I was one of the first people (from SA) to go to those Winter Music Conferences. I went to two of them, I think '94 and '96, somewhere around there. It was basically a symposium or a summit, a gathering of dance tribes from around the world. The Europeans were very strong in going to Miami, and there was just a really amazing week-long party, but the essence of it was really around understanding and attending a conference, the Winter Music Conference, which is typically in one of the main hotels in Miami. You’d have composers and remixers and artists, all different kinds (of people), everything related to dance – all different genres and cultures and everything. It would all come together and [people would] share understanding and inspirations. That’s kind of where it all started. It’s still going today, for sure.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There’s guys who were producing in my era who are still DJing, guys like Danny Tenaglia, still making hits. The likes of David Morales, who’s probably one of the greatest dance producers on the planet. Those kinds of guys have always been inspirations of me…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We couldn’t really get access to what they had at the time, through apartheid we were very much boycotted in terms of the music we got.. so one of the reasons why I got into music was well, it was one of the only ways we could spread our wings. We had to literally create cover versions of some of the American tracks that they refused to get released, but there was still a demand. The demand didn’t go away. We had the demand, and especially within the black community.. the demand was there, they wanted the music. But we couldn’t get it. We couldn’t release it. So what did we used to do? We used to cover it. We used to take those tracks.. Like (his other project) Vision, the main tracks on that were covers, they’re not actually original songs, they’re songs that were released overseas that we could not get licence to release. And back then we didn’t dare step outside the lines and do what the guys do today.. they don’t even care anymore. They take stuff that’s not even their’s and they put it on their labels and they release it.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The first choice was never to do covers.. but we had no choice. There was a demand. Where there’s a demand it needs to be taken care of.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Even now, I still produce and I still do music at that level. If I have the slightest, subtle hint of a demand, I go after it. And things have changed hugely to now.. I stepped away from the business side of music.. that kind of killed it for me. I got very disillusioned with it back in the early 2000s. One of the albums I did actually won a Sama award for best pop album of the year – there was an artist by the name of Kaylin Thomson Woods, it was an album we did called All I Am.. I think it was back in 2003 or 4. She won best pop album of the year, and I produced that… that was done between myself and neil snyman, also a very good producer at the time.. also his dad was very much involved in a lot of the uprising of that post-bubblegum into kwaito…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">…. At the Leading Edge studios in Bryanston, I forget the name of the guy who ran it but he basically had all the publishing for Abba in Africa… and from the fallout from that, he basically made a lot of money. And you can see that’s all European-driven money and it worked it’s way into recording studios. And that recording studio became CSR Recordings, which was owned by Chris Ghelakis, he ran the Thunderdome, involved with bands like <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Dr.%20Victor" target="_blank">The Rasta Rebels</a> and <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Syndicate%20Sisters" target="_blank">Syndicate Sisters</a>. He was an icon in his business, in the music industry.. in fact I used to work for him for a period of time. The whole thrust of his original business was all around covers.. 100% dance, 100% pop, you name it, everything was covers. He ran a whole team of producers, and I was one of those. When I came back from the UK.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I actually went to live with Neil Snyman and had a recording studio in the UK together, and when I came back I actually winded up working for Chris Ghelakis for a period of time, and I got really good at doing covers back then, because that’s all we did. And that was even just after apartheid had ended.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>But because the cover scene was working so well — you must remember, that being an industry that had been going on for a decade already, and probably even beyond that — but from the mid-80s to the early 90s, just to when apartheid fell, and even when apartheid went, there were still these record companies that were driven into doing covers. Like Chris Ghelakis (at CSR), the majority of what he did was covers, but then he had a great facility, and he would also do the likes of Soweto String Quartet on the side, and there were other albums that were originals that were done. So it wasn’t just covers. Covers made money, and the money sponsored a lot of other stuff, so it was a beautiful kind of ecosystem that was going at the time. One fed the other, one hand washed the other.. it was a beautiful synergy that was going on .. with everything. Although it was kind of a dark period.. being apartheid and all that other stuff. But we tried to make hay while the sun shined. We did the best that we could with what we had.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[Were nightclubs at the time defying apartheid or mostly segregated?]</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Be careful not to get stuck into generalisations and stick to one narrative .. there were many different nightclubs. There were an incredible amount of genres that were done. There was sakkie-sakkie boeremusiek clubs as well.. so you can’t say all nightclubs did the same.. I mean, some of the clubs that I played in, they were very much freeminded, free-willed, free-spirited. Apartheid didn’t really exist in those clubs.. Although you must understand that apartheid worked very well in terms of splitting society. The kind of clubs that we went to… There was pantsula that was going on, there were a lot of black-driven (music scenes), shebeens going on. You had DJs that were very much involved with that - the likes of DJ Christos, for instance. He was very much involved with that scene, the kind of music he was playing, and even the venues he was playing, he did a lot more black-oriented stuff. The kind of stuff I was doing was more for the white, gay community… and although it was kind of open, it wasn’t – I mean, there were black people in the club, but it wasn’t really a black scene.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It’s kind of weird, even now, today, we can’t just think that everything just gets together, and all colours just come together. It was very much based on the type of music that was playing.. and there would be a gathering of those people…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For instance (today) if you’re gonna have your sort of amapiano vibe that’s going on now.. you’re gonna have 80% of those … are going to be black and 20% white. It’s the demographic, it’s not really based on race or colour, it’s just based on style, on music preference. So that existed back then. But the clubbing scene, definitely I think it helped to break down those walls, in the clubs. There was the presence of police, we were raided a few times at some of the clubs I played in, but it was really anything heavy. We weren’t beaten up. There weren’t gunshots and heavy armoured vehicles and stuff like that… we kind of were left to do our own thing, so it was very free-spirited, free-willed stuff going on.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And for me, in the kind of vein that I did, I’ve always tried to be as open-hearted and open-minded, and specific to race and colour and things like that, even now. I work in an environment where 90% of my company is black, and we’ve very much gone after that ideal of trying to do away with any biases that relate to colour. And I take pride in that, and I’ve learnt from that era. I think the only reason why I’m still around in corporate business today is because of some of the learnings and understandings, and what just rubbed off on me back then, in terms of just being open-hearted, open-minded and stuff like that.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So it’s worked well for me… clubbing, I can’t say enough about it. It just opened my eyes, opened my world, opened my views … I think it broadened my capacity as a human being... It was a beautiful period… coming out that last sort of drumroll of apartheid that we came out of… I mean, I went to the army, I did my two years of national service.. and none of anything I ever did.. I believe I never did anything to harm any black people, I never did anything to really reinforce a regime. Although even having said I was part of the military, I never had to kill anybody, I never had to do anything, really, that harmed another human being, let alone one from a difference race or whatever… so I was a bit fortunate in that. And maybe I was a bit protected from the real things that were going on – I never went to the border of Namibia (Angola), I was protected to a point, but nonetheless I went through it all, and I’m still around…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><b>[How did you select the tracks for Citi Express?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Obviously at that time, it was a moment in time, and you connected. There’s a lot of connections, with the companies and the people in the companies and in the music business, within the clubbing fraternity and things like that. I was quite a prominent DJ at the time, so the selection of tracks came from … well, Ronnie said he had the one Stevie Wonder track in mind… he said ‘I really would love to have this track redone’, and obviously we were going for a certain sound, so we wanted something that would be – you can’t even say that even of that stuff is even close to kwaito, on that album, but it had more of a black feel to it … that house sound… I was into that American house sound,</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The early parts of kwaito, you actually took any house record and you pitched it down by -4 or -6 on a Technics 1200 turntable, and suddenly it would go down from 122 down to 100, 104 or 108 bpm, and that was the maturity of kwaito music. Kwaito was all your downtempo house.. so that sound really became that kwaito sound, that tempo, in fact… and because you pitched it down, you must remember what happens with bass when you pitch it down it becomes deeper.. and even the elements of amapiano, that deep bass sound that’s going on, that’s a throwback of kwaito.. so when you pitch down records, you’d detune the bass. And in detuning the bass, that bass becomes deeper, and that’s what you’ve got in amapiano right now… so you can see it’s all interconnected, and interlinked.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Again, the interconnection between people.. there were tracks that were happening at that time, and those tracks, those sounds, we’d try and emulate those sounds, and we obviously had a barrage of equipment.. old Roland analogue synthesizers and things like that…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I was a sound engineer and programmer, that was the guys of what I was into. I was a DJ and I was into the engineering excellence, the sonic excellence of that sound, and trying to go after that sound.. and even in the arrangements and the production and everything… so it would be taking some of the music that was popular at the time, bring it together, listening, as reference – ‘ah, let’s go after that sound’, ‘oh, that bass sound is really cool, let’s take part of that bassline’, or ‘this is the kind of keyboard progression that we need’… we’d take that, invert that, and and and.. we came up with similar, but different … and that’s<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>how it was done.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And then there were people.. <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Nelli" target="_blank">Nelli</a> features a lot on that album… she was actually signed to Tusk music, which was part of Warner … [run by] Benjy Mudie ... Nelli was signed to Tusk. She did do sessions and stuff… [the distinctive vocals on 'Victim of Love' were by Russel Poth '<a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Sun" target="_blank">Sun</a>' Nkotsoe, Foster confirms later]. So all the stuff that I was doing was DJ-based… it was more a studio concept than band… so you’d have one guy that would basically deliver the entire sound.. I would be the bass guitarist, the drum player, the keyboard player … everything was done by me, because they were all samples … and it still is, in fact.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was a collaboration, it was with people… who were very much role models for me, as well. The likes of Stephen Cooks, one of the programmers and engineers of Mango Groove at the time … The likes of Marvin Moses, he was also<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>very much involved with Chris Ghelakis’ recordings at CSR. Marvin was also involved with the kwaito scene, did a lot of good music, keyboard player, session musician, a very good producer as well. All of these guys, we’d all mingle and do stuff together..<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But that specific album, that I did in my own studio.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I used to work in other people’s studios, and use their stuff. But it got to a point where I wanted my own stuff. So what I did is I jumped on an airplane. The first flight I ever took out of South Africa, I flew to the UK. We used to have a music magazine called Sound on Sound, I think it’s still around actually..<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>there was a music shop called turnkey music, off soho, in Shaftesbury avenue in the UK.. and I went and I bought.. remember, you’re coming with South African rands and we were teenagers or whatever, and I didn’t have a lot of money, but I went and I bought all second-hand gear. I bought all the stuff I needed, I bought it all back (to SA), and I set up my own recording studio. It was based on a 16-track, sort of home studio type thing, Fostex 16–track, multitrack reel-to-reel machine, and a Soundcraft set, and a TR909, all the stuff that was really current at the time in terms of generating those sounds. And that’s what I did, I programmed it all on that. I recorded it in a bedroom and that’s how the album came about.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was busy with a lot of stuff at the time.. Ronnie (On Record) was a little satellite label at Roots Records, which was run by a guy named Robin Taylor, he owned Roots Records, and we all sort of fell under him. I was actually working at Roots Records as one of their producers. I would take masters , I would take all the artwork. We were distributed by EMI, so I used to take all the masters through to the pressing plant, so we’d go and sit while the pressings where done. I’d take the digital masters.. I was one of the first people to have Digital Audio Tape in South Africa … and I used to get masters, put them through digital tape and send them off for CD mastering … and a lot of the money that I made, the bread and butter type money — because remember, producing you were lucky to get an advance, and you never really earned any royalties, so it was not easy to make a living out of music. You really had to make money from other things.. And one of the ways I did was I used to master digitally and I used to edit as well, for companies, on quarter-inch masters and stuff like that… and that, as an engineer, as a programmer, that kind of thing, that’s how I kind of made money as well.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ronnie had this idea, he wanted to release an album, and he had in mind the cover, he had in mind one track [living for the city], and then he said, well we need a little bit more than that, he wanted to do it in a kind of extended dance format, three tracks a side kind of thing… and that’s kind of what we went with.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Some of the artists I was working with, guys who wanted demos done or whatever and we said ‘well, we’ve got space on this album, let’s put one of the tracks on there’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>So ‘Open Invitation’ … that was just a fill-in type track that I had an artist who came along wanting to do a demo with me, that I had some loose recordings done with no real outlet for it, well, now we had a space for it.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We relied on one or two tracks on that album to really drive it.. The Stevie Wonder track [living for the city] was really the main track behind it. But then we had – I always try to do the deep, underground thing, so there’s one or two beautiful tracks there … those were we we took inspiration from the US, some of the early US house stuff that was being done but we couldn’t get released in South Africa, and I took them and reworked them to give them more of a local feel … we were really starting to see the fallout of bubblegum and into kwaito, and I could actually say that I was one of the forefathers of that early kwaito sound… if I could be so bold!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Everything I did, I tried to do things which were similar and not too far removed from the original composers, but at the same time try to give it a more South African feel. And that’s what I think we always tried to do…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Even with kwaito music, and bubblegum, pantsula, and post that.. even to now, when we have amapiano and things like that … and your tech-house thing that’s going on as well. Even what Black Coffee’s doing right now.. trying to take what’s being done on an international platform but do it with a local flair, local flavour, trying to bring local elements … because you must bear in mind, we have a very strong local heritage and history, where the music industry has stolen from Africa, stolen from a lot of parts of Africa …</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It’s still dark in the music industry, there are things going on that are not cool … It’s soul-destroying.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I never professed to being one of the greatest, or anything like that. But I definitely touched the industry in my own particular way, and there is depth and some beauty in what I’ve done. You can’t win a Sama and not have any integrity, you must be pretty good to be able to do that … Forgive me for blowing my own horn there!<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Citi Express was probably one of the earliest productions I did, so in my book it’s not one of the best that I’ve done..<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>So I appreciate you say it sounds good but I kind of cringe when I hear some of the stuff …<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I went on to do a lot more detailed.. products of integrity.. I produced with a lot more integrity, I think … This is one of the earliest productions I did in a very minimalist, very raw studio —<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>so not some of the best that I’ve ever done … I was born in 1964, so I was 26-27 [at the time].</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How did you feel about ‘bubblegum’?]</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There was a lot of people trying to make money out of music where they could. It was patronized, I feel that a lot of bubblegum music was really just trying to make some commercial music, and try and make money from the black masses, if I may say that … so for me, I didn’t really like bubblegum at all. I saw it as a commercial takedown, I found it a little bit diluted.. there are some elements in there that were kind of unique to South Africa, unique to us, but I think we — the likes of Christos .. they tried to really improve on that. I think as human beings we just want to improve what we have us around us, and we’re here to do better, we’re here to do good. I don’t think that anybody is inherently bad or anything. I think even with the sound that we were trying to do, and people like Christos — who, really, the love he has for music is just untold, it’s unbelievable, and I’ve got a lot of respect for Christos in terms of his love for music. And I sensed it at the time, I saw it with my very own eyes … but people like him, they really wanted more, and they grew…<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The current state of music, people like Black Coffee and things like that, they have people like Christos to thank for it because they were groundbreakers, they truly were pioneers of breaking out of that mould, breaking into a new, free world that we live in now … breaking down those walls that existed at the time.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There’s a deep, deep love – and that’s really what it comes down to, their deep love of music. And me included in that … there’s deep love for music, that’s really what it comes down to.. With that deep love is wanting to improve, wanting to make it better — not just our own stuff better, but make the industry better, make our sound better, ‘our sound’ being South Africa, the southern Africa sound.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[What is the story behind your studio ‘Tone Def Inc.’?]</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Tone Def was basically [in the] late 80s ... Patrick van Blerk actually came up with the name Tone Def … So I worked with Patrick a lot, under his label PVB Music.. I was busy installing sound in my car, I<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>had a little gold GTI and was putting some sound in the back, and we went into a sound place, think it was corner of Bree/Klein/Mooi (Street), I don’t know, somewhere there in deep town (Joburg CBD). It was a famous car sound installation place. And we went into this underground vault, and inside there it was like a store room, and they had these big-ass car sound, speakers and amplifiers and whatever. And Patrick came up with the name ‘Tone Def’, it was like ‘Tone Def Incorporated, right here’ … and I was like ‘wow that’s such a cool record label name, let’s do it!’ … so that’s how it was kind of born … it was Patrick’s idea.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But Patrick was doing his own thing, he was just wanted to see me get off the ground, so I went with the name … and Tone Def Inc kind of evolved. We moved on and away from each other, I went away and had my own studio, and from that though I need to remove myself from Tone Def, so I gave it another name, which was Rhythm of Life.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>That was inspired by Oleta Adams, she did a track called ‘Rhythm of Life’. It was such an amazing track and I actually give my studio a name, and my record label a name, all based on that kind of – not only the song but the sound she was getting at the time, it was just amazing.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Rhythm of Life was my studio and a record label. That was me. Vision was done on that. Again it was done through Roots Records. So just like Ronnie has On Record, I had Rhythm of Life Records.. as well. But I didn’t do too many releases.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>© 2023 Afrosynth</b></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-78346199441958176122023-08-04T11:46:00.000+02:002023-08-04T11:46:05.378+02:00RONNIE ROBOT interview<p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeOt2LQa-gMSaipIjn260sx8n8fWvGIQ6VB_-yJyf3YmnHdWBPaVZTY89gOCDpkevfuRlQDklO3SOZC4djQA9dNmyRlkbYW_3BaVBZOtcVXDkzsH_M79r0dKXfncWQ1IgaTAsx32ge8WHmtXPbEob5Z2h6NFNXWwRaG1x6Dy21glBUU1vVG6mgiOcHpe4/s1024/Ronnie%20Robot.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="1024" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeOt2LQa-gMSaipIjn260sx8n8fWvGIQ6VB_-yJyf3YmnHdWBPaVZTY89gOCDpkevfuRlQDklO3SOZC4djQA9dNmyRlkbYW_3BaVBZOtcVXDkzsH_M79r0dKXfncWQ1IgaTAsx32ge8WHmtXPbEob5Z2h6NFNXWwRaG1x6Dy21glBUU1vVG6mgiOcHpe4/w400-h310/Ronnie%20Robot.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><i><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><br /></i></p>The following is a phone interview with Ron Friedman, aka Ronnie Robot, founder of On Record, on </i><i>8/2/2023<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i><i>about <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2023/05/citi-express-living-for-city.html" target="_blank">Citi Express - Living for the City (AFS055)</a>:</i><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How did the On Record label come about, after your career in Rabbitt?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The Rabbitt story was a great time, but I just got a little… I had a bit of a substance problem at that time, so I wanted to dry out and really just get rid of all the crap in my body. So I went on a nice little dry-out over six months. And also, a little bit later after that, my first son was born. And I got a little bit put off the idea of going and playing rock music, and carrying on. I did have a few offers overseas to play with some pretty – I mean, Trevor [Rabin] sorted me out with quite a nice offer, but it was a big, big, druggie rock group and I just got overwhelmed by having this kid, and I thought, ‘no way, Jose’.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So I decided to put the guitar down, and get involved in the production side of music.. and ja, it was a much calmer life, much better. I really had some good years, for many years, producing music for the mass market … I did that 20-odd years, and then I stumbled across the concept of ‘Majors for Minors’ … after music started going into a certain genre, which I just couldn’t relate to, I eventually —<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I could still relate to the Citi Express-type, but once it started going full-on rap and all that, I just thought no ways, not me … I’m not knocking it, I’m just saying it just didn’t work for me. I just couldn’t relate to it, I couldn’t feel it. </p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I decided I’d had my time as a producer, and then I went into something completely different. I was now in my second marriage, of which is now 33 years. I had more kids, I had a set of twins. And I just got thinking, and I started reading up on the Mozart effect, so I started getting all into classical music, and all that – a big turnaround … and then I launched Majors For Minors. The concept was I took all the famous nursery rhymes and I orchestrated them classically, and I did them in certain frequencies to distress the cortex of babies and young children. That’s what that was about. And I ended up making a series of 13 (albums), that did incredibly well. In fact, I sold over a million copies of Majors for Minors, in the good old days of actual CD (sales). So that was quite a good thing.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Then that also left and I kind of got out of the game. Now that all my kids are grown up, I’m back on playing the guitar again, and being a bass player … Big circle!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How were things changing in the music industry in the early 90s? How did you move from bubblegum to the new house sound?]</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I always tried to keep my finger on the pulse of where thing were going in music. I had that feeling. I don’t say I’m the only one – a lot of other producers did have this feeling that music was going into that genre, which Citi Express was in ... I also started feeling it more myself, and enjoying it more.. And all the other stuff that I did previously, it was just getting so swamped. I just was looking for a different direction. And I think that it why I just hired the right people – younger people that understood it. And they did some pretty good jobs in that.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But there again, I can’t recall Citi Express at that time being such a big hit … I tried these kind of things, and I was probably taking a bit of pot luck at well, just saying ‘look, let’s just go for it, and try and see’.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There was a guy named Quentin Foster, he was hanging around when I had my own record company at the time, and I met him a few times and we discussed certain things and I liked him. He was young, and he was a quiet type of guy. I could see he sort of had a good ear for certain stuff. He approached me and said look, he’d like to do something like this. I recall having just created a concept – I liked the name Citi Express, I liked the track ‘Living for the City’ redone. I just I chose a few more of the tracks, I think he bought a few more to the table. One of them I think we co-written (by him) and published by On Record and Tone Def or another publisher, I can’t remember…</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But ja, I liked him and I thought he had great potential. And in fact I think he did a very good job. I mean he’d come to me with the tracks and I’d say to him, ‘maybe do that’, ‘take that out’ … I can’t even remember if I popped into the studios at the time to help.. I think I was more of an executive producer than a producer.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">He was young, I just had a good feel about the guy. He just appealed to me as a person. He was easy to get on with, and he wasn’t a mad bread-head ... He just liked the craft of music, I could see he was genuine and I just felt … I don’t think anybody was giving him too many opportunities at the time. Maybe Patrick van Blerk was also helping him a bit. So that appealed, and I just gave him the budget and I said go for it.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The last time I saw him was sort of 3 years after the release, at best, so I sort of lost touch with him … I think I even closed On Record at the time, in favour of Big Blue music ...<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Tone Def was his studio’s name, he had a studio called Tone Def.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[Was there a target market in mind for Citi Express?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was totally crossover. In fact, I actually thought (it appealed) more the black market than the white market at that time, which a chance of it crossing into the white market.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[What were sales like?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think it might’ve sold – I’m taking a flyer here but I’d say in the region of 5 to 7,000 units … It’s not too bad, but it certainly wasn’t like a gold record or anything like that.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was all session people, they got paid a session fee. The name Citi Express I just held as a session group. Probably if it had broken the 10 - 12,000 barrier, I would’ve done a second album and worked it as a project. But I didn’t do that, so there was only one volume.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">When I listen to it now, I actually think if I wasn’t so swamped with all the other crap going on at the time, I think I would’ve probably paid more attention to it, nurtured it a little bit more. I think had I done that, even at the time, it could’ve got a lot bigger. Because I don’t think I remember giving it the real promotional buzz that I’d normally do when I released an album in those days, like the Mafikas and all that, where I’d go where I went countrywide to the radio stations and all that.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I think I ran out of energy.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I was involved in the offices of a company called Roots Records at the time. And unbeknown to me, they were really doing badly. And the next time, the Sheriff (of the court) walked into my office and started putting labels on the desks, everything was being attached. I thought, 'what the hell’s going on here? Who are you, what do you want?' So there was that whole thing going on, so there was a big of chaos, to say the least.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And the other chaos I had was when I moved, I had so much stuff all in a storeroom. And when I moved to a place in Bryanston there was like paraffin or something in that room that was leaking, and it caught alight. I lost a lot. Look, it wasn’t a serious fire, cause we managed to sort it out after about 10 minutes, but I lost so much – it was unbelievable what I lost… It freaked me out. It was a terrible time, it really was. I couldn’t believe it. Not that I thought that the stuff was gonna be worth anything anymore. But it’s just something I kept … but it is what it is, what can I do?</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[Was Citi Express promoted in clubs?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I’d say Quentin probably got it out to a few nightclubs in those days. I think he would’ve sampled quit a few clubs, so it probably did get in the hands of some clubs in those days ...</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The club scene back then – at that point I’d just got married to my second wife and I stopped doing too may of the club things myself ... but I mean going back into the early 80s, I did a lot of the clubbing thing myself. I saw a lot of segregation. I used to go to a place in Soweto called the Pelican nightclub, owned by a guy by the name of Lucky Michaels, and there was a fair amount of whities going in there, and beautiful music, great groups were playing there. It was quite amazing, going there, where about a third of the patronage was whities. But that was more of a sit-down sort of thing, and live music, than an actual club ... I kind of missed the real DJ era (after bands), I think I’d already moved on to babies and classical music!<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>[How were the track selected?]</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I remember very distinctly, it was probably the least desirable track on the album, I can’t remember. But I just said to him, do ‘Living for the City’, the Stevie Wonder track, because I just knew that that always did pretty well in the black market, and I knew there’d been quite a few versions of it, but I just said ‘just do something a little bit different with that, in this kind of style’. And the name of the project would be Citi Express. But I think Quentin did most of the choice of the tracks. He was talented, I could see it. That’s why I was very comfortable using him, and letting him have that opportunity. He was in his 20s, a young guy.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">‘Open Invitation’ was our own composition.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>© 2023 Afrosynth</b></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-63653726510271851542023-05-11T15:03:00.004+02:002023-05-17T15:03:01.399+02:00CITI EXPRESS – Living for the City<p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><b>AFS055</b></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6crqzLs-446lUvb3Eyh74DsnCpDIbWbh64P_jCVlHd6NPsaRK8NivPfNbLbuV75Gx9cwtblIQNHqaxbx_NuJtDOIh3_-dSyCqoDGXLKj5GqYRWwAY1bjFrKmQJ8U-aqM0dwmEkPE0fIVPjVRiD95hSxvaPyeM4n5Ak_NoCHLFDuRGtZvuxsawDH1q/s900/AFS055%20ft%20sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6crqzLs-446lUvb3Eyh74DsnCpDIbWbh64P_jCVlHd6NPsaRK8NivPfNbLbuV75Gx9cwtblIQNHqaxbx_NuJtDOIh3_-dSyCqoDGXLKj5GqYRWwAY1bjFrKmQJ8U-aqM0dwmEkPE0fIVPjVRiD95hSxvaPyeM4n5Ak_NoCHLFDuRGtZvuxsawDH1q/w400-h400/AFS055%20ft%20sml.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">Cover versions of international songs have long thrived in South Africa’s music industry. Often unable to license the original tracks (until the early 90s the result of an international boycott of the country) labels instead hired producers and session artists to re-record them for the local market. Early house music in SA was no different.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">When Ron ‘Robot’ Friedman, former bass player for local rockers Rabbitt, was winding down his label On Records in the early 90s, he reached out for new inspiration as the popularity of ‘bubblegum’ disco waned. For one of the label’s final releases he hired young DJ/producer Quentin Foster, obsessed with the new soulful house sound coming out of the US, to take the reins on a studio project dubbed Citi Express.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">On Robot’s insistence it included a cover of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Living for the City’ (from 1973’s <i>Innervisions</i>) as the title track.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1511805769&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=false&show_user=false&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=false" width="100%"></iframe></span></p><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/living-for-the-city-citi-express" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="'Living For the City' - Citi Express">'Living For the City' - Citi Express</a></span></div><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">
</span><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;">Foster set to work in his home studio, dubbed Tone Def, selecting and re-working other US and UK tracks — ‘It’s Too Late’ (originally released in 1989 by Kelli Sae), ‘Love is the Message’ (influenced by the 70s soul anthem and credited to Gamble & Huff but bearing a closer resemblance to Better Days’ 1990 release written by Steve Proctor), ‘People of The World’ (recorded by Sorell Johnson in the UK in 1990) and ‘Victim of Your Love’ (released in 1990 by Gary Vonqwest as ‘Victim of Love’) — adding some signature South African touches in the process that foreshadow the imminent rise of kwaito. One original composition was added for good measure, ‘Open Invitation’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sEhcgYYpYvo" title="YouTube video player" width="100%"></iframe>
<span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">The result offers a glimpse into those early days of house, a uniquely South African take on a global sound that still resonates today.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 14px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3EINCF7GZvnf83YZ4T08gM5ScFXfQBbXneUT4z7YXGpO-zCgNs9nF_x6IzLb_5LoTpA-x20MBztjl8HWc_dmqPnLRMbtIFSK1CfvIM9noUAJUMVOjxcmw17DtyhwABbIsptdRIAh4rJ6Dn07ToW6Ypb8v07J9SXnTduAuAfhMckP-F_fyxVh96kfB/s1500/AFS055%20BACK%201500.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3EINCF7GZvnf83YZ4T08gM5ScFXfQBbXneUT4z7YXGpO-zCgNs9nF_x6IzLb_5LoTpA-x20MBztjl8HWc_dmqPnLRMbtIFSK1CfvIM9noUAJUMVOjxcmw17DtyhwABbIsptdRIAh4rJ6Dn07ToW6Ypb8v07J9SXnTduAuAfhMckP-F_fyxVh96kfB/w400-h400/AFS055%20BACK%201500.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Pre-order AFS055 <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/living-city-1" target="_blank">here</a>.DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-78741941116840319232023-01-13T11:14:00.009+02:002023-01-13T16:34:22.167+02:00JOHN GALANAKIS interview<p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1qQjqJtGqhLYEIL1ykRPRuqhTVZii9ZZ-TCXFsuxhDgPPaT3VO0g6m1YVYs8aC5WT_PcOAJqinxm3rEGCQyH-MDBs9tlmTdcjvci1Ef1L9yB6hQAgMafgRpQOxKsoBCX6l7THv1IDf197eHuFKJrB_ewXk4fdjKH7mlgrFB9zMrima7V0oTG4ydyo/s628/galanakis.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="628" data-original-width="507" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1qQjqJtGqhLYEIL1ykRPRuqhTVZii9ZZ-TCXFsuxhDgPPaT3VO0g6m1YVYs8aC5WT_PcOAJqinxm3rEGCQyH-MDBs9tlmTdcjvci1Ef1L9yB6hQAgMafgRpQOxKsoBCX6l7THv1IDf197eHuFKJrB_ewXk4fdjKH7mlgrFB9zMrima7V0oTG4ydyo/s320/galanakis.jpg" width="258" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">John Galanakis</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>John Galanakis was a hugely influential South African label head, producer (of the soon-to-be reissued <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2022/11/starlight-starlight.html" target="_blank">Starlight</a> with the late <a href="https://www.timeslive.co.za/sunday-times/lifestyle/2014-10-12-obituary-emil-zoghby-sixties-pop-idol-who-became-successful-music-producer/" target="_blank">Emil Zoghby</a>, among many others) and musician. The following is a transcription of an interview with him at his home studio in Greenside, Johannesburg, in December 2009. Galanakis passed away in August 2018 (four years after Zoghby, RIP). This interview has been edited for clarity.</i></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><i></i></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(How and when did you get started in music?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Late 60s. I played piano, keyboards. I first started doing sort of ‘continental’ music in nightclubs, and things like that — Latin, Italian, Spanish, I played in a Greek band. It used to be a big thing, especially (in) nightclubs — start at 9 and finish at 4 in the morning, and on weekends at like 6 in the morning. We used to get tips. I used to play the bouzouki. Your tips ended up being much more than your salary. A lot of these guys came from out of town, café owners or … and they’d never been exposed to the Greek culture, so they went mad when (we played).</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I got into rock bands, jazz bands as a keyboard player. And I’d say in the 70s, I started doing studio work as well. I was completely self-taught. I never took piano lessons or anything like that. I had an ear, from a youngster. I was sort of at a disadvantage because I never bothered to kind of get down to reading and studying. Later on, when I started doing studio work, I had to do that. Then of course, some of these gigs, I did some cabaret, so every week we used to have a different cabaret artist who’d come with a pile of music, so you’d (only) have a couple of rehearsals and you’d have to (be able to) play his stuff.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Late ‘70s, I played in some very good rock fusion and jazz bands. DICKORY was probably the main one. And ‘78 I went to London for 3 years, to get into the music scene, and production, which I started doing, and arranging.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Why — to be in a bigger pond or to leave South Africa?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Both. Well, TREVOR RABIN was there at the time, and (we) got into a band together, we formed a band. With the bass player who was with us in DICKORY, LES GOODE (later an) engineer, and a great bass player, and businessman. We toured Britain and that tour actually got him a deal to go to America. And he left us behind! I think we were a bit too old, ‘cos his image was more teeny-bopper. And we were like 30 at the time, (which was) much too old (for that). This was ‘79. Sort of pop-rock — a very good band, I must say. Just (touring) the UK (not Europe), we didn’t record. He’d sort of recorded an album on his own, which he played live. We got it down exactly the same as the record.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And then I was also doing some productions with EMIL ZOGHBY – lots of stuff, from porn sci-fi movies [probably alluding to 1979’s <i>Spaced Out</i>, aka <i>Outer Touch</i>], to (the) brother of NAT KING COLE, FREDDY COLE – we did an album for him, sort of big band style, orchestral, and all that kind of thing [<span class="s1" style="color: #121515;">1980’s <i>Right from the Heart</i>, where he is credited as John Gally].</span> He (Zoghby) was mainly producing, I was the engineer, arranger, and musical director. (I) wrote out all the parts, and things like that.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And in 1980, we got a call from that same bass player, Les, to come back, because they were starting this ‘supergroup’ – MOROCKO, based in Joburg. But there was some management with money, that wanted to take us to the States and record, which we did. And we came back (to SA) and we rehearsed for about 3 months. We went to California – just outside San Francisco, Modesto, and we recorded an album there. The management were so - not together – it was an American and a Canadian, and they employed a South African manager to sort of coordinate the stuff. (But) they were more into the <i>jol</i> [party] that the actual (music). This was actually a very good album, although we had to remix it when we came back here, because the studio wasn’t equipped for mixing, basically. The band only lasted about another 6 months or so, here. There was always the chance that we were going to go (back) to the States and do a tour there, but I don’t know, egos got in the way, or something.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What was it like to be an SA muso in the States then? How were you received?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Well, we didn’t really … we were in the studio the whole time, we never really did tours or anything like that. The people who were involved were thrilled to have some people from Africa — “How can they play like this?!”, you know, ‘cos we sounded just like an American band. Which was probably the downfall of the band, it wasn’t too different enough from the mainstream American sound at the time. Although for South Africa it was like exceptional, because there was nothing like that happening here.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And after that, I got a bit fed up with musicians and egos and that, and I just got into the studio, producing and arranging. And EMIL ZOGHBY came back here (to SA). We worked together for about 3 or 4 years, doing production … <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Stimela" target="_blank">STIMELA</a> was one of the groups .., (working with) not so many black (artists), a lot of white artists. <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Mara%20Louw" target="_blank">MARA LOUW</a> was another one we recorded.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And then ’85, I started my own record company, with a guy called <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Blondie" target="_blank">BLONDIE MAKHENE</a> — Hit City. And we had three labels: one was Leopard Records which did our traditional stuff – it was black music. We had the White Dove label, which was mainly the gospel stuff, and then the Hit City label was the pop stuff, the disco stuff and that kind of thing. Even there (Hit City) there were very few white artists involved in the thing. A couple of ‘coloured’ [mixed race] groups – called ZIPP, which was phenomenal, but they got nowhere. I think in Cape Town it’s (the coloured music scene) bigger. In the old days I worked with guys like <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Ronnie%20Joyce" target="_blank">RONNIE JOYCE</a> and the guitarist <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Jonathan%20Butler" target="_blank">JONATHAN BUTLER</a>. And there was another guy, <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/lionel%20peterson" target="_blank">LIONEL PETERSON</a>. (I working as an) arranger/producer, not so much (in) the songwriting with those guys — the arrangements, and getting the musicians, and rehearsing them, and recording, helping with the production in the studio.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was it a healthy time in the music industry, with the emerging ‘bubblegum’ scene?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Yes, I think so. It was kind of slated later, in fact it caused our demise in the early ‘90s, because the DJs just decided we’re not gonna play any more bubblegum music, and they switched completely to playing overseas house and rap music, so they actually dropped us in the lurch. The actually built us up originally. But our most successful stuff was the traditional and gospel stuff. This group <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Pure%20Gold" target="_blank">PURE GOLD</a> went on to sell a couple hundred thousand albums. (and) they did get a name overseas. It’s faded now, but they were a big name in the gospel department. And on the traditional side as well, we had guys like <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Dan%20Nkosi" target="_blank">DAN NKOSI</a>, <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Zizi%20Kongo" target="_blank">ZIZI KONGO</a>, things like the <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/African%20Youth%20Band" target="_blank">AFRICAN YOUTH BAND</a>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What did you make of the ‘bubblegum’ label?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think it was like the dance music of the time. We used to call it disco at the time — it wasn’t really American disco, it was South African disco … dance music – bass drum type … predecessor of kwaito, basically. I think later, people started calling it bubblegum (in a derogatory sense), especially the radio DJs and that kind of thing. And a lot of the records were starting to sound the same, copying the same style and the same beat, and the same rhythm, and the three-chord sequence that everybody was using.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think it was thriving from about ‘86, ‘87, it started fading I think around ‘92. I think it still had legs to go, I mean with a style like kwaito – how long has kwaito lasted? It’s still there, they’re still making kwaito records, 20 years later. But they killed it, basically, they stopped playing it completely on radio.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was this related to political change at the time?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think so. There was a lot of American influence in that kind of music, together with local sounds and rhythms, but American production techniques and instrumentation – synthesizers of course, which have such a bad name.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was there competition/rivalry between producers?)</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">No, it was more (about making) slight changes to what was established, basically, and getting the synth to sound just as close to acoustic instruments as you could, or making it so outlandish that you could hear that it was a synth — so from the one extreme to the other.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was there a strong American influence on SA music then, or more African?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The pop stuff, the sort of black American rhythm and blues type music. (African influence was) mainly on the rhythm side of things, maybe the drum beats and the percussion and the basslines, and that kinda thing. And the guitar riffs – melodic-type African guitar riffs and rhythms and things like that. (We were) mixing a little bit of traditional into like rhythm and blues and pop.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And also at the time – it’s changed a lot now – there was a tendency to make black music with English lyrics, maybe have a catch phrase with an African saying – or something that’s happening in the townships, (but mostly English). I don’t know (why), I think it was just a fad. Of course the American records were so popular at the time, (people thought) ‘let’s combine American style with African rhythms and see’. Like <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Brenda%20Fassie" target="_blank">BRENDA FASSIE</a> and that kind of thing, which was a whole style on its own. Can you believe somebody like ZIZI KONGO was competing with BRENDA FASSIE, didn’t make a tenth of the money, but she’s still around.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And we also did some albums with BLONDIE as well.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What labels did you work with?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">EMI was distributing our stuff (but) it was our own label. (EMI handled) distribution to the shops and things like that. We were still responsible for all the marketing and production. (ZIZI KONGO and others) they were on the Leopard label. ‘Cos even though a lot of their songs were in English, they had a more traditional feel to them, a heavier African rhythm.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><b></b><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was there competition between different labels/stables?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja very much so, it was very competitive. We were across the road from Gallo, we’d try and spit at them (laughs) because they were big and powerful and (would try to poach their artists) absolutely, and sort of stop you from getting publicity, and giving deals to dealers that you couldn’t actually match, and things like that. And of course, it still is (like that) ... We were always independent.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(How did labels and musicians make money?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Record sales were probably the only way to make money (for the label). There were shows that the artists, once they got big enough, they could command quite high salary, high fees, but we never took anything from their live performances. They did their own – although we helped promote their shows and things like that.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What about live shows, festivals in townships etc?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We put on a couple of shows (but) it wasn’t our main thing. And mainly out of town, in places like Swaziland, and Lydenburg and…quite a few tours we did of smaller towns and halls and things like that, a couple of festivals in Swaziland and Lesotho, and in the Cape, near King William’s Town.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What was it like as a white guy involved in predominantly black music back then?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">People were very welcoming. I used to go into Soweto and do promotions on a regular basis, maybe twice a week, go to shebeens and pubs and that kind of thing. It was calm. But it started getting a bit hot towards the end of the 80s. They told me ‘don’t go there anymore’, the black guys said that, ‘it’s not safe to go there’. So I stopped going. At these festivals, I was the only white face, sometimes, amongst 20,000 black people. It was cool, and they were actually excited to see a white face. Some of them had never seen a white face, in that kind of setting. They’d always wanna talk to me and shake my hand and that kinda thing. It was really cool.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Were there crossover acts, eg. black artists who sold to white audience?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There was hardly any of that, that I was involved with anyway. The tastes were completely different. White people didn’t really seem to like the black music, or the traditional, or the gospel stuff. So there was like a chasm between the two kinds of music. The closest we got to bridging that was the [group ZIPP that we recorded. It was basically a rhythm and blues, popish, with a slight African influence in it. The main guy, Ziggy (Adolph), he’s up here now — no, they’re from here, from East Rand, but I think Ziggy was born in Cape Town, and I think Paul (Green), the singer, was originally from Cape Town. But they’d been here for most of their lives.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Did labels have deliberate racial target markets?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja, and very little (crossover). Sometimes you hoped it would cross over, but white radio stations would never play that kind of stuff. So there was never a chance for whites to even hear it, and appreciate it.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was this official government policy via the SABC?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja I think they wanted to keep it separate. In fact we used to have to be so careful with our lyrics, ‘cos (the lyrics of) every record had to be submitted to the radio station. On one occasion, they were convinced one of our artists was actually singing completely different lyrics to what we’d given him and they said they were trying to pull the wool over their eyes, but they were actually hearing things. They were imagining that they were hearing something that wasn’t there! We had to actually change the lyrics. We had to re-record the record, after it was released and everything, they wouldn’t play it. You’d give them a released (printed) record (not the masters before release). They wanted a record.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">(Then there was) Self-censorship – you’d censor it yourself. You’d be so careful. And this goes back to when I first started. Radio 5 and those guys used to only played a certain formula that was acceptable to the format of the station, and nothing that even smelled of political or anti-government (sentiment). (There was self-censorship) because you know they’re gonna ban it if they hear anything that they don’t agree with. And it was very difficult, even in the white market, before I started the black label, to get anything played locally, because they had about a 10% quota for local stuff. Everything else was American or British. And that 10% had to be exactly like the American stuff, to fit to their format. It couldn’t jar or be too different.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Who was pushing the envelope? Was this pop or political music?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Well, I had a group of my own. Well, it was a studio group, we never really toured or anything, called <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Banjo" target="_blank">BANJO</a>. And we did a quite a few records where the lyrics were on the verge – they had a double meaning, a lot of them. One was called <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2012/11/banjo-no-no-no-no-more-1985.html" target="_blank">‘No No No, No More’</a>, which was supposed to be a fight between a man and a woman, but it was actually trying to say to the government, no more. It actually made it past the censors. So you had to be subtle. It was possible to do, in a subtle way, but whether the crowd got it, you don’t know.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(So you’d say the industry was healthier in the '80s compared to now [2009]?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think so. I think it was probably in its heyday in the '80s … and (in terms of) establishing artists. I mean there were a handful of black artists (before the 80s) that were household names among the black population, but I think in the 80s that blossomed out and you got hundreds of artists that became household names … But it wasn’t just automatic, it had to have something that the market wanted, like catchy or memorable.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Why the change — was it politics, technology, international trends?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think it became … I don’t know. Politically, I think, after the ‘90s, it became a lot easier to have a black and white band, for instance. Before that, it was almost impossible. And (it was easier) for blacks to start appearing at white venues, and the other way round. You started getting blacks appreciated jazz, and even rock, and putting those kind of influences into their music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Wouldn’t that make things better though? Or the opposite?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Well I think a lot of things happened at the time. I don’t know if they were political or not. But it probably changed people’s perception of what was…. and I think the (radio) DJs played a big part in that kind of thing. They actually changed what people were listening to. Radio DJs started really promoting American rap and R&B, and things like that, (in the) early ‘90s.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Where did kwaito come from?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think bubblegum influenced kwaito, and also the American rap influenced it quite heavily, because its based on that rap.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It’s still big today, but bribery (payola) was actually the big thing that influenced the DJs and the record companies ... and the big record companies could bribe the DJs much more than the small record companies, the independents. So they obviously got more favour. And they were flown from Durban to Joburg for soccer matches (for example). It still happens today. And some of the notorious ones used to actually pay them something to play their record, and pay them something extra not to pay your record.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(How was it working with French singer Lizzy Mercier Descloux on her 1984 album <i>Zulu Rock</i>?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Not so good memories. Cos I did my best there. She was a complete — worse than a snob. But I don’t know if this record was successful. I did all the arrangements and the musical direction. And in the end I didn’t get paid for it. That was the management. I hardly had anything to do with her. She hardly said five words to me. Even though I was in the studio every day with her, she almost ignored me. She liked the black guys, I think that’s what she came here for! (laughs) but that management was really — they didn’t know what they were doing. She was quite good, quite good, but I think we had as good singers that are performers here in South Africa. She wasn’t exceptional.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was quite interesting for me too, because it was like a gelling of local and European influences, and the music sort of had an African feel, but with European singing, and chords, and things like that. And the final product, I don’t know if it was that exciting for me, as well. I think the idea was more exciting that the actual finished product.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Not that they weren’t musical or anything like that, they just had fixed ideas of what should happen. They basically wanted to use the African for the rhythm, and then their polish, or something, on top of that. But they weren’t musicians at all themselves, they were more managers, business guys. And they seemed to know what the market would take in France, or Europe, or wherever it was they were look to sell it. Well, I can understand… I don’t think what happens locally can make it overseas as it is. It needs – not polish as much as sounds that they’re used to, and melodies that they’re used to, something that they’re familiar with and they can understand. I think the rhythm part, which is African, is exciting for them. But if you had to put African lyrics, it would throw them completely, far away.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Did this project have political intentions or was it purely commercial?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I didn’t understand the lyrics, because they were all in French, but I don’t think it was supposed to be political or anything like that. It was just supposed to be pop — and actually the French have got a very big scene going now, with African music, mainly from northern African countries. And I supposed it started there, and they were trying to do something with the South African sound, trying to incorporate it.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I never heard anything. They promised to send me an album when it was finished, but they didn’t even send me anything. I think the musicians got a session fee, normal for three-hour sessions, but they didn’t give me royalties or anything. I didn’t get any royalties.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Did you sign a contract?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">No, I’m very bad with that kind of thing. I take people on their word.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Were any black SA acts making waves overseas?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Gee, I don’t think I know of any black artists who were actually making it (overseas).</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What about elsewhere in Africa?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There was very little of that (too), up till the late ‘90s, mid-‘90s.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was SA scene very isolated?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja it was, very closed. The South African, African sound. Even though a very of our groups did perform in Zimbabwe, even in Kenya. Like PURE GOLD actually did some very good tours…</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(And in Europe?)</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think they did one or two shows there, but nothing you’d call a tour … We tried to get them released, but their music was so different to what was going on, on the scene.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I think in a way the <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Paul%20Simon" target="_blank">PAUL SIMON</a> idea was the right one, and even this French (Descloux’s) idea – take something from it (here), but not completely, not like a whole package. Take what’s palatable for them, and mix it with their kind of style. PAUL SIMON sounded different enough for it to become a big hit. (but) It was still a pop record.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Even JOHNNY CLEGG had the right idea. I’m not particularly a fan of folk-type music, which was his bag at the moment. That’s what he mixed with African influences. But still, that kind of idea could’ve worked if it was like developed properly. And it can still work, take the best of African rhythms and melodies and things like that, and mix them with pop.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(In SA, was there cooperation between black and white?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">In the studio, yes. A lot of black producers used to work with white engineers.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(No black engineers?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There weren’t.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Why not?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I dunno, they were never trained, they were never given opportunities, I think. As producer, they actually made their mark. And I think from there, they went into engineering.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Any other stories, perhaps about repression back in the day?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Repression ... for instance, we had this group called the <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Venda%20Kids" target="_blank">VENDA KIDS</a>, youngsters, about 15 to 18. And they came from Venda. Mainly a traditional style of music, but also in a kind of disco/kwaito type of beat. And it was the time of the troubles — ’88, somewhere there. After a recording session they were gonna catch a taxi and go home. And as they were going to the taxi, police raided them and started beating them up, in the taxi. And I had to come and explain, ‘No, they’re not terrorists or anything like that, they’re kids!”<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">They (the musicians) weren’t supposed to (be out) — it was quite late at night, 9 o’clock, after we’d finished recording, and I think there was a curfew or whatever, and you weren’t supposed to be walking around the centre of town at that time. And I had to go and explain to the cops: ‘These guys are musicians and they’re just going home’. (the cops were) ‘OK, fine,’ after I talked to them. But they were really heavy, beating them up with batons and things like that.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Another time, we did a tour, and we went to the Free State. Coming back, we were stopped at a roadblock. There were blacks and me in the car. And of course, that’s very suspicious, you know (laughs). PURE GOLD were there, and BLONDIE was there. And they made us get out the car. The blacks had to lie face down on the ground, while I opened the boot, (with) two guys pointing guns at me, in case I had a machine gun or something in the boot. We had a few records and cassettes, and clothes and things. Every time I took something out, they were watching me and pointing the gun at me … after they saw that we didn’t have (anything dangerous), then it was fine, they’d let us go.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Another time, we had a tour, we went through the Transkei. Those days if you went from Durban to East London, which we did, you had a border post going into the Transkei, and border post going out of the Transkei into South Africa, for about 10km, and then another border post going into Ciskei, and then another border post going out of Ciskei into South Africa. (Cops were) all over the place, so you had to produce your passport. Now we’d discover, as we’re going to the Transkei, half the guys didn’t bring their passports, and they wouldn’t let us through. So what we did, we performed for the border guards. We gave them a whole show for about half an hour, and they said, ‘just go through!’</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The funny thing to see is at Durban airport, it used to say ‘International flights: Umtata' [now Mthatha]. Local flights, Joburg this way, and ‘international flights’, that way!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(So it was possible to relate to cops sometimes?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja, they were doing their job. They were <i>hardegat</i> [hard-ass], but with a bit of a smile and a song, you get (through) — (like) bribery and corruption, same thing as today! So we did about 4 performances to get through. We were in two minibuses, so we had the whole of PURE GOLD, which is like 11 people, in the one and a couple of other acts in the other bus.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was police intimidation a common occurrence on the road?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja, it was part of the (deal). The stories I used to hear from the musicians themselves … DAN NKOSI used to stay in Ermelo, which is a real centre of conservatism. And he used to go and visit a coloured musician and spend a few hours with him, practising and playing and doing some songs. And then because it wasn’t (in) a black area, he would have to walk – it wasn’t far, but he would have to walk through his area. And it was like, after 8 o’clock at night, they’d catch him and beat him up. So he became quite blasé and used to it. He’d say, ‘Ah, it’s late, so I’m going to get beat up again tonight!”</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What was it like for you to go into Soweto back then, for example?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">You were supposed to apply for permission, but I never did. And I never got stopped. Maybe I was just lucky. I heard other guys got stopped. And very few whites actually used to go there. Some engineers used to get permits and permission, because there were no black engineers. So if you were doing a show in Soweto, you’d have to get white engineers, that kinda thing. The big record companies used to have black promoters and managers who used to travel with the groups into townships, so they didn’t have problems.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Did you ever live overseas?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">No.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Weren’t you ever tempted to move overseas?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Ja I was tempted, many a time, even before as a pure musician. And a couple of my friends actually went there. I got married quite young, so I had a family and everything, I couldn’t just up and go. It was also very difficult to get in, those days. Especially without money. So I could just go and work there, and try and make ... although, in hindsight, it’s what I should’ve done.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was it a choice between making money overseas or pursuing your love for SA music?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Well, I like money too! And we were successful for about three or four years. Everything went down after then. And even now, I’m battling.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Who are you working with now [2009]?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Mainly I’m doing black music, I’m still involved with a couple of guys. One guy, MBUSO KHOZA, he produced some gospel stuff with me. I’ve got CDs in the house… I did an album for a religious group called the Shembes, it’s actually the second-biggest church in South Africa, based in Natal, sort of old-testament type church, very traditional. We had a couple of singers, but he recorded all the harmonies himself, quadruple tracks, every harmony.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><b>(Where have you been based over the years?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">In the '80s we were in town (Johannesburg CBD), in Pritchard Street, just behind Gallo. Then about ‘98, I went to Greenside, in the shopping centre. And then we decided to bring it here (home), because we were mugged over there and they raised the price, the rental – they doubled the rent and halved our space! So it’s small, but it’s (got) a very good sound. And I can come to work in my pyjamas!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="color: #2b2c30; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>© 2023 Afrosynth</b></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-28411858179696326832022-11-04T14:09:00.006+02:002023-01-13T16:55:29.561+02:00STARLIGHT - Starlight<p><b>AFS054</b> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRwvQJQq-Osa1ITtAA4NQiWA2Bv4VZ2eMNlL9mjOx3nkHJjkL1Yo23VKBo1RcXwxQp9hmbEwJVHCMgAtG5ceJpSB0WJp_lDuKpexayB_9k7AQSoQaL9cQZC6xLsK6Fm47wdN_f9EZu5HZdJvzWZO2gAXvSyjz5s3elaREZCj6zOZ2D1mEkECq14qgs/s500/AFS054_front%20sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRwvQJQq-Osa1ITtAA4NQiWA2Bv4VZ2eMNlL9mjOx3nkHJjkL1Yo23VKBo1RcXwxQp9hmbEwJVHCMgAtG5ceJpSB0WJp_lDuKpexayB_9k7AQSoQaL9cQZC6xLsK6Fm47wdN_f9EZu5HZdJvzWZO2gAXvSyjz5s3elaREZCj6zOZ2D1mEkECq14qgs/s320/AFS054_front%20sml.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">In the early 1980s two South African producers teamed up for a project catering for disco dancefloors. Emil Zoghby was by then already well established, first as a solo crooner in SA in the 60s before moving and finding success in the UK. The younger of the two, John Galanakis was a top session musician, also touring the UK with TREVOR RABIN and recording in the US with MOROCKO, now delving into production under Zoghby.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">Their relationship had started a few years earlier in the UK, Galanakis recalled in a <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/2023/01/john-galanakis-interview.html" target="_blank">2009 interview</a>: “I was also doing some productions with Emil Zoghby, lots of stuff — from porn sci-fi movies [probably alluding to 1979’s </span><i style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">Spaced Out</i><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">, aka </span><i style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">Outer Touch</i><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">] to the brother of Nat ‘King’ Cole, FREDDY COLE – we did an album for him, sort of big-band style, orchestral, and all that kind of thing [</span><span class="s1" style="color: #121515; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">1980’s<i> Right from the Heart,</i> where he is credited as John Gally]</span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">. He was mainly producing, I was the engineer, arranger and musical director — wrote out all the parts, and things like that.”</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vuy05fO7i9Y" title="YouTube video player" width="100%"></iframe>
<p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Upon Zoghby’s return to South Africa in the early ‘80s, he set up Heads Music and produced some of the the country’s top acts, including THANDI ZULU (aka <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/TZ%20Junior" target="_blank">TZ JUNIOR</a>), <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Mara%20Louw" target="_blank">MARA LOUW</a>, Shangaan disco originator <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Obed%20Ngobeni" target="_blank">OBED NGOBENI & THE KURHULA SISTERS</a> and the early <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Stimela" target="_blank">STIMELA</a> side-project <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Adaye" target="_blank">ADAYE</a>, as well as popular soft rockers BALLYHOO’s 1982 album <i>Ballyhoo Too</i>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">As in-house engineer for Heads, Galanakis honed his production skills under Zoghby’s tutelage. “After Morocko, I got a bit fed up with musicians and egos and that, and I just got into the studio, producing and arranging. Emil came back here [to SA]. We worked together for about 3 or 4 years, doing production.”</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">While not working with other artists, as a production duo intent on feeding a young and increasingly hungry disco market, Zoghby and Galanakis released a string of 12” singles as STARLIGHT in 1983: typically cover versions of international hits —<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Sly & the Family Stone’s ‘Family Affair’, David Joseph’s Joseph’s ‘You Can’t Hide (Your Love From Me)’ and Klein & MBO’s ‘The Big Apple’ — backed with their own compositions on the B-side.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #424242; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span class="s1" style="color: black;">When the time was deemed right for a full album, </span><span class="s2" style="color: black; font-family: Cambria; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal;">it featured only one cover: </span><span class="s1" style="color: black;">the recently released local track ‘Picnic’, </span><span class="s3" style="font-kerning: none;">composed by Sello Mmutung and Keith Hutchinson and originally released as ‘Picnic (Moger)’, and also covered by Stimela side project Kumasi around the same time. </span><span class="s1" style="color: black;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="color: #424242; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span class="s1" style="color: black;">Besides ‘Picnic’ the album contains five of the duo’s original compositions, including their similarly styled response, ‘Picnicing’, which replaces the original’s sax with spaced-out synth stabs. Then there’s ‘Jah Jah Love’, an ecstatic disco sermon of dancefloor dynamite weighing in at over eight and a half minutes. </span></p>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1376240098&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=false&show_user=false&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=false" width="100%"></iframe><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/jah-jah-love-starlight" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="'Jah Jah Love' - Starlight">'Jah Jah Love' - Starlight</a></div>
<p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Other tracks on this landmark album — ‘Let’s Go Dancing (Boogie Boogie)’, ‘Keep On Moving’ and an eponymous instrumental — offer a similar fusion of classic disco with newer Italo and proto-house influences: machine music with a human touch!</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Laying the groundwork of much of what would follow, Starlight showed how it was possible for forward-thinking South African producers to defy the status quo and make music for a multiracial, ‘crossover’ market united by their love of disco. Underlining Starlight’s appeal, the cover artwork for the album was done by Zulu Bidi, best known as a musician and artist for BATSUMI.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwecyXlmz9zuaxOz4IsJ2r82sWpC5Qi8U1QDYo1zKFQB0bT1MiJv74oU10UF8xtdQPZRxcTxZRnz10AQg1l3ag1d1s7rG5xWnXgIUnhvFsv9OsJMnl4_r0dFIyXNyTt79RwlVX2L5i5eUGuTbH98LiA76iMyaWCdK2V3S1i1NJyfxgAIa5u7NcFcgf/s500/AFS054%20back%20sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwecyXlmz9zuaxOz4IsJ2r82sWpC5Qi8U1QDYo1zKFQB0bT1MiJv74oU10UF8xtdQPZRxcTxZRnz10AQg1l3ag1d1s7rG5xWnXgIUnhvFsv9OsJMnl4_r0dFIyXNyTt79RwlVX2L5i5eUGuTbH98LiA76iMyaWCdK2V3S1i1NJyfxgAIa5u7NcFcgf/s320/AFS054%20back%20sml.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">Galanakis would soon become one of the key behind-the-scenes figures in South Africa’s bubblegum scene as head of the Hit City and Leopard imprints, while Zoghby too remained active after Heads with other labels such as Smash, Local, Third World and Midnight Beat. Sadly both are no longer with us — Zoghby passed away in 2014 and Galanakis in 2018 (RIP). But their music lives on: remastered from the original master tapes and reissued for the first time, </span><i style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;">Starlight</i><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11px;"> will be available on vinyl and digital platforms from early 2023 (40 years after its initial release) via Afrosynth Records.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Pre-order <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/starlight-5" target="_blank">here</a>.</p></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-86912619325370816272022-05-11T15:24:00.006+02:002023-01-13T11:15:40.392+02:00SOX (RIP)<p><i style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px;"></i></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0dtvGn8SxTmW9K4cRsEO6bE_2P5TybbAg-5gilTVYccv8SO15CjbmXPqIfcAZ5Wr8PfMvXIuF1R7xkY7_2zvcn3kN17pDyos-ZQSoLfmcS_G2u-2Q8ZmtjHXERx1cnGG4hhGW8OYqidIFxAd0mcSjkJju7pVvzCj4acsrvZFHicS3KsWsZut08AE/s1500/sox.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1161" data-original-width="1500" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0dtvGn8SxTmW9K4cRsEO6bE_2P5TybbAg-5gilTVYccv8SO15CjbmXPqIfcAZ5Wr8PfMvXIuF1R7xkY7_2zvcn3kN17pDyos-ZQSoLfmcS_G2u-2Q8ZmtjHXERx1cnGG4hhGW8OYqidIFxAd0mcSjkJju7pVvzCj4acsrvZFHicS3KsWsZut08AE/w400-h310/sox.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><i>"I used to sing at nightclubs to survive, those years in the 80s" - Sox</i></b></span></p><p><i style="font-family: Helvetica;"><i>Daniel Phakoe, better known as ‘Sox’, passed away on April 28 2022 after a long illness.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Sox started his music career as a drummer for a group called Joyco from Maokeng in Kroonstad, where he grew up. He later performed with the Hot Soul Singers and Public Affairs. As a solo artist he is best known for his 1988 hit ‘Don’t Call me Le Ja Pere’ ('Don’t Call me a Horse Eater'), a plea to avoid racial stereotypes. The following is a transcription of an interview with him at his home in Thembisa, east of Johannesburg, on 15 November 2009. It has been edited for clarity.</i></i></p><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(When did you get into music?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Recording professionally, it was 1987. With a group called Public Affairs. Our first album was <i>Master</i>, with Eric Frisch (Productions). That was me, people thought it was <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/CJB" target="_blank">CJB</a>, the voice. Because I used to sing at nightclubs to survive, those years in the 80s. I used to play in the nightclubs a lot, in Johannesburg. You know, the nightclubs in town then, there was a time when they would book you for about two months or three months. I was doing cover versions — I didn’t have my own songs by then — international stuff.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Remember, in the 80s, every Christmas time, there was this thing of waiting to hear the latest album from Lionel Richie, Kool & the Gang. People they didn’t buy local music then, until <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Brenda%20and%20The%20Big%20Dudes" target="_blank">Brenda [Fassie]</a> comes along in 1983. Then Brenda changed the whole complexion of this music industry. It was <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/2015/07/brenda-big-dudes-weekend-special-1983.html" target="_blank">‘Weekend Special’</a>, which people thought it was Diana Ross! Only to discover that it was a local girl.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And then all these musicians who were hiding, didn’t even want to compose their own songs, then after Brenda, 'Weekend Special', then CJB comes along, <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Phumi%20Maduna" target="_blank">Phumi Maduna</a> – <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Cheek%20To%20Cheek" target="_blank">Cheek To Cheek</a> came after Brenda was going to have a baby in Cape Town - Bongani, her first-born. Then Brenda came back and did the full album of <i>Weekend Special</i>. Those LPs were called maxi singles back then. it was only two tracks. It was ‘Weekend Special’ first. It wasn’t an LP, and on it was written ‘not for sale’. There were record companies who were selling them (but it was meant to be) for radio stations and record bars to make people aware so-and-so is coming with a new album.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYwy5LZ9iM9hiu0JiocMIgyP1I_hsxx07DthpVMWa9HEg6viHiYoh4-wRpPFuFfn_MZz6gm3UmBm4b7qGJyJHn-w7Y_LFel9aKTkAx46vANeDxBfj1lY19PVVUXaYOJUkzWDHMFA3ZJk526-fA6soBASFYpvJQSv1q_WuwmLqGpmI1AmWNV6Bc0cnN/s1000/sox%20tsokotla.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYwy5LZ9iM9hiu0JiocMIgyP1I_hsxx07DthpVMWa9HEg6viHiYoh4-wRpPFuFfn_MZz6gm3UmBm4b7qGJyJHn-w7Y_LFel9aKTkAx46vANeDxBfj1lY19PVVUXaYOJUkzWDHMFA3ZJk526-fA6soBASFYpvJQSv1q_WuwmLqGpmI1AmWNV6Bc0cnN/w320-h320/sox%20tsokotla.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tsokotla (1995)</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What does the label ‘bubblegum’ mean to you?) </b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Bubblegum, it was irritating at first. But if Brenda didn’t mind, who are we to mind? Because she’s the one who started the whole thing. She didn’t (mind).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">These kwaito guys, they didn’t want to call us bubblegum musicians, they wanted to call it ‘oldskool’ musicians. (journalists, DJs..). there are some, from Y(fm). I listen to them sometimes. They still call us bubblegum musicians, we don’t mind about that. I mean that’s what we created in the 80s, and if it wasn’t (for) us, they wouldn’t be here today. And they must thank Brenda for that. Because if it wasn’t (for) Brenda, I’m telling you, even now, people would still be listening to international music by now. Not even having trust for their own people. Only <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Ladysmith%20Black%20Mambazo" target="_blank">Ladysmith Black Mambazo</a> and the <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Soul%20Brothers" target="_blank">Soul Brothers</a> would have been surviving by now.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What was your experience of censorship at the SABC, particularly when trying to mix different languages?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Back then it was difficult because we didn’t understand why. I remember my album was banned by the SABC. That album was called <i>Shame Boksburg</i> [1989]. You remember in the 80s in Boksburg whereby those guys, these conservative people, they didn’t want black people to stay in those parks there. But those guys were the ones who were cleaning those parks. And my uncle was working there too. And then the SABC didn’t want to play it. And then they sent people to come and break my windows. They were even looking for me at each and every record bar. They were even paying people – they wanted to see, who is this Sox? Then I met them in Johannesburg. They said, ‘Guys, this is Sox.’ And they look at me, and they look at the cover of this album. They said ‘No, this is not the same Sox’ (laughs). Because I look different from the album, different haircut. So they said, ‘No, this is not him.’ I don’t know what they wanted.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But the SABC, then, it was difficult for those DJs then. They didn’t know what to do.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>I was not even allowed to sing a Zulu song, because I’m a Sotho. And Lesedi FM didn’t play it. They wanted you to play your own music. Either it’s English mixed with Sotho, then it's good. And then, those guys at Natal, if they want to play my song, and its written in Sotho, they can’t even pronounce it, they won’t play it. Because they don’t know what does that mean.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But things have changed now. They’re playing everything.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn1ViCJSg7tF_mFVLl5dk4vIlMKW_gWOgCHmFDUcUljiAN4QfdtO5BQqje-SmOP9CHvclVwzLVttJ4EO7YhWC7ZVJ_IaYLgSppgabkCCw9HxU-49WhSRwh1tSuhS3AoCkI6faDwrIDpINjj9iclwMmFTebS4DdTe9YeSTgCI7_eUO_wOP0MVcSr1xT/s1200/sox%20come%20back%20home.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn1ViCJSg7tF_mFVLl5dk4vIlMKW_gWOgCHmFDUcUljiAN4QfdtO5BQqje-SmOP9CHvclVwzLVttJ4EO7YhWC7ZVJ_IaYLgSppgabkCCw9HxU-49WhSRwh1tSuhS3AoCkI6faDwrIDpINjj9iclwMmFTebS4DdTe9YeSTgCI7_eUO_wOP0MVcSr1xT/w400-h400/sox%20come%20back%20home.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;">Come Back Home (1988)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Your 1988 debut album <i>Come Back Home</i> - did the SABC play it or was it censored?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">One, this one, ‘Siyafana’ - it was English and Zulu, it was only played on Ukhozi FM.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>It was called Radio Zulu then.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Those (radio stations) who are playing Sesotho music, and Tswana, they will play it for those (audiences), when I sing English mixed with Sotho.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>If it’s Zulu, the big radio stations, Ukhozi FM, they will play it. They will choose from the album, they will listen to it first. You know, Radio Zulu have never played ’Le Ja Pere’. Do you know why? Because they didn’t know how to (pronounce) it. Instead, they were playing this song, ‘Come Back Home’, it’s English-only — and ‘Siyafana’, because it’s Zulu.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">That’s where that (sleeve) picture comes in. The person who came up with the concept of this cover was an engineer, Simon Higgins. He was the one. He bought me this jacket at Park Station there. This suitcase was carried by someone else, and then he gave that guy R100 so that he must have this thing. It was empty, and that guy was very happy. This photo was taken here in Thembisa. It’s next to the cemetery, but its not like this anymore, because there are RDP houses there now.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Even <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Chicco" target="_blank">Chicco</a>, you know, ‘We miss you Manelow’ - Manelow was supposed to be Mandela anyway, but the SABC said, ‘No, we can’t play this tune.’ He said ‘Manelow’ and then it was a different story, they said ‘fine, this is good’. But he knew what he was singing about.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Didn’t censors realise?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Some of them did know, but the rhythm of the song was good, so all the DJs were excited about the song. But when you mentioned the name Mandela, then they freaked out! They said, ‘No, we can’t play it! We can’t play this, you have to change this.’ Then Phil Hollis called Chicco and said, ‘Chicco, look, you have to change this Mandela thing to something else’. And Phil Hollis is very creative. He said, ‘Look, why can’t you call this Manelow?’ It was Phil Hollis’s idea.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />(What was it like working with Phil Hollis?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Phil Hollis was good. He’s like a black man in a white skin. Phil Hollis can hear a hit when somebody just brings a demo tape there and he listens to it. You know what he did, with ‘Manelow’? He took that album, he went to a shebeen in Soweto, he bought people beers, these pantsula guys. He said dance for this song and I’ll buy you beers. And those guys, they danced. He said, ‘No, this song must be a bit slow’. He phoned Chicco and said, ‘Chicco, make these pantsulas dance. That means you have to up the tempo. This song, it’s a bit slow. If these pantsula boys can’t dance, then this song is not going anywhere.’ He knew!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgggFctGEw6qMthyO9A2Vd2Vk1a9LVLbjT9yTIiMIn_pkqIy6mKpqe4LXMGN1_0CnEJqhwtT4kh1uRaMg_EHaugvsC9AzZ5PtVFVxNkyHreacATzM0yUW7fmsy092hBaMuOC7dTKYGVWTH1tVm_aQaZMoa709WohWz1OemSWzEbTAw5QdZUsfSZj6tj/s1000/sox%20ft.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgggFctGEw6qMthyO9A2Vd2Vk1a9LVLbjT9yTIiMIn_pkqIy6mKpqe4LXMGN1_0CnEJqhwtT4kh1uRaMg_EHaugvsC9AzZ5PtVFVxNkyHreacATzM0yUW7fmsy092hBaMuOC7dTKYGVWTH1tVm_aQaZMoa709WohWz1OemSWzEbTAw5QdZUsfSZj6tj/w200-h200/sox%20ft.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rapellang Kgotso (1991)</td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Would you say white people played a positive role in the music industry, or not?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Some did contribute. Some were exploiting people.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Why do think most engineers back then were white, not black?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I mean I can’t blame anybody for that. Our black brothers were not exposed to being engineers. Because they thought if you go to school for that it takes a long time. Just like doctors, you know, you go, you qualify after seven years, or something like that. … Some of those white engineers, they did help us a lot in the past. They used to show us how it’s done, like Ian Osrin.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was there a lot of exploitation?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">All of them (other labels), they were doing the same thing. Musicians used to come and go out from Gallo to go to EMI, EMI was doing the same thing to others, then others joined the other companies…</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Was it racial exploitation of just part of the business?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was business. They’re ripping musicians off.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Those black guys, when they became executives, they were worse than those white people!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Were any white artists popular among black audiences?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was only <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/PJ%20Powers" target="_blank">PJ Powers</a>. White people did like PJ Powers, but she was liked the most by black people. Because she used to sing a little bit of Zulu there, even if it was not perfect. Zulus were crazy about her. They even gave her the name Thandeka.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Mango%20Groove" target="_blank"><br /></a></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Mango%20Groove" target="_blank">Mango Groove</a>. <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Juluka" target="_blank">Juluka</a> … can you imagine the first time I watched Juluka? Seeing Jonathan Clegg on stage. Here in Thembisa. I remember looking at that group playing there. There was a lot of people in the stadium, if only 5 or 6 white people. And when Jonathan Clegg did that dance… he did it more than <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Sipho%20Mchunu" target="_blank">Sipho Mchunu</a>… and people like him more than (their) own — Sipho Mchunu, the Zulu guy, who had heads of cattle in his hometown and everything.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>People said that white guy, he can do this better than Sipho! Sipho used to take Jonathan Clegg to Mai-Mai, there in Jeppestown, to go and see those Zulu people dance. And you can even see, when Jonathan Clegg walks, he’s like a white Zulu mamba! (laughs)</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBqZb0ULyu5NyeXs9huHPCjZcZfeKIGFsblF4CohKH3xTksK08SIP3NXJa1eD-rFBtV7tK0NeEIlx_Urhjszb-Ba5OfsMPmbKR13-af1jNPMSfk_3QWRcXMYdSLeYKhYaY9iznoMdJtjBopEEiEHY8kIU_5g3fraS912Bkeo4pfhJ3WF2RD-TMHVhQ/s1000/sox%20lesilo.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBqZb0ULyu5NyeXs9huHPCjZcZfeKIGFsblF4CohKH3xTksK08SIP3NXJa1eD-rFBtV7tK0NeEIlx_Urhjszb-Ba5OfsMPmbKR13-af1jNPMSfk_3QWRcXMYdSLeYKhYaY9iznoMdJtjBopEEiEHY8kIU_5g3fraS912Bkeo4pfhJ3WF2RD-TMHVhQ/s320/sox%20lesilo.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;">Lesilo (1994)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;">They were calling Mike Fuller the police of the music industry. He was the only white guy who can go around all these townships. That time it was only white policemen who were coming. They knew who he was, (but) they portrayed him as that (laughs) - as the police of the music industry. He’s the guy who discovered <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Rebecca%20Malope" target="_blank">Rebecca Malope</a>.. I remember the stable was in Bree Street or something. <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Ali%20Katt" target="_blank">Ali Katt</a> was in their stable - ‘Let the Good Times Roll’. That guy who was singing just like Teddy Pendergrass - he had a beard, they called him Ali Katt. And then <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Hotline" target="_blank">Hotline</a> was in their stable. And there was this group called <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Casino" target="_blank">Casino</a>, who was at Mike Fuller Music. And there was <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Zone%203" target="_blank">Zone 3</a> that was in the same stable. That was MFM stable.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Have you toured/performed in other parts of Africa?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Many times. I know Botswana like the palm of my hands. Lesotho, Swaziland. I’ve been to Kenya, Tanzania. I’ve never been to Zimbabwe and Maputo (Mozambique). Those are the only two countries that I’ve never been to.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Did journalists ask about apartheid?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">They did, but the promoters sometimes they told us not to speak to those guys. Especially if they (want to) talk about South Africa during the 80s, especially politics. Sometimes I didn’t have to say anything. Because I don’t know, sometimes you find that you are in a hotel, and those guys from Umkhonto we Sizwe, they were there. And they know who I am, and I don’t know them. Some of them, we only find them on stage, operating those lights for us, then they tell us after where they are from.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Were there difficulties returning to SA afterwards?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We were scared at first. I remember one time when we crossed the Botswana border post, Tlokweng, (to) come (back) to South Africa. I remember they stripped our Kombi there. I don’t know what they were looking for … maybe (they thought) we were using explosives in Botswana, or whatever the case is …Ei, it took about 3 hours there … they were searching everything. But they didn’t find anything. They just said ‘OK, now you can go.’ (it happened) especially if we come from Botswana, coming to South Africa, at the border post of South Africa.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space">It was just like in Angola. (Sox performed in Angola too) Ja I did, with Sidney, that guy who was singing ‘Mama’s Baby’. And Johnny Mokhali, who was the Michael Jackson of Botswana … He’s staying in Mafikeng, as I understand, now.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXD8O2lEHoHaDkV4JIEPI4pyw5hRFTA0x_DD9qYQc1JZIAO6nwtvD-FNdsQ41mYW5E4qXHwpTl-TktSClV5wte7g7SNdlW8F1V_3rl980lHT3qafGBqa_PDM91P2pAZw0M3tjOxlcQNVnH2QwOvS51xxZ14eoFEJvXdbvj2sDEeJVhInbXo4PR0FOE/s1011/sox%20lesilo%20ft.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1011" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXD8O2lEHoHaDkV4JIEPI4pyw5hRFTA0x_DD9qYQc1JZIAO6nwtvD-FNdsQ41mYW5E4qXHwpTl-TktSClV5wte7g7SNdlW8F1V_3rl980lHT3qafGBqa_PDM91P2pAZw0M3tjOxlcQNVnH2QwOvS51xxZ14eoFEJvXdbvj2sDEeJVhInbXo4PR0FOE/w200-h198/sox%20lesilo%20ft.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And then we went to Namibia. They said there was a big festival there. We went to Namibia - Ondangwa. When we arrived there, I was surprised because instead of going from OR Tambo (airport in Johannesburg), they said ‘you’re going to take a flight here in Lanseria to Namibia.’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And we were surprised to see the (plane) in camouflage. I said, ‘Why is this flight like we are going to a war zone or something?’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/William%20Mthethwa" target="_blank">William Mthethwa</a> said to me, ‘You talk to much!’ (laughs). </p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was us, <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Yvonne%20Chaka%20Chaka" target="_blank">Yvonne [Chaka Chaka]</a> and everybody, We went there and when we arrived, only to find that there was elections in Namibia. The first election. I don’t remember the year, but it was the first election of Namibia… and then the festival was organised by this party called Turnhalle (DTA) - it was South African soliders, mixed with some white people from South Africa, wanting to take over from Sam Nujoma, which was SWAPO. We didn’t know anything by then. Only to find out that we are wearing T-shirts, written ‘Vote for Turnhalle’. I said to William, ‘Look at this, are we going to vote there or what? We have never even voted in our own country!’</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We did the concert, only to find out on the radio after the election, on the radio on our way to Windhoek, they said ‘Sox and William and Yvonne, they were performing for a party called Turnhalle, in Ondangwa. That means they voted for that party’. We have to go straight to the station and tell them, ‘We were just organised (hired), they said there was a festival but we were surprised, it was just a plain field there. People were not paying anything there, it was just (the) election, which we didn’t know. We have never experienced that before.’ Dang!</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Then I remember what happened in the 80s, when there was this song called ‘The Peace Song’ (‘Together we will Build a Brighter Future’, 1986), that was played here in the 80s. <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Lazarus%20Kgagudi" target="_blank">Lazarus Kgagudi</a>, <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Blondie" target="_blank">Blondie Makhene</a>. Yvonne Chaka Chaka sang on that song, but Phil Hollis said, ‘No, Yvonne didn’t sing’ (to protect her reputation). That song was about peace, but … then AZAPO saw that firsthand. You know how they burnt the houses of those guys. <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Steve%20Kekana" target="_blank">Steve Kekana</a>’s brother was killed, because of that. Blondie had to run away. William Mthethwa was singing there. Suddenly, after, people houses were burning. Nobody wanted to say, ‘I wrote that song’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space">It was playing on all these radio stations ... and then AZAPO says, ‘Fuck, this is a shit song. Who is singing here? This song is promoting National Party.’ They said that song was promoting the ruling government. I don’t know … We never had a chance to listen to that song, and suddenly people’s houses were burning. Nobody wanted to hear that song any more.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrObv24zhmRfHlQmCeONWnVXzHvDHLQPmLopFMKbILh6disDtZYu6gDiQq1EsWe-ebKjQlqLd3GkjP53njXMkXa80tAw_caUGroqIVPS9mbAo47RhA7NVwMIh7RgElHLmmXvGeGHk0tv-fUrTgSGJGmOwUrrAoTVQu2bfLBD6G4jlS6L7A9jYG08II/s1000/sox%20sejabana.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrObv24zhmRfHlQmCeONWnVXzHvDHLQPmLopFMKbILh6disDtZYu6gDiQq1EsWe-ebKjQlqLd3GkjP53njXMkXa80tAw_caUGroqIVPS9mbAo47RhA7NVwMIh7RgElHLmmXvGeGHk0tv-fUrTgSGJGmOwUrrAoTVQu2bfLBD6G4jlS6L7A9jYG08II/s320/sox%20sejabana.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;">Don’t Call Me Sejabana (1993)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">You must ask Blondie about that song. Maybe he’s scared to talk about it now. He (had to) seek refuge in Lesotho. And then he had to come back and have a meeting with AZAPO to solve the problem. Blondie had to go to Lesotho, he had to leave the country. I remember when I met him (recently) in Macufe, I asked him about the same song, he said ‘Sox, you know you’ve got a very good memory for a lot of shit things!’ (laughs)</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Did apartheid close SA artists/audiences from other African sounds?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">How long have I know Oliver Mtukudzi? I knew him from 1980, when I joined <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Hot%20Soul%20Singers" target="_blank">Hot Soul Singers</a>. They [Hot Soul Singers] were playing this kind of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>mbaqanga music then, they were competing with <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Mahlathini%20and%20the%20Mahotella%20Queens" target="_blank">Mahlathini</a> … I was just a member of the band, a backing singer for the Hot Soul Singers. Then we went to Zimbabwe, it was Independence Day. Bob Marley was playing there. (I was there) with Hot Soul Singers. I was not even… nobody knew who Sox was then. I remember seeing Thomas Mapfumo, who was a hit in Zimbabwe then. Devera Ngwena. And then Oliver Mtukudzi. Bob Marley, for the first time. Imagine – it was like I was dreaming or something.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And for the first time, seeing Robert Mugabe, being sworn in there in Salisbury Stadium, Harare. Dang! I was just from school, in the Free State. Coming here in Thembisa, and then the next thing, I’m in Zimbabwe, seeing all those things. Bob Marley – I never thought I would see that man. Robert Mugabe, Kenneth Kaunda. All those people we were taught about at school, seeing them there. Dang!<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I listened to Thomas Mapfumo, he was a superstar there. But when Oliver Mtukudzi, the youth of Zimbabwe there, they knew, this man is going to be big one day … And now he’s staying here [in SA]! Somewhere in Midrand.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Back then, could one hear Tuku in SA, eg on the radio?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">No, no, no – we knew American stuff. South Africans always liked American music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Here in SA, when did you get a sense things were changing politically?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">After Mandela was released [1990], the music industry changed. Then it affects us, from the bubblegum music. every DJ didn’t want to play that kind of music anymore. They wanted to play the genre music of kwaito. And more international, house music, hip-hop. Even if you want to make an album now, you’re asking yourself, are they going to play it there (radio) or not? There was this kind of quota and all these things. All the radio stations started to listen to the music and (ask) ‘is it fit to play it on this radio station, is it fit or not?’ making people to phone in – ‘is it a miss, or is it on?’, those kinds of things. You can imagine how embarrassing it is for some people to be in the studio there, people telling you your song doesn’t fit to play in that station. It was the end of it.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;">The changes came in the ‘90s, when people like Spokes H comes along. And then these kwaito guys come along. Then everything changes… Kwaito music has changed the complexion of the music industry completely …</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The guys, these kwaito boys. They have their publishing, everything. That’s how they’re making money. Even if they go to SAMRO, SAMRO gives them 100%. But I have to share that 100% with Eric Frisch. I get 50 from SAMRO, the other they give it to Eric Frisch.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiawjeEwhhLJWeu7bQcl6lUrTycm0WX_XEk4OACibAsXF_dWD8ligC6KbclZb3kVSfiy9Xo4LLDiWVkExeAThN32x4z6ppbgcQlDeGpaAgl6Twk_nQpJV6BD-yWPWbqBn3LRjrlLQWOdyY0kjlZJc4lKcJcs3L55pdEAbmWuDTdCrCaRDrbzL-a_LO-/s1000/sox%20codesa%20jive.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiawjeEwhhLJWeu7bQcl6lUrTycm0WX_XEk4OACibAsXF_dWD8ligC6KbclZb3kVSfiy9Xo4LLDiWVkExeAThN32x4z6ppbgcQlDeGpaAgl6Twk_nQpJV6BD-yWPWbqBn3LRjrlLQWOdyY0kjlZJc4lKcJcs3L55pdEAbmWuDTdCrCaRDrbzL-a_LO-/w200-h200/sox%20codesa%20jive.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Codesa Jive (1992)</td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;">My music is only played on one radio station – Thobela FM. All the other radio stations don’t even bother to play our music. It’s only that station that plays. Now. Even our brothers in the SABC, here at Lesedi FM … they don’t even bother to have a programme that can play oldskool music. That’s why the record companies have realized this now, that’s why they’re making <i>The Best of Sox</i>, <i>The Best of Chicco</i>. These guys from the taxis, they miss that kind of music of the past. It’s 20 years later and now it’s back in business.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Bubblegum (also) ended when Brenda died [in 2004], anyway. She was the only one who was sticking to that kind of music. She was the one who started that kind of music … Brenda from ‘83, she was ruling the music industry, until she died.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(Are sales low these days because of piracy?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">They use that as an excuse. They talk about piracy. They (record companies) are the ones who are pirating music too! That’s what they do!</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>(What are you up to these days?)</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Right now, after February [2010], I’m going to (work) with Dan Tshanda of <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Splash" target="_blank">Splash</a>. All of us we started in the 80s, as bubblegum musicians. We still tour Botswana and Namibia and whatever. I’m doing to do an album with him. He read about my story and he wanted me to come back to the music industry. He said ‘look, people in Botswana, they still want to know what happened to you. You still have a name, as (far as) we know. so we can make an album there, and you promote it’. Together we are going to mix Venda and Sotho music together… I think it’ll take us maybe 2 to 3 months. Because he wants to use some live instrumentation. And then he said I must bring along the guy who was producing my songs, the second assistant producer, Malcolm X. So I’m going to bring him along. Then we’ll mix that old stuff with Dan. It’ll be a different sound, but … I wait for them to make the music, then I write (lyrics). Even if they can make one song there that can make me sing the very same day, I will do it.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 15.84px; text-align: justify;">© Afrosynth</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"> </span></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-33487541391488707352021-12-22T11:07:00.004+02:002022-05-23T09:54:37.622+02:00E & S BROTHERS - Taduma <p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><b>AFS053</b></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEizVTmdg7fytLAspp1s75lUN3LPLV7dnlTg2qzNSjdWgkKysy358Ve0Y8ryx8Z6tzRFoWD7pGlbIWYTlETsma2x14tNSWGGeVvq5Rm4KesUFOcY0H-0MNE1qbuy19ynxTn6bcBGly1e6wiuY7OC5ObKqYjd7CnDZzqThGqYr7A8P1oMKw8d2DCJ84wZ=s406" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="406" height="394" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEizVTmdg7fytLAspp1s75lUN3LPLV7dnlTg2qzNSjdWgkKysy358Ve0Y8ryx8Z6tzRFoWD7pGlbIWYTlETsma2x14tNSWGGeVvq5Rm4KesUFOcY0H-0MNE1qbuy19ynxTn6bcBGly1e6wiuY7OC5ObKqYjd7CnDZzqThGqYr7A8P1oMKw8d2DCJ84wZ=w400-h394" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">E & S Brothers’ 1985 album Taduma holds a unique yet overlooked place in the history of South African dance music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>When <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Shadrack%20Ndlovu" target="_blank">Shadrack Ndlovu</a> and Ernest Segeel teamed up with Dane Stevenson, owner of Blue Tree Studio in downtown Johannesburg, and journeyman producer Taso Stephanou, South Africa’s bubblegum era had just begun, spurred on by the success of Shangaan disco. </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The relative success of their debut 12” ‘Don’t Bang The Taxi Door’, marketed aggressively at taxi ranks throughout the country, helped put the Blue Tree label on the map and E & S were invited back to record a full album: <i>Taduma</i>, featuring on keyboards Dr Buke, an in-demand session player from Soweto.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1277162830&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=false&show_user=false&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=false" width="100%"></iframe></span></p><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs053-e-s-brothers-taduma" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AFS053 E & S Brothers - Taduma">AFS053 E & S Brothers - Taduma</a></span></div><span style="font-family: arial;"><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div>
Rooted in Africa, yet purely electronic, Taduma was a moderate hit, spurred by tracks like ‘Taxi Door’ and ‘Mhane’, its hypnotic refrain ‘Mhane, famba na wena’ meaning ‘Mother, I am going to you’. Other tracks like ‘Mapantsula’ and ‘Be Careful’ place Taduma within the street-savvy ‘pantsula’ style and dance synonymous with consecutive waves of music from disco to kwaito, house and beyond, while ‘Sikele Masike’ repurposes a traditional Shangaan work song. </span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qWlO4lTH7Wg" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>
</div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Vocally E & S are closer to rapping than singing, in a combination of English and vernacular – predating other credited pioneers of kwaito in SA like <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Senyaka" target="_blank">Senyaka</a> and <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Spokes%20H" target="_blank">Spokes H</a>. Driving the music instead of vocals are waves of searing synths over rudimentary but explosive drum machine sounds – the word ‘Taduma’ meaning the sound of the drum.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg0gKsGMD8gIjBa5rk9j8_VAsrdsQ3j0I_-OX-st0lq-RKQ70yutE05HXaLt3l6EIFVehfOU97ueuRv6yESOuxR_qi2i-a3eAzmFPYKHZ5YWMGFLpmSDo32HK1SHE2E_sESdTupb0IlX2JRoeJ-vbuxlBrlrjrC2QJuqmPtcU7nlD2RlSs4guEp4G00=s400" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="399" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg0gKsGMD8gIjBa5rk9j8_VAsrdsQ3j0I_-OX-st0lq-RKQ70yutE05HXaLt3l6EIFVehfOU97ueuRv6yESOuxR_qi2i-a3eAzmFPYKHZ5YWMGFLpmSDo32HK1SHE2E_sESdTupb0IlX2JRoeJ-vbuxlBrlrjrC2QJuqmPtcU7nlD2RlSs4guEp4G00=w399-h400" width="399" /></a></div><br /><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Remastered from the original tapes and reissued for the first time, <i>Taduma</i> will be available on vinyl and digital platforms from May 2022 via Afrosynth Records. Order it </span><a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/taduma" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: arial;">.</span></p></div></div></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-87853013124722079582021-12-09T21:39:00.005+02:002021-12-09T22:13:40.869+02:00RICHARD MITCHELL (RIP)<p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><i><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"></span></i></b></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh113rGafbqj2AkdL2BeF6FuhESOKcCiptX33ZPqMrxm60XGKATRzSKUf8F27z7EsUW3EJ0j9_DNoG79BTDrHnL_BoTAzJ2ry7LCgu1MguG1d3Th0OZvya4pEtPDDgP2Uy2HEFlcgRsnJCV_EsMXS1EWLN5BsIHptzj7ymNEcC4HCEO01bjTHMkJVXc=s572" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="570" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh113rGafbqj2AkdL2BeF6FuhESOKcCiptX33ZPqMrxm60XGKATRzSKUf8F27z7EsUW3EJ0j9_DNoG79BTDrHnL_BoTAzJ2ry7LCgu1MguG1d3Th0OZvya4pEtPDDgP2Uy2HEFlcgRsnJCV_EsMXS1EWLN5BsIHptzj7ymNEcC4HCEO01bjTHMkJVXc=w398-h400" width="398" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo: Facebook</td></tr></tbody></table><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></b><p></p><p class="p3" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>"What's kept me going is the technology. I love the technology. And the changes. I really embrace that."</i> </span></span></b><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;">- Richard Mitchell</span></span></b></p><p class="p3" style="color: #424242; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="color: #faa757; font-family: helvetica; font-size: small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="color: #424242; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">One of the key South African engineers and producers of the 1980s, Richard Mitchell passed away on 8 December 2021. The following is a transcription of an interview with him at his home in Johannesburg on 16 November 2009. It has been edited for clarity.</span></i></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did you get started in music production?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I started in Cape Town. I was actually born in Zimbabwe, left when I was 6 months old. We traveled all over the world, South America… then came back and finished school in Cape Town.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I started as an assistant engineer in Cape Town, and one of the first sessions I worked on was ‘Mannenberg’ with – it was DOLLAR BRAND in those days. And I think that was probably something that just sealed my fate. We did four or five day and nights of us recording, and that as just one of the tracks. It was a studio called UCA. It moved it’s now Milestone… Murray Anderson. But I think it was in a different building that time.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I came up (to Joburg), late 70s. I actually came up with a band called BALLYHOO. The whole idea was that we were going to set up a studio in Joburg. I’d been doing some work with them down in Cape Town. And that didn’t work out. So I ended up at a place which is now the AudioLab, in Blairgowrie. It was part of the Teal Record Company in those days, which became part of Gallo.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did you ever play in any bands?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">No I was a shocking guitar player, in university. I was really terrible. I was studying marine biology. So I think I realised that very early there was no way I was going to (make it as a musician).</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did you become an engineer, were there courses to study?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">No there weren’t any. You could join the SABC. (but) I had a British passport so they refused to even accept me. Some of the guys went to courses overseas. I was lucky, I was taught by JOHN LINDEMANN, he was kind of in a way my mentor, a highly respected engineer.<i> </i>But it was a hard road. It was the typical kind of …(being the) the teaboy, and running around, and then you get thrown into the deep end - and sink or swim. I was working doing radio commercials at the studio. And John was the chief engineer, and left. And recommended me. He was more into studio management at that stage. He oversaw a lot of what was happening.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b></b><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was producing an album like during the 80s?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">We sort of hit a formula almost, I did a huge amount of work with ATTIE VAN WYK, we did all the <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Yvonne%20Chaka%20Chaka" target="_blank">YVONNE CHAKA CHAKA</a> stuff. And we co-wrote a couple of things together. The irony of it was that we did a lot of it in a little mobile studio, parked in downtown Doornfontein. It had a sort of studio room attached to it… It was all programmed, drums and stuff. But we would sort of knock out a tune in a day, go away and have an idea of lyrics. His wife used to write quite a lot as well, and we’d sort of pool all our ideas together.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Synths became a central part of the sound – why do you think this was?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It was just something that was really working. The early <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Chicco" target="_blank">CHICCO</a> days, and Yvonne – that sort of poppy groove, it almost followed on from the <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Harari" target="_blank">HARARI</a>, the band era. And I think it became…It was obviously a more affordable way of achieving certain things.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was the American influence on bubblegum overt or more subtle?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Obviously some of the influences were from America, but I think that was actually more in the late 70s, with the Kool & the Gang – and the groove kind of stuff. This almost – the groove content of it was actually almost new. It was really based around the pantsula guys, and their dance kinda style. Very much an offbeat rhythm, snare drums and all that kinda stuff. So it really wasn’t following anything from the international side. The melody side was very – almost European pop, in a way. And I think that was what interesting me about it, was that it was kind of rhythmically very African – well kind of African, in a way – but very new. But then the pop melodies - especially ‘cos Attie is a very prolific writer, as such. With just straight-ahead pop melodies put across it.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was there any live instrumentation?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">We used some live instrumentation. But predominantly – the drums were all done on LinnDrums, and things like that. It was a learning curve. Everything was still tape-based, so everything had to be sync’d up … (And there were) various codes. I used to have nightmares with codes.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How much input did the artists have in songwriting?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">To a degree, a fair amount. Yvonne liked to contribute, more and more actually as she got more confident. Chicco also used to contribute an enormous amount.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">At that point I had worked a lot – sort of mid-80s, had worked a lot at RPM studios, which was part of the Teal – was merged in with RPM studios, which is now Downtown studios. And did a lot of stuff there till the mid-80s, then (I) had gone, said ‘OK, now I’m a freelancer,’ and set up my own company.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And it was interesting, because I was actually working with EMI and with an offshoot of Gallo, Dephon. So I was doing Yvonne, plus we were doing <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Brenda%20Fassie" target="_blank">BRENDA FASSIE</a>’s stuff as well, and <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Cheek%20To%20Cheek" target="_blank">CHEEK TO CHEEK</a>, and all that stuff ... It caused an interesting [tension between] Brenda and Yvonne – ‘You gotta work with me, you can’t work with her!’ But <span class="s1">it was an excited period. Things were going out there and selling copious amounts.</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think it [competition/rivalry between Brenda & Yvonne] was quite healthy. And it was interesting that in the end, CHICCO ended up producing some of Brenda’s biggest hits, from ‘Too Late for Mama’. But I mean he’d also done quite a lot of work with Yvonne. I’m not sure of his exact details, but I think his mom ran a shebeen and was a really street-smart kid. And he was a percussionist in one of the offshoots of HARARI, <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Umoja" target="_blank">UMOJA</a>. But rhythmically he just had something - he was unbelievable. He had the ability to hear something and adapt it. He’d probably shoot me for saying this, but he heard Simply Red, and adapted that into a massive hit, it was called ‘I Need Some Money’. He knew how to lock down a groove. He’d take grooves that we’d programmed, and he’d go away and come back and say, ‘No, this is wrong, that’s wrong, change this.’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">He knew what he wanted, and he was also part of the Dephon stable at that stage. He started as a percussionist, then as a solo artist. He had a smash hit singled called “We can dance”. He eventually evolved into production. Its like any artist, they want <i>their</i> ideas…</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was is like working in the context of international isolation & the cultural boycott?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It was an interesting period because fundamentally there was such a boycott going on with the international artists that there wasn’t a huge amount of content available. And that’s why the local industry boomed. It was probably the most prolific period. Because people were looking for music. and they couldn’t buy the new U2s. There was (only) <i>some</i> (foreign stuff)…</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was the music industry segregated, or how did artists cross over?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think it was quite targeted. I don’t think it was a kind of conscious sort of thing. It just happened. There was some kind of crossover. Like I remember some of the CHICCO songs would be played on 5FM, or Radio 5 in those days. There was a fair amount. Guys like Alex Jay were phenomenal with picking up on some of the local, almost more obscure – huge hits that were happening in the townships, and kind of bringing them out (to whites).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">But I think also in the studios, it was almost like a breakdown of apartheid. It had been happening over a period of time, where there was a lot more interaction between white and black musicians and things like that. So there was a lot more respect from both sides, of what was available.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I did a band called <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/eVoid" target="_blank">eVOID</a> – ‘Taximan’ was actually played by BAKITHI KHUMALO, the black bass player, which nobody knows about … It was Erik and Lucien [Windrich] … Erik – he used to play bass and the keyboard, but he didn’t really have the chops to play it accurately enough. So I said, ‘I’ve got a bass player for you’ and I got Bakithi. And that goes way back, we used to do that in the 70s.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Outside of the studio, were mixed band playing live too?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think in that era there were more mixed race bands. I think <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Juluka" target="_blank">JOHNNY CLEGG</a> was starting to happen.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I mean that was ’84, ‘85 – there was the big Operation Hunger <a href="https://www.newframe.com/long-read-this-was-our-woodstock/" target="_blank">CONCERT IN THE PARK</a> – there were over 120,000 people there, at Ellis Park. They reckon it was probably more. As a concert it was phenomenal, because it was such a crossover of everybody, from <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Hotline" target="_blank">HOTLINE</a> and JOHNNY CLEGG and <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Stimela" target="_blank">STIMELA</a> to white pop bands</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">What was interesting at the time was that a lot of the music was sequenced and programmed, but they would go out with bands and play (live). It was just too difficult at that stage to get the technology to go out (instruments belonged in the studio).</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">For anybody in the music industry, it [Concert in the Park] was one of those milestones – ‘OK, we are finally breaking down the barriers.’ I think in fact [US Senator] Edward Kennedy was in the country at the time. and I remember it because somebody stood up and said ‘Edward Kennedy should come and see – this is the future of South Africa’. And it was one of those really (powerful moments), I think it was RAY PHIRI, or CLEGG or somebody. And I just thought it was one of the most profound statements. It was so true.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(People could begin to see of the end of apartheid?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Ja, it was around that time there was that whole Rubicon speech. We all expected [president PW] Botha to back down and say ‘OK, that’s the end of it’, and he didn’t - that sort of prolonged and dragged it on.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">I think it had actually got to a stage when people had really had enough, and were a lot more vocal about it.</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Were people of different races socialising after-hours?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It started … I mean the 80s was an exciting period because we started actually hanging out a lot together. There was a club in Sebokeng called Easy By Night, that almost became our- the music industry hang out. STIMELA were known there, <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/2021/07/steve-kekana-1958-2021.html" target="_blank">STEVE KEKANA</a>, all these kinds of people. We used to all go and hang out, and we’d take more and more people. So it was kind of a fun place to go. I remember the first couple of times being really kind of embarrassed – 'cos I mean we’d arrive, and jump this whole long queue that went halfway round the block. And everyone looks at you, you go ‘oh my goodness’ (embarrassed), but it was cool … It was just a really fun period.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Any bad experiences?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I don’t remember being in a (bad situation)… there were odd festivals that got aggressive. A lot of the time that was because there were bands didn’t arrive and all that kind of stuff, things would go wrong. But in the early periods, it was almost like this release, of tension and stress. It was an explosion actually, a cultural explosion. People wanted to go and hear this music they’d been hearing on the radio.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did you deal with censorship at the SABC?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think we started to get more of a ‘fuck you’ attitude, you know. I mean there were songs being banned left right and centre. Some of the STIMELA stuff was banned. What they used to do is take a styluses and across that track, gouge it so you couldn’t play it on the vinyl. They kept trying to keep thef lid on it ...</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">YVONNE not so much, because she was more mainstream pop, but I mean BRENDA certainly started pushing the envelope. I mean you look at ‘Too Late for Mama’ and ‘Black president’. ‘Too Late for Mama’ is actually an indictment of the society – the sadness of this lonely woman. It was the late 80s, about ‘87,’88, (so by then) I think it (apartheid) had probably had it. I think everybody was kind of anticipating that the end was close. I mean we did a release when <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2014/12/va-give-praise-where-praise-is-deserved.html" target="_blank">Desmond Tutu </a></span><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2014/12/va-give-praise-where-praise-is-deserved.html" target="_blank">won the Nobel Peace Prize</a>, </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">that was in the 80s (1985). It was a collaboration with <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Sipho%20Gumede" target="_blank">SIPHO GUMEDE</a> and RAY (PHIRI) and a whole bunch of people… It was never released here, it was smuggled out of the country and released in the states.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was other SA music getting outside the country at the time?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">A fair amount. Look, you know, there were two sides. There was the political undertone, but there was also the straight ‘let’s do pop music and avoid that [politics]’. And obviously some of the more serious musicians were a little bit disparaging about the pop music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The jazz guys – the Stimelas and all sorts of people like that – there was an enormous amount of, I wouldn’t call it piracy but copyright infringement – people would listen to each other’s music and rip it off, adapt it and stuff like that. Whoever came up with a new kind of hit groove or whatever, there would be ten permutations in a couple of weeks.</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What role did Stimela play?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">The interesting side to the whole thing was that STIMELA were signed to Gallo, but Gallo didn’t want to record them. They didn’t think that their music would sell … Stimela was actually formed from two bands that were like under the Gallo label, it was THE MOVERS and <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/The%20Cannibals" target="_blank">THE CANNIBALS</a>. And they had been doing a lot of kind of American-style groove stuff, and things like that. They fused and they started recording with different record companies, under different names. What they’d do is find frontline guys, and that’s how bands like the STREET KIDS were formed. That was really all RAY and the Stimela guys. They started programming stuff - ‘Game No.1’ and all that. Some of it was live, some of it was programmed. That’s when the serious guys started to see what the technology could do, as well.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(Didn’t this cause contractual headaches etc?)</b> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Oh ja no (yes), there was. They [Gallo] tried stop them. Eventually they just relented and said, ‘OK, we’ll record you’, because hits were popping up all over the place. And they suddenly woke up to the fact that ‘these are our guys’. But they hadn’t tied some of them to production contracts, so they missed out on that one. </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">But the reason I brought them in was it was interesting how they started using the new technology as well, and embracing it.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was there competition among engineers/producers?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think everybody was out to kind of achieve what they could. It was an interesting period because<span class="s1"> </span><span class="s1">we were trying to push the envelope all the time - and everybody was convinced that what they were doing was the best thing since sliced bread.</span> But so much of it, if you look back at it, all had a similar sound. It became passé in the end because everybody kept going to those clichéd sounds. But in the initial stages, with the Yamaha DX7 and things like that, they were phenomenal sounds. This was like, wow! And then we became adept at actually being able to programme and I think engineers - the successful ones - became really good programmers at the same time. You had to.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did you cope with the rapid changes and innovation in technology?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">You had to learn on the job. There was no period to sit back and (research/practise)… and <span class="s1">it became a standing joke: who has the time to read the manual? You just get in and do it!</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How regularly could one churn out albums - weekly?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It would be, ja, just about (weekly). Maybe a bit longer, 10 days, two weeks max.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(So you were always in the studio?).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Ja, I was a workaholic for about 4 years, just 24 hours a day.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(But if you love music…)</b> Ja, it was a fantastic period.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p4" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><span class="s2"><b>(Did you consider it work?)</b> No. You know, for me, </span>the greatest satisfaction was actually – when I used to work at Downtown Studios, we’d walk up to the Carlton Centre, and go past all the taxi guys and hear songs that you were working on, blaring out while they were washing their taxis. It was a heck of a kick, that whole mass communication thing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And then going to festivals and seeing that songs a lot of the time <i>badly</i> translated by bands. The bands of the artists, they were desperately trying to play [the programmed stuff], which was kind of impossible, you know.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(No backtracks?)</b> No, it wasn’t even considered. The biggest problem – you know the keyboard stuff and that – was one thing, but it was the drum loops and all that kinda stuff that they battled with. And I mean eventually you ended up with sometimes – I’m trying to remember the name of the group, I think Cheek To Cheek or one of the Gallo artists – I mean they had six keyboard players on that stage! (Each) just doing one thing or the other, because you’d just layer loads and loads of the stuff.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was it like working with Mally Watson and Attie van Wyk?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">With Malcolm I was just an engineer … Malcolm was phenomenal. He was probably one of the most disciplined musicians I’ve ever come across. And I mean that in a big complimentary way. He always had his stuff pre-programmed well. He knew what he wanted. It was always a pleasure working with him. It was the easiest. For me it was a huge compliment. It was an interesting period, because that was when I had left the Gallo group, and I was a director at RPM studios, and just said ‘enough’. I was working as an engineer, I was the chief engineer, but I was made the director, I think to keep me quiet. But I left, I said ‘no’, I went to freelance. And Malcolm immediately picked up the phone and said ‘do you want to come and work here’? I said ‘great’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So I was working with Attie, and with Malcolm. They were at the stage probably two of the (best) producers (in SA). So I’d do a day with one of them, then I’d go and do a night session with the other.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It’s a collaboration. The producer is somebody who normally will take the project from A to Z. An engineer will come in and in those days the engineer’s role was kind of more – obviously there was a whole lot of technical areas, with tape machines and mixing consoles (so you need more than one person).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">With Malcolm, he’d pretty much mapped out the songs in preproduction. That’s why I say he was really organised. He’d do a lot of that. With Attie, he and I would sit and actually write all the programming. They both came from enormous musical backgrounds. I mean Malcolm was one of the top session players.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"> </span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Attie and Malcolm ... there were other guys involved. And I think that the interesting side – they were two white guys who were doing it … I think eventually that wore a bit thin.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Why was it often white engineers & producers in studio with black artists?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think of lot of it was just that they were coming up with the popular melody lines. The black guys were coming up with the grooves, and the rhythmic side of it, but the lyrics and melodic structures (were done by whites). And I think that’s where the thing took off. Because before that, it was kind of all OK but it was just really amateurish. And all of a sudden we’re hearing, like, the ‘Weekend Special’s – you know, timeless melody lines.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">An interesting anecdote with YVONNE was that ‘Umqombothi’ which has become her signature tune, was done on a Monday morning. We started missing around with a cassette of some groove that Phil (Hollis) had found. Or no it hadn’t… the track he wanted us to kind of copy and adapt or whatever hadn’t arrived, so we started messing around. And Yvonne was there, and wrote this, kind of composed this tune. And (it was) Attie, <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Al%20Etto" target="_blank">AL ETTO</a>, myself and Yvonne. And Phil came in later in the afternoon and listened to it, and said, ‘No, that’s rubbish - absolute rubbish. It’ll never sell!”</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I mean the grooves were quite extensively researched. It was a lot of time … especially with Chicco, he used to spend an enormous amount of time working on a groove. I mean he’d take a groove and go and play it in a club at night, and see if people reacted to it. it was all about the groove and the bassline. And once that was locked down. You see, that’s where the guys like Malcolm and Attie were good. They’d take that and then put some nice chord changes, verse and chorus structures and so on… Before that, it was just this endless, repetitive groove.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did lyrics come about?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">You’d try and come up with some kind of concept for the song. And then write a rhyme around it. But it certainly wasn’t a case of lyric first, and then melody… (groove was main thing). And I think even today, a lot of it is like that. It hasn’t changed that much.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was it like working with Steve Kekana?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Ken Haycock was the MD was CCP Records, which was the black division at EMI. Ken was phenomenal. My fondest memory with Ken was I’d done an English album with STEVE KEKANA. We wrote all the tracks, and he said, ‘you guys go have some fun”. I don’t know where they come up with the song - ’The Bushman’. And it became this (hit). Technically it was a huge amount of fun, because it integrated drum machines and live drummers… it was a melting pot, cos I’d worked at VideoSound, and they were doing <i>Gods Must be Crazy</i>. I phoned the director and said ‘can we have access to some of the Bushman stuff?’ So the guy in the (song), the bushman, is the genuine guy from the <i>Gods Must be Crazy</i>. It become this big, massive crossover hit.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">He (Kekana) was the most phenomenal singer. He was just a singing machine. I mean it was frightening what he used to do. He’d just go in and sing and sing and sing. And do all the harmonies and just track them, and it became this huge sort of synthesized voice sound. Everything was … vibrato .. everything was just perfectly matched. It was frightening. And he was such a great human being. I did stuff with Malcolm with him, I did stuff with Tom Vuma, who did a lot more indigenous African stuff, earlier on. </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">And then we did an album… Steve went to Gallo and we did an album. The Stimela guys actually played on it. I just remember because the sleeve was phenomenal, the guys were all in dustbin outfits…</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">The problem is that most of the black music in those days was not given a huge amount of credit. A lot of the deals that were done were extremely dodgy. People were handed recording contracts, with a publishing contract kinda tucked in, and they’d just sign away (their rights). It got better (in 80s), but…</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(Some black artists must’ve been making money though, right?)</b><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">They were, but by the same token, the record companies were creaming it. so … if we looked at the deals today, there’d be different structures in place. There were…especially young, up-and-coming people were kind of cajoled into signing deals that were not that kosher.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Any memories of working on <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Sipho%20%22Hotstix%22%20Mabuse" target="_blank">Sipho Hotstix Mabuse</a>’s hit BURNOUT?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">We’d done another version of the song. And this conversation came up. Sipho was playing around with the piano one day. And I recorded it, put in on (tape) and said, ‘That’s a great lick, we should do something with that.’ And he went away. I’d just got a LinnDrum - that day, or the day before. And I was playing around - how did this thing work? (I found) it’s got a rolling tom pattern in it, and thought ‘oh, that’s really cool, but it should be doing this…’ And that’s how the song (started).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And then he went in and played the piano lick. Steve Kekana actually came in, he’d been out partying with some friends and wanted to show them the studio. I said to him ‘come and sing on this’. He said ‘No, I can’t’. He went away, dropped his friends off, he came back and said, ‘This song has been going in my head, I want to sing on it’. and that’s how it happened. It was a bizarre situation (coincidence). And that was the time….</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">What happened was that Gallo heard the song, and heard the potential in it and said, ‘Forget the rest of the album, we’ve got enough, don’t worry. You’re taking too long.’ It was the first 4-track album that came out.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(When did the bubblegum era start to slow down?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I found eventually I started to get very bored with it. I think probably for me, one of the turning points was when one of the heads at one of the independent record companies came in with a cassette of an artist I had just finished co-producing, it was a pre-release copy that he’d managed to get hold of. He said, ‘This is what we need to copy. This is gonna be huge!’ He didn’t know [that RM was the one who did it]. I just thought, ‘No, this is starting to feed back on itself.’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(When was this?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Probably late 80s, I think. And that’s kind of when it started changing … CHICCO became more aggressive in a way, almost militant, in his lyrics and things like that. I think we started to incorporate more and more live instruments into it. There always had been the live (element)… the drums tracks were programmed, but the bass player would play live, or the guitar players, or stuff like that.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think people were buying less but they were also buying slightly different ... it was more international, and a lot more of the kind of higher-level musicianship - the STIMELAs really started to blossom.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think the labels started to make less money. From my point of view, I started, as I said, to get bored... I think I probably made that apparent to Attie and Malcolm. For me, I think once we’d done ‘Too Late for Mama’ with Chicco (producing), then I did the follow-up album, which had ‘<a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/2009/09/brenda-fassie-black-president-1990.html" target="_blank">Black President</a>’ on, but the rest (of the album) didn’t really have anything (special) on it.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I started doing an enormous amount of film work then at that stage. There was a period when there were big tax concessions for movies being shot in this country, so (there were some) huge soundtracks being done, or fairly big soundtracks. A lot of that, in the late 80s. I did some stuff with Katinka Heyns. And then.. I did a very interesting movie with a guy called Jeremy Lubbock, who was an ex-south African guy who’d done the “Nuts” soundtrack with Barbara Streisand (and) who worked with Michael Jackson. He was a guy who had been living in LA and was known as an orchestrator.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So I think I’d sort of moved on and said ‘OK, time for change’. I was doing quite a lot of stuff with Ray at that point. He had done the GRACELAND thing and people had picked up on him. He was doing a lot of demos that were picked up by a French record company. But then he went out on tour with Graceland, I think for 18 months, and they kind of lost interest.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Any more thoughts on Graceland?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think there were some issues, certainly, when it came to who had contributed. I know Ray had some quite heavy legal sort of fights about getting just rewards and stuff. But I think in the end, if you look at what’s happened with <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Ladysmith%20Black%20Mambazo" target="_blank">LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO</a>, I mean its put them on the map. I think initially everybody though ‘OK, that’s it, that’s the floodgates opening, we’re gonna have this deluge of local talent flooding the world markets’ and stuff like that - and it didn’t happen.. Ja, there was some exploitation, I mean let’s face it, but (a few of) the guys (involved) have certainly benefited from it, as well. So I don’t know, I wouldn’t like to get a whole moral attitude (about it now).</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Why was music of the 80s was so successful and why has it been largely forgotten?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">The biggest tragedy was that the archiving system was chaotic. And a lot of the multitrack masters got wiped. And burnt – EMI had a huge fire, I think it was in the early 90s. I know also that a lot of the Gallo multitracks were recycled, they’d say, ‘OK, its released, so we can wipe those multitracks.’</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">You know, it’s part of the heritage that we have from South Africa, of the culture. But it was never recognised by the government of the day. A lot of it was kind of looked at as subversive, or to keep the masses happy. I don’t think that people really realised the potential of the songwriting in those days, and the performances. I mean that was…. the early days of those synthesizers and the drum machines and things like that, but there was still very much a performance-orientated mentality to it. I think also the songwriting was approached in a different way, there was a lot of buzzing going on in the studios, but there was a lot to write about. There was a huge amount of playing with concept ideas, the lyric ideas, to be subversive but not to be apparently subversive.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What are you doing these days [2009]?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I’m still working in studios. I do predominantly a lot of DVD productions. We shoot live shows, various acts. We did HHP this year. We did JOYOUS CELEBRATION. I do sometimes get involved with the visual guys, but I’m not a visual person. I’ll actually project-manage it, and put guys in whatever (roles). and we do a consulting thing with a big studio in Durban, a government-funded thing, they wanted a top-flight studio director. It’ll actually be up and running this week. It’s been the last sort of month and a bit. But it’s fun.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And then we’ve got some … I can’t even give you any details, because I don’t know too much about it. but there’s some big international producer who’s coming out to do a collaboration with some local producer.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p4" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">You know, what’s kept me going is the technology. I love the technology. And the changes. I really embrace that.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">For me, the late 80s and early 90s period was when I got involved up at Bop Studios, when they first started up. And that’s where I kind of probably lost track of what was happening in the local industry. I was doing a lot of stuff with…<a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Caiphus%20Semenya" target="_blank">CAIPHUS</a> had come back at that point, so I did a long project with him … and I mean the early 90s I was pretty all up in Bop, that was just…. you know, from studios here which had started to become really dated, it was this 10-year quantum leap into technology. I mean they were the top studio, it was all suddenly digital multitracks ... But I didn’t go through a period of that growth. It was just from here, cranky old 24 tracks and all that, and into what’s happening in LA right now (at Bop).</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 13px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">A couple of us, DAVE SEGAL is one of the other guys, embraced it. He went up there (Bop) all the time trying to do projects. He’s now with EDDY GRANT. He was <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Lucky%20Dube" target="_blank">LUCKY DUBE</a>’s engineer – he did all the albums, he did all the live shows. So the band’s been picked up by Eddy Grant, and they’re touring now.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 15.84px; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: helvetica; font-size: 15.84px; text-align: justify;">© Afrosynth</span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"> </span></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-81005207301077654162021-11-16T14:43:00.007+02:002022-10-10T16:48:18.226+02:00AYANDA SIKADE - Umakhulu<p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>AFS052</b></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px;"><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcTPkONGba0Jukc2NzWIXovwbjoVgBiVRPqevXpkR_GVIdpl2GtDuiR1loT0mBbUvM9lP97qlyGCsb_Oz9TLFzUiZq5RTHWQhgwzvnBj-PYVskAuuH9fY4P179FN3bw73Q5wxdf_HUGG0/s600/AFS052_cover_sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="594" data-original-width="600" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcTPkONGba0Jukc2NzWIXovwbjoVgBiVRPqevXpkR_GVIdpl2GtDuiR1loT0mBbUvM9lP97qlyGCsb_Oz9TLFzUiZq5RTHWQhgwzvnBj-PYVskAuuH9fY4P179FN3bw73Q5wxdf_HUGG0/w400-h396/AFS052_cover_sml.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">One of South African jazz’s most in-demand and respected drummers, Ayanda Sikade returns with <i>Umakhulu</i>, his long-awaited sophomore release as a bandleader and the follow-up to his 2018 debut <i>Movements</i>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Born in 1981 in Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape, Sikade has been a familiar face on SA’s jazz scene for years now and a driving force behind its growing prominence on the world stage. Initially earning his stripes under heavyweights like Bheki Mseleku, Robbie Jansen, Barney Rachabane and Zim Ngqawana (all of whom have since sadly passed on) as well as Darius Brubeck and Feya Faku, in the past decade or so he has brought this experience, as well as his own inimitable style and energy, to the next generation of artists, including Simphiwe Dana, Siya Makuzeni, Afrika Mkhize and Swiss bassist Bänz Oester.</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Xcp5LpxDJKo" title="YouTube video player" width="100%"></iframe></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Dedicated to his grandmother, his new album <i>Umakhulu</i> features the talents of frequent collaborator Nduduzo Makhathini on piano, young Simon Manana on alto sax and Nhlanhla Radebe on bass. The album’s nine tracks, produced and composed by Sikade, pay homage to the artist’s heritage — most noticeably on ‘Mdantsane’ and ‘Nxarhuni River’ — while forging onwards to a brave new world on others, like ‘Imithandazo Yeengelosi’ (Prayer of the Angels) and ‘Space Ship’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Recorded by Peter Auret at Sumo Sound in Johannesburg, mixed and mastered by Gavan Eckhart at Soul Fire Studios, <i>Umakhulu</i> will be released in late 2021 on CD and digitally via Afrosynth Records, with a 2xLP in late 2022 distributed worldwide by Rush Hour in Amsterdam. </p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="350" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1348012060&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=false&show_user=false&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=false" width="100%"></iframe></p><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs052-ayanda-sikade-umakhulu" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AFS052 Ayanda Sikade - Umakhulu">AFS052 Ayanda Sikade - Umakhulu</a></div>
<p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Tracklist:</b></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">1. Mdantsane<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>8:41</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">2. Izzah 10:29</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">3. Space Ship<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>6:17</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">4. Amawethu<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>6:09<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">5. Imithandazo Yeengelosi<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>5:32</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">6. Nxarhuni River<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>7:24</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">7. Umakhulu<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>7:12</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">8. Enkumbeni<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>9:13</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">9. Gaba<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>6:59</p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p></p>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4biUzbJ-hXQ" title="YouTube video player" width="100%"></iframe> <div><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bgSEqHAYcYE" title="YouTube video player" width="100%"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>Order AFS052 2xLP <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/umakhulu" target="_blank">here</a>!</div><div><br /></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-64112244319567032432021-07-25T17:06:00.012+02:002021-07-26T12:43:42.566+02:00 STEVE KEKANA (1958-2021)<p style="text-align: justify;"><i><b></b></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxwZasDceXaOHfEF-xc5wZEMec_4AqMkDK-iosHyxjXfaE4mMGAJp2ZNmIywZ74tSzeQ43lowImOLuBOfeLggXwKpjG7cmFJuUpx9uuvWKndMdBhuO6MskhEkFvxPZ2gPJLP7aqd2_In0/s600/steve_kekana_bulldozer.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxwZasDceXaOHfEF-xc5wZEMec_4AqMkDK-iosHyxjXfaE4mMGAJp2ZNmIywZ74tSzeQ43lowImOLuBOfeLggXwKpjG7cmFJuUpx9uuvWKndMdBhuO6MskhEkFvxPZ2gPJLP7aqd2_In0/w400-h400/steve_kekana_bulldozer.jpg" width="400" /></a></b></i></div><i><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><p style="text-align: justify;"><i><b><span style="font-family: helvetica;">“From the beginning, I felt I am a musician and I must appeal to everybody.” – Steve Kekana</span></b></i></p></span></b></i><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Steve Kekana passed away on Tuesday 1 July at Polokwane Provincial Hospital in Limpopo due to Covid-19 complications. The following is a transcription of an interview with him at Downtown studios in Goud Street, Johannesburg on 25 November 2009. It has been edited for clarity.</span></i></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Do you think SA’s isolation was a possible reason for the success of the local music industry during the 80s?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF4cOggCwkxl_ZpB3cFxNkGzQj7hgwdYMAuo7IcdUaAPnxru5aG0j7lcYJP2KU_Wsb-uI7YRU4li5k9qo4EHvnIpJb4ebqMI5kti8PpbR_mmZeZDpZvrYexuQB5ItyLy4Y60uepa3LUI/w200-h200/steve_kekana+1.jpg" width="200" /></span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">My personal view is that maybe at that time the sort of cultural boycott left South Africa with no chance but to rely on its own music. I’m not saying there was no international music here, but I want to believe that in a way, the cultural boycott made it possible for south African music to be played in their own country. To take an example, it is because of the boycotts or sanctions that Sasol [energy company] was made. If it wasn’t for the boycotts and sanctions that were made against South African, I doubt if anybody would have been pushed to create a thing like Sasol. so it was a Sasol kind of a thing which made South Africa to play its own music. That is my number one view.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Number two: during that time, musicians were just taken for a ride. We had the so-called talent scouts, whom we’re calling producers now, right. Those people would go and look for raw talent and get them into the studio and record them. And those talent scouts were employed by the record companies then. They would get people to the music industry and become everything – manager, producer, talent scout, and everything. So those people were having all the connections to the DJs – made friends with DJs, so that they were able to talk to them, ‘please help me out, play this artist of mine, I’m building this new artist’. You know, go in there, begging as if they are begging for the good of the artist. But they were doing it for their own pocket.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Artists were exploited … How can I do it diplomatically? You know, diplomacy is taking someone to hell and making them enjoy the journey. When you get your songs played on the radio, you become excited, you’re becoming great, everybody knows about you. But you are not the one who is getting the cream. I would include myself in that, although I quickly realised that and I got out of my producer. I started producing myself.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">I’m talking about Tom Vuma. Because Tom would be my manager and everything. He would arrange shows. We would go there and perform, and he would pay me. I mean this you’re not going to believe, at that time we were being paid R15 per show. No matter how many people were there per show. I don’t even want to venture into guessing (how much the promoter was making), because we were nowhere near to count his money. You see, that is the way it was - that was his money, as if we were now employed by him. He’s capable of giving us R15 per show. And by then, a rural boy of my calibre enjoys having the R15, before you realize that that is not what you are worth. The first contract that I signed, in 1978 with EMI, this you’re not gonna believe, I was getting 2.5%! So I’m trying to back up the exploitation part of it. (it was happening at) all record companies.</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOjbnnNnqHW6tpo6JoNOj-xgzf5ghcVc1ehz41WwB7g4dWrpKcGZ7ZahwVAH-uVPCdk_wrAd3H3ualfQ8M5w6T-abhJ7Bhx9m66HMuQDU3yx_1DhI9jAuAlHMoBZpSDId_pfJwvSHPaCI/s600/steve_kekana+2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOjbnnNnqHW6tpo6JoNOj-xgzf5ghcVc1ehz41WwB7g4dWrpKcGZ7ZahwVAH-uVPCdk_wrAd3H3ualfQ8M5w6T-abhJ7Bhx9m66HMuQDU3yx_1DhI9jAuAlHMoBZpSDId_pfJwvSHPaCI/w200-h200/steve_kekana+2.jpg" width="200" /></span><div style="text-align: justify;">One thing that I am very, very angry about is that we would write songs, not the record company, not the publishing company. And we recorded that song, automatically, the publishing company related to that recording company, takes 50% of your copyright. And that is why in the meeting that we had on the 17th (Nov 2009), I raised the point that I think it is important that it is now time that, like they have done with the Land Restitution Act, we need to have a copyright restitution act, in terms of section 25, subsection 7, of the constitution. To go back to 1920 when the music industry started. That is what is needed. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I’m backing up the exploitation thing here. I’m saying musicians’ songs, half of their rights were taken without their permission, by publishing companies. And I’m saying, the law says, everybody who was dispossessed of property from 1913, needs to be equitably paid. This is intellectual property. As provided for by the constitution, section 25, subsection 7.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;">We’re having another meeting early next year (2010). That’s where we will hear what his (the president’s) response will be.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></div></span><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was there exploitation and/or racism in the music industry back in the day?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think the intention of the record companies was to follow the status quo of the apartheid state. In the apartheid system there was a saying that no black man can understand science. So that created that situation that I’m sure all or most whites at the time – I must be careful here, I cannot say all – most whites were following the status quo of apartheid, that only white engineers can be (ie. only whites can be engineers). Then you have these talent scouts as a busboy to coordinate between the white engineer and the black musicians. I don’t think it was a mutual kind of thing. But when time went on and on, a better relationship then started to develop, where the white engineers started to realise that actually they can talk directly to the musicians without having a middleman called a talent scout or the producer. and that’s when we started. Soul brothers started quitting their producer Nzimande, then we followed, and that’s when we started to talk directly to the white engineers. It was not – it was for a long time that you could find black engineers…</span></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Would you say the partnership between black and white is one reasons for the success of SA music?)</span></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqWYx1DTFIYiBopMQjXXfLB1fWxHNwSd8xqRhnrFhOs_Gwyoy1_V_37jKFnb6dygbT8Db0ruaSot-otMiVgGkDGbApMBqFuxNe_HJeO5b0GMb3KdTbrQ2GCcQIDJnqDhpXi3n5zT38C5U/s600/steve_kekana+3.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"></a></div><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqWYx1DTFIYiBopMQjXXfLB1fWxHNwSd8xqRhnrFhOs_Gwyoy1_V_37jKFnb6dygbT8Db0ruaSot-otMiVgGkDGbApMBqFuxNe_HJeO5b0GMb3KdTbrQ2GCcQIDJnqDhpXi3n5zT38C5U/w200-h200/steve_kekana+3.jpg" width="200" /></span></span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Not really. I don’t really buy that story. Music is evolutionary in nature. The way to which it would evolve cannot see colour, cannot see the mixture of two cultures. I’m saying ... I always say to people, you see, music, you need 3 things to be a successful musician. Number 1: you need cash. Number 2: you need talent. Number 3: you need luck.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Now, the problem is, you may have talent, and not have cash and luck. Then you’ll never make a successful musician. You may have talent, and not have cash, and have luck, you won’t make a successful musician, you see. But you may have cash, and not have talent and luck, you will make a successful musician. Cash is the most important thing. Unfortunately that’s the name of the game. You need to – how are you going to promote yourself cashless?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So I’m saying the issue of a mixture of black culture and white culture cannot be the reason for the success of the music of the 80s. The only reason was number 1: the producers and the recording companies wanting to benefit out if it, or milking the musicians, for as long as they are still milkable. And then chase them out of the kraal when the milk is finished. That is the number one reason. Number 2, it is that boycott kind of a thing, that I believe helped.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was it like dealing with censorship at the SABC?)</span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">At the time, it was a big issue. Because most of us were singing songs out of the hut – with no intention of immorality or moral degeneration in mind. So at that time, we felt it was a big issue. Why should the SABC censor? And indeed it was a big issue because if we wanted to sing about the way we feel, why should we be restricted to or by some white somebody who’s sitting there at the SABC, trying to guard against everything against the government? That was funny.</span></div><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">But having studied law, and knowing about the moral issue in the copyright act, that it is important that everything that you write, or make a song about, must be a moral fibre. If it goes against the right – we call it contra bonos mores – if it goes against the good morals of the society – then it’s not a good copyright thing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiew2aCbr_pmRbXsW9bB1GP4p17cqsCHVGEEXR3lxvQryC_vcW6Wj9JHATo-33MbEBGZk7h2WqbVGgxA7QQbFMgT8HpifwjHZxU4VjcMPyw3UqNq8L8GLW5zGLKPALxcm1wtQKNdwZDf1Q/w200-h200/steve_kekana+4.jpg" width="200" /></span></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Now I say maybe they had a reason, against if you have to look at the limitation clause, that you may have the right to freedom of speech, but that speech would be limited if it begins to hurt other people. I mean my right to swing my arm ends when my arm begins to hit you. So I’m saying at that time we felt that SABC was just another fuss. But having to think about it now, I think, somehow it was necessary.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Were any of your songs banned?)</span></b></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Yes. I had a song called ‘Sadness’. It was banned, never played. Reasons of the lyrics not being acceptable to them. There is (was) nothing wrong with that (the lyrics). I remember why they banned it, it was ‘let the sound of your guitar be a gun, to shoot and kill the melancholy in me’. That was good enough for them. I thought I was being poetic. They look for the word gun and shoot and kill, that’s how it was banned. I still feel that song was a good song.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">The other one was the ‘Feel So Strong’ thing, which I did with PJ Powers. 'Feel So Strong' was actually going to be banned, I still believe, if I was the sole writer. (But) actually that was PJ’s song, so maybe that’s how it survived. But we had to redo the song because the original words were saying, ‘I feel so strong, your love has made me feel again that I belong’. Now, at that particular time, it was taboo to hear a white girl saying your love has helped me, you know, ‘your love has made me feel again that I belong’, either saying that to a black boy or black young man, or singing that kind of a thing with a black (man). So we had to rephrase and say instead of love, let’s say ‘your help’. They actually said, say ‘your help has made…’ so it sounds like this white girl has helped me. That’s the only way the song could get out.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;">And the others, that was rather too Zulu-sensitive. Like they’d have those Zulu guys and say, ‘No, we don’t say this thing in Zulu.’ You were not allowed to – if you were going to sing a Zulu song, it must be entirely Zulu. You must not put other words in. you cannot mix. So some of them we had to redo them and change them into Zulu – strictly Zulu or strictly Sotho. We were not even allowed to mix an album – have a Sotho song, a Zulu song, an English song in one album – that was nonsense.</div></span></div><div><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9uZxNrx46UZLJPf_elhQE6rLEqLoPi0GUQZedbfTY7I0EN5ajh6fRAE7C80Tt4Crj-mwCGdl_kNFhANJgv5T9zq68SMLqOD0wrEDRWrB_2bk_tbeICfc4oa4YOiRwhk__U40DJScjoI/w200-h200/steve_kekana+6.jpg" width="200" /></span></span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What happened to this censorship law?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It lapsed automatically in 94.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What is the significance of ‘crossing over’ to other audiences?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">For audiences it was good. For me, it was good. I mean that was one thing that sometimes made me feel proud, that I’m working against the odds, I’m defying the laws. Blacks would feel very proud if they found themselves in a way defying successfully the laws of apartheid.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Fortunately by the time I worked with PJ (Powers), the political timidness had waned. So people began to understand what’s going on. So we were not criticised. Instead, PJ Powers was encouraged. She was even given the name Thandeka, which means the loved one. Ja, it was fine. We didn’t really problems with performing with PJ, except that they, as whites, will have to get permits to come to Soweto to play … I think it was easy enough because they never had any problems. </span></p></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Who else was crossing over?)</span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Juluka and all those … </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Veldsman, who’s this lady? Rene Veldsman … I can’t remember the name of the song, but ja, I remember Rene Veldsman, too. (Via Afrika – ‘Hey Boy’)</span></span></div><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did you perform in white areas?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;">It was not a problem for black artists to perform in white areas. I mean we would perform at Wits University. Grahamstown, and all that. It was only ... like for us, I was never asked to get a permit to come and perform in (white areas). You know, apartheid was a funny insane kind of system. They felt it is safer for blacks to be in white areas than (for) whites to be in black areas. That’s how it was working. Because they felt whites are able to contain themselves. They cannot mix with blacks, they can’t fall in love with blacks, and all that. so they were safe. The main aim was to say blacks must not have this feeling that they are capable of mingling and mixing with whites.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xMpx8A1gNn0" title="YouTube video player" width="500"></iframe>
</div></span></div><div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was it like performing at Concert in the Park at Ellis Park in 1985?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="font-family: Times; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">It was a charity concert, Concert in the Park. It was a concert arranged for Operation Hunger. All the proceeds were to go to Operation Hunger. We played there, most of us played for free. That was again another concert, one of the biggest concerts, where black and whites were mixed, even in the crowds. But it was in a white area so we couldn’t have been worried (joke).</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">I would imagine if it was to be in Orlando Stadium, it would have been different.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;">(It was big success and) everybody was happy. It was one of its own kind.</div></span></div><div><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-size: x-small; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpl57dtgZW2JvbUDzPhk58SHvck61cvlh-Fv1_S9rvn2lwrFdt5YTBgDvwlNa0NDlKaQjFIWk2v2bfwhYpLxhaZ_wttpqexsHwCYFotAw846tUl4zIGT38IEc5-ar___doTeDBe_iNMw/w200-h200/steve_kekana+5.jpg" width="200" /></span><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was the live scene like in general?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Other concerts which to me were a very, very great success, were the then Radio Zulu concerts – Amagagu Omculo concerts. These were the equivalent of the so-called SAMA Awards, but they were being held by different radio stations every year. So this Radio Zulu, because of the demographics and the populations, had a capacity of drawing large crowds. So before the awards, bands will be invited to go and have a festival, a big festival. People will come from all over – Kwazulu-Natal, Joburg – and everybody could fill the Kingsmead stadium. It’s a big thing.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Now to back up the exploitation part again, bands will only be paid about a thousand rand to go and perform. That’s split between (amongst) the band, including your transport. It was just nothing. (But) we went there happily and we felt we were honoured. Because if you… I mean I’m sure I won the best male vocalist more than 4 times. You went there for the honour (award ceremony and general concert). It was going, I don’t know when did it really stop, but I remember ‘79, ‘80, ’81, ‘82, I participated. And the thing that they would do, I don’t know if they were paying our producers or what, because we were not even allowed to talk to radio announcers, by our producers anyway. We would be told ‘No, don’t worry, you will perform there because you will be promoted.’</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did you career develop in terms of singing in different languages?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;">It happened all at the same time. Because when I came to Johannesburg in 1979 – this would make anybody laugh – I knew nothing about Zulu. But my first album was in Zulu (laughs.). My first album I did not write any song. Tom [Vuma] would write the thing in Zulu. Learning languages is my passion. I could grab what you want me to say in French, even if I do not know (any) French. So my first album was in Zulu, and I didn’t know anything about Zulu. That’s when I started. And I started learning Zulu through radio advertisements. I mean I knew that if they are advertising Omo, in Sotho they are saying this. So “i-Omo”, I would say ‘oh, this is an Omo advert’. Then I would understand and learn. That’s how I learnt my Zulu.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></div></span></div><div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdj8r2EiI6JLvXNrcyx-WoNGTQtNxnHclcN-VD4anA_v12w8ZD-9TzPzfvAZxfnOeyyrDlRMEILmGYEGrYW8KM6M2V3zEoD2jChf7bg-eKZWbHid8g4l0CTqWZ7aBgZmQC7FZEC8mpiXo/s600/steve_kekana+7.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdj8r2EiI6JLvXNrcyx-WoNGTQtNxnHclcN-VD4anA_v12w8ZD-9TzPzfvAZxfnOeyyrDlRMEILmGYEGrYW8KM6M2V3zEoD2jChf7bg-eKZWbHid8g4l0CTqWZ7aBgZmQC7FZEC8mpiXo/w200-h200/steve_kekana+7.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;">The English thing, I always … ‘Sadness’ was a song which I recorded in 19- yes, my first album was in Zulu in 1978. And I had a single, which included ‘Sadness’ and ‘Disappointment’. ‘Disappointment’ was written by Tom. It wasn’t banned, but it wasn’t a good song. And ‘Sadness’ was a good song, and it was banned. So I want to say, I did not start singing English because I wanted to appeal to a wider audience. From the beginning, I felt I am a musician and I must appeal to everybody.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></div></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So when ‘Sadness’ was banned, and then I said to Tom, I said, ‘Listen, I actually need to do an English album’. And then he-, they got together with Malcolm [Watson], that’s when we started to write things like ‘Raising my Family’, ‘Shine On’ and all that, which was the songs which took me to Scandinavia on tour. I went to Scandinavia on tour in 1981. So it means the first English album for me was ‘Don’t Stop the Music’ in 1980. So I think in the mind of every musician, whether singing in Zulu or Sotho or English, he wants to appeal, cross over. And overseas was part of that crossover.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was it like touring Scandinavia?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Well, It was an achievement. It was a dream come true. It was lovely. I mean, all those beautiful ways to explain excitement!</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did you gain any political insight into SA and apartheid while touring?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I want to be honest with you, it was just about performing. But by then I was about 22 or 23. Taking it from the background where I come from, a rural guy, who was only taught to be respectful to the elderly, that was the best teaching that a rural boy can come to town with. It was just about fun. First time overseas.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">The second time overseas was when I went overseas with Hotline. That was when, where I started to realise there is something funny, there is something different in Europe as compared to South Africa. ‘84, I went to England, I went to Germany and Italy. In the Scandinavian tour, actually we were not even involved in so many interviews, newspaper or radio. Because number 1, they are not speaking English, we would struggle in getting an interview. But now in London, that’s where you would be interviewed by BBC. I remember one of the questions which was supposed to be the most difficult one, at that time, was: what is my take on apartheid?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIzbXxvY9mdrerhWnl4SZhak_DcfTXyOh7O8UNl617QuWnAA5LQRebAZoco0ILhaGnPQB47VS1NQYt781fODi8drgMQk6XKFkBNC1aBfPERGc5utRHDGMA6HGbxCdjD_wwh8WvvlJV-80/s600/steve_kekana+8.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIzbXxvY9mdrerhWnl4SZhak_DcfTXyOh7O8UNl617QuWnAA5LQRebAZoco0ILhaGnPQB47VS1NQYt781fODi8drgMQk6XKFkBNC1aBfPERGc5utRHDGMA6HGbxCdjD_wwh8WvvlJV-80/w200-h200/steve_kekana+8.jpg" width="200" /></span><div style="text-align: justify;">I want to be honest with you, I thought I was honest in my mind. But there was this thing that, I’m sure when I get home, I will meet up with something g… I answered that question very simply and said, ‘You know, to me, apartheid effects those who recognise it. I don’t recognise apartheid, as you can see, I’m here with an all-white band, and I’m the only one (who isn’t white), and I hope I’m not window-dressing, but I don’t recognise apartheid, I don’t respect it, so it doesn’t effect me.’</div></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think it was true back then, because like I say, I needed no permit to go to white areas. It was whites who were getting permits to come to us (black areas). So to me, it was affecting whites rather than us.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did the ‘bubblegum’ term come about?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think it was just a media term. Very derogative, in as far as I am concerned. You know, bubblegum is something that you chew it now, and then it loses taste, you throw it away. That was what the media was (suggesting). I think in every kind of music (there) is bubblegum – serious! Because there are some songs from even the international people that you can listen to, within six months you no longer want to hear it.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think it was the media showing disrespect to their very own musicians, giving their music a useless name like bubblegum. I never agreed with that name, and I will still never agree with it.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCwhFpVROzbMQgJ-iSaveoPv-1mDGjjW-SC1TZK8iwi6-FocgGT01r9UdkccoUGgyTmMKSgR26KB30e9SEQs1zXJJcfiQZ4SeiEpixXEV5-yQHN81uZ67GBUQmhuwp0sN-69ATVYFVTc/s600/steve_kekana+9.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCwhFpVROzbMQgJ-iSaveoPv-1mDGjjW-SC1TZK8iwi6-FocgGT01r9UdkccoUGgyTmMKSgR26KB30e9SEQs1zXJJcfiQZ4SeiEpixXEV5-yQHN81uZ67GBUQmhuwp0sN-69ATVYFVTc/w200-h200/steve_kekana+9.jpg" width="200" /></span><div style="text-align: justify;">We definitely didn’t get any other name for our music, because even what I would have thought was soul music, in Zulu, they still said it was mbaqanga. It is still mbaqanga even now. And mbaqanga is not even… my understanding, I might be wrong, mbaqanga to me is the type of music which was played by Mahotella Queens, Mahlathini, and all the other saxophonist kind of music, of that time. To me that was mbaqanga – not synthesizer stuff, and real organ. Actually mbaqanga would be all guitar and saxophone, strong vocals. When you start to play organ and all that, it was…. the mbaqanga that we are playing, Black Moses (Ngwenya from the Soul Brothers) is playing, and Edward Mathiba (?) was playing on organ – is derived from Jimmy Smith’s way of playing organ. So how do you say something which we took over from jazz, you still call it mbaqanga? Because you cannot play this kind, the rigmaroles that Black Moses/Edward Mathiba were doing, if you couldn’t play Jimmy Smith. That has been proven, you see. But they still call it mbaqanga, That’s why I say I doubt if I really worry about labels.</div></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What was it like featuring on Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse’s 1984 hit ‘Burn Out’?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I wasn’t actually invited. It was a surprise kind of an event. Because I came in wanting to talk to (producer/engineer) Richard Mitchell about the pending recording that we were supposed to be doing. It was round about 7 o’clock at night. I wonder, I cannot say it was on a Sunday or whatever, but it was 7 o’clock at night. And as a musician, I had my own fun, you know… I had my own fun, I had some few drinks, you know, because I knew that I wasn’t gonna sing.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And then Richard said to me, ‘This is a good song, but it lacks something. What that something is, I don’t know. but I have a feeling that you can give it that something that it lacks.’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="clear: left; float: left; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYz76WEU9XO46TSg7eOME4fCP8BxG3kchX2c6e6Xc0LOHJlV3bUGTEoGTHzLPoXCzztEWxaKSwwVc1c-ARQG9rx0McQQQh5SGnBGJhFSE-NbVE_QSxaeukD4rLIIMuqJq4vUAR5bGQ_Xg/w200-h200/steve_kekana+10.jpg" width="200" /></span></span></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And then I went in, I listened, they played, I said ‘OK, I will do the last part’. I went in there, it was a one-take thing. And that was it. Really. I was not invited. It was a big success. I was not credited (laughs). I was not even paid studio fee (for a) session. It’s only mentioned, ‘featuring Steve Kekana’ but I was not credited as a co-writer. And I was not even given a session fee. But, and I have to be very honest, I’m not angry about it, because we were singing for fun. I’m not telling you because I’m saying I want to claim something out of it. I just want to emphasise the fact that at that time, we were really doing music for fun. And that was the mistake which we did. I want to be very honest. That was the mistake that we did. Because we did not take music as business.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">And that is why, most of our musicians are unable to diversify today. We believe that it’s a god-given talent, I’ll die with it. And there is no such (thing). Every talent will come to an end, and we must be able to see that if I was making vinyls, and the vinyls are no longer playing, why am I not making cassettes or CDs?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>You must be able to think in that fashion. But unfortunately to our musicians, we’re not thinking in that fashion. To such an extent that when I said, ‘Listen, guys, I’m going back to varsity, I’m going to study law,’ most of my friends said, ‘Books and music do not go hand in hand, are you really desperate?’ I said no - maybe I am, but I don’t think I’m desperate, and I believe that music and studies do go hand in hand. Because if they were not going hand in hand, then we wouldn’t be having music written.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Can you tell me a bit more about your education after music?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I started in 1992, I registered with Unisa for political science. I thought I wanted to be a politician. It didn’t go well. You cannot be a musician and think you can correspond. It didn’t go well. I failed. I decided in 1994 that listen, I’m going behind the desk. I knew that when I was sitting behind the desk, I always passed. So I still believe I can sit behind the desk and pass. And indeed I got my B.juris degree in record time. It’s a four-year (degree). I went to the University of Turfloop [aka University of the North, now University of Limpopo]. I got it in record time. I did LLB, another two-year degree, I got it in record time. And then here I am now, I’m still in music, I’m employed by government, as a labour relations manager. I only practiced as a lawyer when I served my articles, that’s all. My belief is that criminals need to be jailed, not to be assisted, but ja – I’m sure I’m against the constitution! (joking) That is my view.</span></p><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></span><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What’s your take on the SA music industry today?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKpllSdh4z5JWSnlxk5COxi0T1GsWNmpS12Gi0tkz8SQIAgiuWbiVyarCEKYbnIf3uVE3IXodsCSqFxXyAhKWG6F2JFEmqMDoVh85MRdwQTetrGLcGeO7wgWRWe4KHWHhn38QRpKvBJaM/s600/steve_kekana+11.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKpllSdh4z5JWSnlxk5COxi0T1GsWNmpS12Gi0tkz8SQIAgiuWbiVyarCEKYbnIf3uVE3IXodsCSqFxXyAhKWG6F2JFEmqMDoVh85MRdwQTetrGLcGeO7wgWRWe4KHWHhn38QRpKvBJaM/w200-h200/steve_kekana+11.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><div style="text-align: justify;">I want to say the music industry at the moment – this is my view. Its deteriorating into what I want to call a spaza business. Not because of piracy. Because every musician now has his own little studio. Because of technology. It’s becoming too easy to make music. And then we are faced with a reality that in the process, will have more inferior kind of music. Earlier one, the business was run like business, unfortunately not for the musician’s benefit. That is the long and short of what I can tell.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I still feel that as South Africans, we are a very funny nation. We are not proud of our own. We can rather play Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole, who recorded ‘Mona Lisa’ in 1950, and give it airplay and praise it that it’s still the best. But I think maybe its because media is in the hands of the whites. I’m not being racist here. There’s a Eurocentric kind of mentality. Sometimes we will be blamed to be racist, because we seem to forget there is a word like Eurocentic. Instead we can say white, while we do mean Eurocentric. So the media is in the hands of the Eurocentricists – what do you expect?</span></div><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">That thing has been transplanted, or superimposed into the black man’s mind. It has to be international to be good. It has to come from Europe to be good. That is why people will strive to take their last penny to take their kids to white school, because they must come slanging English as if they are like whites. And I’m saying what is the use of slanging English if I can speak English in the manner that I do, but we do (still) understand each other? Language is communication, it’s not for status. That is why it has been implanted in our minds, unfortunately. That you need to know English, then you will be employed…</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">RIP Dr Tebogo Steve Kekana 1958-2021</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">© Afrosynth</span></p></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-65440501468534091572021-07-16T17:09:00.005+02:002021-07-16T20:28:16.528+02:00PAT SHANGE (1956-2021)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDStbAKI9Nhvqqz-YPilrT65t3Vn-GfKqBws3-TYebwV3vZhH4TIr1sH1Nq5AO26WB6DIFrKoa6a62AF6F8ootNLo5tRvRmbbbWvVIsSkk9w4bPyEMMt7s6FReaE6Jxu0Pw2x9I2Y81_o/s800/pat_shange+man.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDStbAKI9Nhvqqz-YPilrT65t3Vn-GfKqBws3-TYebwV3vZhH4TIr1sH1Nq5AO26WB6DIFrKoa6a62AF6F8ootNLo5tRvRmbbbWvVIsSkk9w4bPyEMMt7s6FReaE6Jxu0Pw2x9I2Y81_o/w400-h400/pat_shange+man.jpg" width="400" /></a><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></div><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><div style="text-align: left;"><b><i>“Music is my love, you know. I’ve got passion for music. So I think I know all the aspects of music. You talk about recordings, you talk about performances, you talk about media. You talk about anything that has got to do with music, I’m there, I know.” – Pat Shange</i></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>Pat Shange passed away on Tuesday 13 July 2021 at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto due to Covid-19 complications. The following is a transcription of an interview with him at Ezomdabu studios in Jeppe Street, downtown Johannesburg on 4 December 2009. It has been edited for clarity.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Actually to be honest with you, I started professionally - when I started recording it was in 1977. But my first album was released in 1979. I can say that this year, 2009, I’m celebrating my 30th anniversary in the music field.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p class="p1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I was born in 1956. I<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>think at about the age of 9, 10, that’s when I started playing the guitar. Because my father bought me a guitar. Then I taught myself how to play the guitar. And then I think after 2 to 3 years from then, I started joining the local groups in Pietermaritzburg. I started joining the local groups, I was playing the drums by then, guitar and also singing. I carried on like that up until the end of 1976, and the beginning of 1977. There was a producer by the name of Wilson Ndlovu, he was working for the record company, that was called Jo’Burg Records. That’s were Margaret Singana, Clout, me, Rabbitt and them were recording. They were operating from Yeoville.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So this Wilson Ndlovu he was a black producer working for them. He came across me when he was talent scouting down in Pietermaritzburg, he said ‘Ei! You are good! I’m not sure about your group, but you are good! I think we must organise something. We must take you up to Johannesburg”. Which he did. Then he brought me to Johannesburg, it was myself and a group called the Juveniles by then. Then we started recording in 1977. But what they realised is that although they thought I was good, my backing group was not good enough. They were good for performances, yes, but not for recording.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfsjJwHXlx1pBU5Nyn1r5ZUjLuAnipAhiJ7Jwlbe-UKqYUTuWaHL8HKuxazgK1iFtae0IWaB5EWrEDPo_vw7v2dH0yb8qxtwvQItGmn_vDnwx1EJPFVOLONb8JTGCS7X4niboTYiQR1k/w200-h200/juveniles_ft.jpg" width="200" /></span><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">You remember, at that time, when you are recording, you were only using 4 tracks. Meaning you have got to be good to start with, in order to qualify as a recording artist. Secondly, you must know your story, because if a single is about 3 minutes and 50 seconds, then we are recording. Towards the end, lets say towards 3 minutes, then you decided to cough, or something happened, you have got to stop and start from afresh.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>You know what I mean. Coughing, whatever, cos its only 4 tracks. So you have got to know your story.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So with my backing band, some of them, they were not punchy enough, they couldn’t keep with the pace, the timing, and things like that. So they were disqualified as recording artists.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">So the producers said to me ‘OK fine, Pat, don’t worry. This is what we’re gonna do. We’re gonna organise a backing band for you. Even if you cannot organise a backing band, we will form a backing band, so that you can be able to record.’ So my guys had to go back to Pietermaritzburg. I had to go back with them, then come back again. Start working with the new band. With the new band I then recording my first album, which we<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>finished towards the end of 1978. Then it was released in 1979. That was ‘Kudala modlivu’ (?). well it didn’t do that much good, but it sold well because it sold about 15,000 units. It was mbaqanga music. So I did about 15,000 units, which was good. They said it was good enough to be signed up to record another follow-up album. Which I did in 1980. That’s when… that was my first gold disc which I managed to touch with my hands. It was a 7 single ('Hlengiwe') and also the new album, it sold gold.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Then everything that we did, either it was turning gold or platinum. I recorded ‘Hlengiwe’, ’Hayi Bo Ntombi’ (etc)… until 1985. Then I was still young, at the age of 18, 19, somewhere there. So the music that I was doing, as I said, it was mbaqanga. My age group, they started complaining. They said, ‘There’s nothing wrong with your music, but it seems as if you don’t cater for us, people of your age, you cater for elder people, what’s your problem?’ I said to myself, now that my fans are complaining, I think I must do something for them.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfsjJwHXlx1pBU5Nyn1r5ZUjLuAnipAhiJ7Jwlbe-UKqYUTuWaHL8HKuxazgK1iFtae0IWaB5EWrEDPo_vw7v2dH0yb8qxtwvQItGmn_vDnwx1EJPFVOLONb8JTGCS7X4niboTYiQR1k/s640/juveniles_ft.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">That’s when I decided. I didn’t actually change, but I decided to do also what was called Disco music. Others refer to it as bubblegum music.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>But I’m not quite happy with that term, I’ll tell you why… bubblegum is something that you chew for a while and then you throw it out. But that bubblegum music, that was called bubblegum, from 1985 up till now, is still selling. I’m not sure whether the term is correct or not. I was using 'disco'. I even prefer using 'disco' even now.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></span></p></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How did the bubblegum name start?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">I think it was somebody who was trying to criticise the type of music that we were coming up with at that moment. (most fans and musicians were calling in disco). But somebody just came up with the term bubblegum. I don’t know whether … Let me leave it at that. it was called bubblegum. Anyway, its OK. (if) they prefer to call it bubblegum, that’s OK. </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><br /></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vJ_6FID2kPYQwOyCZNVl2E7hmKLcBmvXYE9rLihWCsKXMJcHWyd_q8CrZ-xWo-9MK9lMue-GroZlitz45jA7pFiXQF0N1xiF6yvAJzFUWFwN5k9WhCzUC8CdqAoFmCVlA2Jhy-8wMG4/s800/pat_shange+sweet_mama.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vJ_6FID2kPYQwOyCZNVl2E7hmKLcBmvXYE9rLihWCsKXMJcHWyd_q8CrZ-xWo-9MK9lMue-GroZlitz45jA7pFiXQF0N1xiF6yvAJzFUWFwN5k9WhCzUC8CdqAoFmCVlA2Jhy-8wMG4/w200-h200/pat_shange+sweet_mama.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">So I recorded a maxi-single, it was entitled ‘Sweet Mama’. It was massive! And after ‘Sweet Mama’, it was ‘I’m not a Casanova’. Then things started happening. Because ‘Sweet Mama’ sold more than 100,000 units then. But even now, it's still selling. And I started opening my eyes. Now I can see why the youngsters were complaining. But that’s why (clicks fingers) I did that type of music. ‘Sweet Mama’, ‘I’m not a Casanova’, ‘Tonite you gonna give’, ‘Shine a time’, ‘Undecided Divorce Case’, ‘I’m accused’, ‘Love is like a Bank Account’… you name it! (All big hits). All the time </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(In the) 80s I was still working very seriously back then – there was no Christmas time for me, no Easter. Believe you me, recording, performing. We could perform about 6-10 shows, only on a weekend. If I say weekend, I mean Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Performing about 10 festivals. You just imagine: one in Durban, the other one in Johannesburg, the other one in Swaziland. The other one in Botswana. (week after week). It was tough! In between, indoor shows. We were only offered, having our offs (off-days) on Mondays. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday – day and night, day and night. OK, during the week, it was only nights, indoor shows. But at the weekend, day and night. During the day, festivals. At night, indoor shows. It was a hectic kind of a life. But I cannot regret (it), it was very much interesting... </span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(You were living the dream).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Definitely, there’s nothing wrong about it. I cannot complain even a bit about that kind of life. I was not actually tired…as I said to you, (I eventually slowed down because) I wanted to actually experience the (family life).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did the 1976 youth uprising have an impact on SA music?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Yes of course. The problem was, you couldn’t put up a show now. Because they would suspect that yes, we might call it a show, but all in all, it has got something to do with the politics. (so it became harder to peform live) Definitely.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(Did the music change?) </b>What I can say, there was more of the toyi-toyi music. There were those liberation songs. Most of the groups at that time were recording that type of music. Although some of the artists they were still recording love songs and things like that. but there were groups that were only catering for these liberation songs. (ie. musicians became more conscious, aware, outspoken).</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiku-7V631sxbhVqQDD7bhnf296GzVp8aJDVys2eVw88g__KU1Gr9gGKgL_BySNPTB_t6ofh6qm-IcbHwGf2pq9RjJ7UxQthIE2ZtUnYpeKM2MjBhRhXp8qvUIuLKn03eJHnfbq3EYVe4Y/s640/pat+divorce+ft.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a></div><p></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Traveling around SA, what were some of the difficulties you faced?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Ja it was always like that. because you’ve got to remember. Politicians they were also working hand in hand with the musicians. or they were acting like musicians sometimes. Because it was easier to move from point A to point B as a musician than as a politician. So it was a matter of ‘where are you gonna perform?’ ‘but we didn’t see any banners or posters stating that you’re gonna perform’. ‘are you sure these are musical instruments, or you’ve got something in there like AK47s? just get it open and lets check.’ You know, it was like that. After checking, they would let you go through.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(So no major problems?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Not really, because actually we were not lying to them when we say ‘we are musicians’. We were musicians, so when we say we are going to perform at such and such a place, definitely we are going to perform there. Even if they send their agents, ‘just go and make sure whether there is any show that is taking place’ at a certain hall, a certain artist by the name of Pat Shange, is he performing there? When they come, they will see, the hall is packed. And Pat Shange is sweating over the stage. So nothing is (not as it should be) ...You know what I mean.</span><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiku-7V631sxbhVqQDD7bhnf296GzVp8aJDVys2eVw88g__KU1Gr9gGKgL_BySNPTB_t6ofh6qm-IcbHwGf2pq9RjJ7UxQthIE2ZtUnYpeKM2MjBhRhXp8qvUIuLKn03eJHnfbq3EYVe4Y/w200-h200/pat+divorce+ft.jpg" width="200" /></span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Were things changing during the 80s?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It was still the same. It took us a very long time to be calm, to get to know a situation, if I may put it that way. Because they (police/authorities) are suspecting you. But after checking, they feel that ‘No, these are really a bunch of musicians.’.Mmind you, don’t forget, of those police, black police where there. And most of the black police, they knew their stars. If you say ‘I’m Pat Shange’, (they'd respond:) ‘Ooh ja, I know, hi!”</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Anything else you remember about the repression of musicians back then?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It was not easy, let me be honest with you. It was not easy. For example, if you are a musician, you could earn good money, then you could buy yourself a nice car. And then being a black man, driving a nice car on the highway, it was always problematic. Because the police would stop you, ‘who’s car is this?’ The first question: ‘who’s car is this?’ If it’s your car, (you’ll have) hassles all the way. So most of the black people then, they would prefer (to say) ‘no, it's for my boss’. It was gonna be better if you say the car was for your boss.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Because they will leave you. But if its yours, they will look for this…papers of the car. “where did you buy this car from? Where did you get the money to buy this car? Are you sure this car is not a stolen car?” Things like that, we were used to those things. Definitely, we were used to those things.</span></p><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">If you were in a hurry, it was better for you to say, ‘This is my boss’s car.’ If you are not in a hurry, you could claim this is your car, provided you’ve got the papers and things like that. because they will ask you to produce the papers, IDs, licence, you name it. You could be delayed there for about an hour, up to two hours, on the highway, trying to explain. Phoning the dealer where you bought the car, if it’s during the day and they are there, phoning and asking, ‘are you sure a person by the name of pat bought the car from you people? When was that? what colour is the car?” (always suspicious)</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(In the 1980s could one write political songs?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Some of the songs, yes (were political). I mean you couldn’t ignore what was happening. But in most cases, I was writing things that are happening (in everyday life), writing about love, trying to calm people down, you know what I mean. Although some of the songs they had to (deal with politics). They had to, you cannot ignore the environment, that was the point.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was censorship a problem?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Yes, most of the songs, yes. The songs that they (censors at the SABC) thought ‘mm-mm” (no), this one wouldn’t be good for the listeners. Not because it takes the wrong direction, but because then, it was gonna tell the listeners something that they wouldn’t like the listeners to observe or to listen to.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(For example). ‘I’m Accused’, for something that I didn’t do, is the song that I did. Not only myself, most of the musicans that were recording songs – Chicco ‘Manelo’. Which was supposed to be Mandela. ‘We miss you manelo’. It was supposed to be ‘I miss you Mandela’. Most of the musicians (did similar things)…</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did censorship stop you from saying what you wanted to say?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">No, it didn’t. It was either changing the lyrics to suit me, but the listeners would understand exactly what I’m trying to say. Although the censors wouldn’t understand what was taking place. Because most of us musicians, that I what we’d do. They (listeners) would understand exactly what we were trying to tell them.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was the SA music industry segregated or did some artists cross over?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Some of the songs were crossovers. But not all of them. For example like Sipho 'Hotstix' Mabuse had Burnout. Which was a crossover. Margaret Singana also had a crossover song….they used to call it ‘the click song’. But normally you had to know your market. You had to direct your music to a certain kind of people.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kjnqfu2QIBA" width="320" youtube-src-id="kjnqfu2QIBA"></iframe></div><br /><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What kind of people were typically in your audiences, eg. at festivals?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Yes (mainly black). (coloured and whites) sometimes, there was a reason for them, why they should come over there, it’s either maybe there’s a white band that will be playing – because there were also white bands also then who were performing with us, like Hotline, and … Clout… Margino – it was a white lady. And Cindy Alter also, that was a white lady. And who else…. They were not trying (to sell to blacks), they were selling. They were definitely selling. Hotline…most of the groups that I mentioned, were selling very big. And they were very popular within the black market. (and in white market too?), yes.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Any memories of bad/racist vibes at a festival?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">No, when it comes to music, you could observe something differently. When it comes to music, they didn’t care whether it was a white a performer. If you were good, you were just good. They applaud for you. Then that’s it. In fact, let me put it this way: in the music industry, that’s where we didn’t feel apartheid. That was the only place. Definitely.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was there socialising between races, after hours?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It was a problem. You could go with a white man, because he is performing with you into a white club. But you are not allowed…. Well some of them, they could negotiate until (they say its ok, but most of the time not).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(Performing to white audiences?)</b></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It was never a problem. Because in most cases, if you’re gonna perform in a white area, its obvious its gonna be a white promoters who’s gonna promote you over there. So you could do all the preparations and everything… you know what I mean.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6mwnA7TzxFIUvkMKc2xYm5FYK6uPD8q4lYZlwM8E9Lon9IjFpww9HOy5tQMwAlQF0nuQxmkDzpCadrGrfB9m7mxRrUuaM-az10UMtj_g3xe-n8cEx9GBHIgIHZjHYa1gw5Hsuwx-h5gU/s800/pat_shange+sweet_mama.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"></a></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(It seems often the engineers were white, even for black artists – why was this?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Actually, I don’t know whether it was because of apartheid or what. But let me be honest with you. This is from my heart now. It has got nothing to do with politics. That was a very good combination, believe you me, that was a very good combination. I’ll tell you why, even now, you check, if a black musician is working with a white producer… a white producer brings that white flavour into the project. And then a black musician brings that black flavour into the project. It becomes a bomb! (hit). I can name plenty musicians who are working like that. it was happening in most cases, it was<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>a success. I don’t know how it was formed (started). Maybe it was formed because of the apartheid. But the results were not like that. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Look at Juluka. Juluka it was a black guy and a white guy. Even if it was formed because of the apartheid, but the results were very good. Because the kind of music that they were doing was excellent.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">They (white guys in the industry) knew what they were doing. That was the main thing. They earned respect because they knew what they were doing. they were not taking chances. If he was an engineer, he knows his sounds. And he could help you. ‘OK, you know what, I understand what you wanna do, but how about trying this? And putting this type of sounds? Don’t you think…? Ja ja ja, now it sounds better!’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">They knew what they were doing. It (race) has nothing to do with anything. They were there because they had skills. They were not there because they were white.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What about Phil Hollis, for example, who you worked a lot with?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">When it comes to music and the know-hows of music, and promoting music, he is wise. Let alone (nevermind) what they say about him – 1, 2, 3. When it comes to music….I enjoyed working with him. Although people will say, blah blah blah. You’d never survive in this industry if you’re not a tough business(man)</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was there exploitation in the SA music industry in the 80s?)</span></b></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Although it was getting more professional, but it was still happening. Even overseas, it was happening. Because I remember then I had a producer by the name of Rick Wolff. He was a musician then. He went overseas. He stayed there for… they had a very big hit. He never got any royalties. And when he was talking about that, you could see he was very sad (upset). It was a sad story for him. so it was happening all over. (it was a business thing, not political or racial).</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: helvetica;"> </span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLnEWB_kjUY5SXYeA4YnG6mIMtD9ap6VS1eknPQmw3Mz2xCJ0a8ho-ex9w2kLTud98B74ooDzYpa0gKlZJbcQ9JtyML1vhoxPPdjN-vOczwWBf2gCP0Z_YkowhIiTWQ0SbO63BzqvIyVM/s800/pat_shange+shayile_time.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"></a></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was there a sense of international isolation in SA during apartheid?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Actually, let me put it this way. Although they were not coming in for performances, but there music was here, full time. There was never a time when South Africa was not playing foreign music. Never.</span><span style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: helvetica; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLnEWB_kjUY5SXYeA4YnG6mIMtD9ap6VS1eknPQmw3Mz2xCJ0a8ho-ex9w2kLTud98B74ooDzYpa0gKlZJbcQ9JtyML1vhoxPPdjN-vOczwWBf2gCP0Z_YkowhIiTWQ0SbO63BzqvIyVM/w200-h200/pat_shange+shayile_time.jpg" width="200" /></span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b><span>(International influence on local sounds?) </span></b>Yes of course. There were plenty musicians who were imitating Michael Jackson locally (eg). (going for the synth/drum machine sound) yes definitely. <b>(also African local sounds?) </b>Ja it will always be like that because if you are not bringing that into the music industry at the particular moment, then it means you cannot claim that that music is black. So the elements are supposed to be there, so that you are able to claim, this is black music.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: small;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did your music sell in other parts of Africa?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Definitely yes. Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Tanzania.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><b>(What was is like travelling outside SA during the 80s? Did it teach you about SA?)</b></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Of course. The first thing, before they can even talk about your music and your appearance, is what is apartheid like in South Africa? In most cases I think it was paying to be honest. Because if you lie.. OK, you can lie today, but somewhere along the line, the lies of yours will catch up with you. So it's not wise (to lie). It was not a matter of criticising the government, it was a matter of telling the truth.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Did you tour outside Africa – eg US, Europe?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Not that much, (mainly) in Africa. (People loving the music?) a lot. I was treated like a king, I must be very honest with you. Even when I’m arriving in those places, at the airport, they would have a guard of honour. People waiting for me. There’s singing. It was very much exciting.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Weren’t you ever tempted to move overseas during apartheid?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Let me be honest with you, if you are man enough, you’ve got to face your problems, not run away from your problems. And there’s no place like home, anyway. To go and perform, yes. But not to go and stay there. There’s no place like home.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What else was selling besides disco?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Traditional, mbaqanga, maskandi, all these different genres of music were there. (Everything was selling) well, very well. The only thing is that the disco, or the bubblegum was an IN thing at the moment. It was like (cool).</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(For how long?). It started, those years, around '85, up until '94, '95, '96, somewhere there. Then kwaito came in.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was this related to the political changes in the country?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">It had to. Let me put it this way, people who were singing toyi-toyi music, I mean liberation songs, they were no longer welcomed in the 90s. because now the audience would say ‘but now what’s your problem? Come on, Apartheid is over!’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Was it was clear apartheid was coming to an end?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Definitely. People started singing about love, celebrating, you know what I mean.</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(After the '80s) I decided to slow it down a bit because as I said to you, I started at the age of 18, professionally. So when I got married, I didn’t enjoy the life of being a married man. So I said to myself mm-mm (no), if I’m gonna carry on like this, there’s a part of my life that I’m gonna miss – how to be a parent, and things like that, taking your kids to the crèche and things like that. My aim was not to stop altogether, but to slow down, keep a very low profile. That was in the 90s.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">But even now, I’ve gone back to music again. Ok, recently I was busy producing again ... But this year, as I said, I’m celebrating my 30th anniversary. I decided to come up with a new album. Which is entitled <i>Umlilo</i>. It means fire. Its finished now. We are started to release it now. By Friday next week it will be released.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How were sales in the '80s - better than now?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Definitely, there’s no doubt about that. It was better. And there’s a reason for that. besides that everything was run in a proper way, piracy was not there. Even if it was there, it was very minimal. How would you pirate (an LP)?</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What is the industry like now, in your opinion - is it healthy?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Not at all. Let me be honest with you. If you’ve got a big hit that is supposed to sell, lets say 100,000 units. You can expect 16,000, up to 20. With the very same project that was gonna sell 100,000 units ten years ago, you will only sell 16 to 20 (now).</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(What does the future hold for the SA music industry?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAT_S5jGU2dqqqh1tY-qmazTpz9LVnzWsEfT3cbPVYLZ-8Pt7iA19A9L7IsJjT3Yx9BLgtmvPVn1EBmHrBsTSUd3e2YjfG9yemKgEtI1I5TgDnS4Niewrd-uaxLhYELzS0oBIgR_0f9iU/s400/patshange+ft.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAT_S5jGU2dqqqh1tY-qmazTpz9LVnzWsEfT3cbPVYLZ-8Pt7iA19A9L7IsJjT3Yx9BLgtmvPVn1EBmHrBsTSUd3e2YjfG9yemKgEtI1I5TgDnS4Niewrd-uaxLhYELzS0oBIgR_0f9iU/w320-h320/patshange+ft.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">If something is done, it will be better. But something must be done (to combat) this piracy. <b>(But what?) </b>Well, something is gonna happen, believe you me, something is gonna happen. And this thing is gonna be sorted out. Because this piracy thing, it’s like it’s fashionable, its like an in thing at the moment. Because before you can enter the door of a record bar or a music shop, you could come accross the stores (stalls), there are about 6 or 10 in front and behind and on the sides of the shop. So how do you expect the shops to do their business? Because the very same CDs that they are selling at R10 each, inside the shop is anything from R50 upwards. So now, who’s gonna prefer going to the shop and spending R100 for a CD, and yet he can obtain the very same content on a CD which is R10?</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(Is it the police’s responsibility to combat piracy?)<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Definitely. I think they’re working on a policy, how to work on it. Because it’s not that easy. Because although there are those people who are pirating, there are also those musicians who cannot get the record deals from the record companies, they are selling their own music. So you cannot also sit down and claim that that person is pirating. But now, a policeman, how is he gonna draw the line? This is musician who is selling his own music. Or this is somebody who is pirating.. it's very difficult.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>So they’ve got to work on a policy.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-small;">(How does today’s music compare to back then, in your opinion?)</span></b></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Music is still good music. Let me be honest with you. There’s nothing wrong with the quality of the music at the moment. But if you can’t make money out of that quality music of yours, somewhere along the line, you’ll end up… you know what I mean. </span><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Put it this way – you spend a lot of money with your project. And you spend a lot of money promoting it. And you cannot be able to sell it because of the facilities. When I say facilities, I mean like record bars etc. You cannot be able to sell it. You spend again, for sure on (by) the third album, you’re gonna start reducing now. It’s either you’re gonna go for cheap recording, or whatever. But now it’s gonna be cheaper, cheaper all the time...</span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><br /></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">RIP Pat Shange 1956-2021</span></p></div><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">© Afrosynth</span></p>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-6202725836253104592021-06-29T15:02:00.005+02:002021-11-16T14:30:46.789+02:00NEW HORIZONS: Young Stars of SA Jazz Vol.2<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><b>AFS051 </b></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEv4kDXCd4wAC2lM5dAXAKcouR0pvtChQQI2VcrGGZpvsHe0Yjf5T5aTAOWOXEfqy6j3J9knqwz1cnWVWiu-O7GyzvEofzsiwM7LoEHNnwsFdE3uXFYj7NOFCqe4fX6ADnGADYiZpU3EI/s800/AFS051+ft+sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEv4kDXCd4wAC2lM5dAXAKcouR0pvtChQQI2VcrGGZpvsHe0Yjf5T5aTAOWOXEfqy6j3J9knqwz1cnWVWiu-O7GyzvEofzsiwM7LoEHNnwsFdE3uXFYj7NOFCqe4fX6ADnGADYiZpU3EI/w400-h400/AFS051+ft+sml.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;">Following a definitive first volume jam-packed with forward-thinking musical talent working in the South African creative improvised music idiom, <i>New Horizons</i> returns with a fresh iteration of young artists who continue in the same tradition and tone.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />The compilation showcases recent recordings from 14 more leading lights in South Africa’s contemporary jazz scene: pianists Thembelihle Dunjana, Afrika Mkhize, Sibusiso ‘Mash’ Mashiloane, Blake Hellaby and Siphephelo Ndlovu’s The SN Project; saxophonists Sisonke Xonti, Muhammad Dawjee and Linda Sikhakhane; singer Spha Mdlalose; drummers Ayanda Sikade, Leagan Starchild and Tefo Mahola; and trumpeters Ndabo Zulu and Marcus Wyatt accompanied respectively by Umgidi Ensemble and The ZAR Jazz Orchestra.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span>Together they form part of a vibrant, connected community charting new sonic territory that speaks to today’s troubled times while building on the country’s unique and proud jazz history.</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;">
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="450" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1280059189&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=false&show_user=false&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=false" width="100%"></iframe><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs051-new-horizons-young" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AFS051 New Horizons: Young Stars of SA Jazz Vol.2">AFS051 New Horizons: Young Stars of SA Jazz Vol.2</a></div>
</div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><b>TRACKLIST:</b></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br />A1. Thembelihle Dunjana – Pressin’ On<br />A2. The SN Project - Afrikanization<span class="Apple-converted-space"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> <br /></span></span>A3. Sisonke Xonti - Sinivile<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> <br /></span>A4. Muhammad Dawjee ft. Siphephelo Ndlovu - Otherness<br />B1. Tefo Mahola - First Offering<br />B2. Ayanda Sikade - Zimkhitha <span class="Apple-converted-space"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> <br /></span>B3. Linda Sikhakhane - Inner Freedom<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> <br /></span>C1. Sibusiso Mash Mashiloane - Ke Mashiloane<br />C2. Marcus Wyatt & The ZAR Jazz Orchestra - Race for Timbuktu<br />C3. Spha Mdlalose - Indlela<span class="Apple-converted-space"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> <br /></span></span>D1. Blake Hellaby - Hodge<span class="Apple-converted-space"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> <br /></span></span>D2. Leagan Starchild ft. JustHlo – Fiend [vinyl only]<br />D3. Ndabo Zulu & Umgidi Ensemble - Nandi’s Suite (interlude ii)<br />D4. Afrika Mkhize - Be Still<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">© 2021 Afrosynth Records</p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">COMPILED BY: DJ Okapi</p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">LINER NOTES: Tseliso Monaheng</p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">COVER ART: Michael McGarry</p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">MASTERED BY: Wouter Brandenburg</p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">DISTRIBUTED BY: Rush Hour, Amsterdam</p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglEynJrJKdzlYZQdg5oztUPiLqi4_raTeYHxnXh9dIS-DCEUVnaJG9vgqJaDZ7RSEnw8X4dcNLglx4tELs6T4-GbYHk1ic0ubi5Snc5vP6ja0xa9fGAvzHZJ79cUM543GkQnRa4d1qqVA/s800/AFS051Bk+sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglEynJrJKdzlYZQdg5oztUPiLqi4_raTeYHxnXh9dIS-DCEUVnaJG9vgqJaDZ7RSEnw8X4dcNLglx4tELs6T4-GbYHk1ic0ubi5Snc5vP6ja0xa9fGAvzHZJ79cUM543GkQnRa4d1qqVA/w400-h400/AFS051Bk+sml.jpg" width="400" /></a></div></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;">Order AFS051 <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/new-horizons-2-0" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-74938644539771847612021-01-21T13:06:00.003+02:002021-03-23T12:33:25.945+02:00CAPTAIN MOSEZ - Fly Cherry Fly<p> <b>AFS046</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-UOHe0WTPZbJ6n-BbFYRtPlr8Lvj8PfLCXAUDZd3qV0gbBdeKhCXo5cOg1MtCO_8C7ugl1lN-RnENK4xqikRtc62Uuc8ltoSRqECZSPDHZOnbJOAjWa8rrnN817gwmlPAlCNDLv5WjbE/s600/AFS046_front+sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="600" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-UOHe0WTPZbJ6n-BbFYRtPlr8Lvj8PfLCXAUDZd3qV0gbBdeKhCXo5cOg1MtCO_8C7ugl1lN-RnENK4xqikRtc62Uuc8ltoSRqECZSPDHZOnbJOAjWa8rrnN817gwmlPAlCNDLv5WjbE/w400-h399/AFS046_front+sml.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Obscure and until now very expensive South African disco 12” reissued for the first time. In 1985 a young musician named Moses Mafiri walked into EMI Studios in Johannesburg. Working with Selwyn Shandel, then one of the label’s prolific in-house producers, the two tracks they recorded – ‘Fly Cherry Fly’ and ‘Hey! Hey! Hey!’ - reflect the range of international influences in South Africa’s burgeoning ‘bubblegum’ sound – Italo disco, electro-funk, even rock. </span></span></div><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/playlists/1216895491&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true" width="100%"></iframe></span></span></p><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs046-captain-mosez-fly" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AFS046 Captain Mosez - Fly Cherry Fly">AFS046 Captain Mosez - Fly Cherry Fly</a></span></span></div><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: medium;">
</span></span><p></p><div style="text-align: left;"><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span>“I remember Moses as a very quiet, talented and gentle guy. He never really had a great voice but he used to come up with excellent melodies and lyrical concepts,” remembers Shandel today, admitting that he never saw or heard from him again after that session. Mafiri never released as Captain Mosez again, although he would later resurface in the backing band of internationally renowned </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Vusi%20Mahlasela" target="_blank">Vusi Mahlasela</a><span>.</span></span></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjqqE4qiEtOJKYoMTCHBTMTtufABy92wToJQ4QbURznbyxzWQRMr6IWsOanI76GMBJxJMSNISc-5MwDUrRkqmyI_gMr1yiXfPydvOSOmGKk8fy4hL7sggdLYlBwOtty1hn5A6qxb98C0/s600/AFS046_back+sml.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="598" data-original-width="600" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjqqE4qiEtOJKYoMTCHBTMTtufABy92wToJQ4QbURznbyxzWQRMr6IWsOanI76GMBJxJMSNISc-5MwDUrRkqmyI_gMr1yiXfPydvOSOmGKk8fy4hL7sggdLYlBwOtty1hn5A6qxb98C0/w400-h399/AFS046_back+sml.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EVyHp9lyBFU" width="500"></iframe> </p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Pre-order via Rush Hour <a href="http://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/captain-mosez" target="_blank">here</a>.</p></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-11456713200595453112020-11-19T14:53:00.002+02:002020-11-19T14:56:03.160+02:00CONDRY ZIQUBU - Gorilla Man<p><b> AFS047</b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1QUMF59yeZHuMkNRl8RkxIHh71xjzbqZTqAv5LRfRtOp_8AV2qhVoOOmzpdBPaOKa4fwLDlVWCUpUrJ-XVgys8WEJCJmuynaLviI7YRR00bxGkzclqaeK3MS2B2nsu1Iu19i46JjKqnU/s400/GorillaMan_FRONT+sml.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1QUMF59yeZHuMkNRl8RkxIHh71xjzbqZTqAv5LRfRtOp_8AV2qhVoOOmzpdBPaOKa4fwLDlVWCUpUrJ-XVgys8WEJCJmuynaLviI7YRR00bxGkzclqaeK3MS2B2nsu1Iu19i46JjKqnU/w400-h400/GorillaMan_FRONT+sml.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="text-align: start;">Four tracks by one of the biggest names in South African disco: Condry Ziqubu.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="text-align: start;"> </span><span style="text-align: start;">A regular on the local soul scene since the late 1960s in groups such as The Flaming Souls, The Anchors and The Flaming Ghettoes, by the mid-80s he had qualified as a sangoma (traditional healer), recorded with <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Harari" target="_blank">Harari</a> (the biggest group in the country at the time), fronted his own group Lumumba, and travelled the world as part of <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Caiphus%20Semenya" target="_blank">Caiphus Semenya</a> and Letta Mbulu’s band.</span></span></div><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;">
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qSHE0vVnIxY" width="535"></iframe>
<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">In 1986 he ditched Lumumba and released his first solo hit, ‘Gorilla Man’. Opening with an audacious 20-second intro, the song tells the story of a man preying on women in downtown Johannesburg. It highlights Condry’s winning formula of lyrics that touch on everyday South African issues and places (without drawing the attention of apartheid censors). Musically the song draws obvious influence from Piano Fantasia’s 1985 Euro-disco hit ‘Song for Denise’.<span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span></span></p><p class="p2" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 14px; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: georgia; font-kerning: none;">Also included on this new anthology is another song from the same album, the politically charged ‘Confusion (Ma Afrika)’, as well as ‘Phola Baby’ from his 1988 album <i>Pick Six</i> – a call to men to “stop pushing your woman around … what kind of man are you?” – and ‘Everybody Party’ from 1989’s <i>Magic Man</i>, a straight-up party song with no political or social intimations, other than as a brief escape from the harsh reality of the time, one that still resonates today.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: start;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/902285605&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true" width="100%"></iframe></span></p><div style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Interstate, "Lucida Grande", "Lucida Sans Unicode", "Lucida Sans", Garuda, Verdana, Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: 100; line-break: anywhere; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap; word-break: normal;"><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;"><a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/phola-baby-condry-ziqubu" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="'Phola Baby' - Condry Ziqubu">'Phola Baby' - Condry Ziqubu</a></span></div><span class="s1" style="font-kerning: none;">
</span><p></p><div style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i>Gorilla Man</i> will be released on vinyl and digitally in early 2021 on Afrosynth Records (AFS047), distributed worldwide by Rush Hour in Amsterdam. Pre-order it <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/gorilla-man-0" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTIBRzZi2fy-6HTmxaNGxv52gM36FyUDJ1rjTSlIHDZpOCOoE9unuTHJhrXEeoNmt4tQ0x2Z99kcD91z81hi6qGYkCFEWpo2MzwqhBeyPA0G3uiJKomKpvuKgmy61Ocyc_WJOamw9yVRY/s400/GorillaMan_BACK+sml.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="400" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTIBRzZi2fy-6HTmxaNGxv52gM36FyUDJ1rjTSlIHDZpOCOoE9unuTHJhrXEeoNmt4tQ0x2Z99kcD91z81hi6qGYkCFEWpo2MzwqhBeyPA0G3uiJKomKpvuKgmy61Ocyc_WJOamw9yVRY/w400-h400/GorillaMan_BACK+sml.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div></div>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-62309165681008830132020-05-25T09:26:00.003+02:002021-11-16T14:31:03.143+02:00NEW HORIZONS: Young Stars of SA Jazz<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; font-family: cambria; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
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<span face="" style="background-color: transparent;">South Africa’s jazz scene today is a vibrant one brimming with young talent. Several have emerged as bandleaders and composers, while at the same time being members of their contemporaries’ collectives - cross-pollinating each other’s music with various influences and pushing South Africa’s proud jazz heritage into the future.</span></div>
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<a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AfroSynth">AfroSynth</a> · <a href="https://soundcloud.com/afrosynth/sets/afs049-new-horizons" style="color: #cccccc; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank" title="AFS049 New Horizons">AFS049 New Horizons</a></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="background-color: transparent;">From the trios of pianists Kyle Shepherd, Bokani Dyer and Yonela Mnana, to the genre-defying exploits of guitarists Vuma Levin and Reza Khota; and from artists inspired by age-old traditions, like Lwanda Gogwana and Mandisi Dyantyis, to the cosmic explorations of Siya Makuzeni, Benjamin Jephta, Thandi Ntuli, </span><span face="">Zoë Modiga </span><span face="" style="background-color: transparent;">and Shane Cooper’s <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/MABUTA" target="_blank">Mabuta</a> - Afrosynth Records’ upcoming 2xLP compilation </span><i style="background-color: transparent; font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;">New Horizons</i><span face="" style="background-color: transparent;"> highlights some of the country’s most talented young composers and bandleaders, as well as a wider cast of supporting musicians.</span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">The current crop of jazz stylists under the spotlight are visionaries in their own right, exceptionally inventive figures who, while they enjoy the advantage and privilege of tapping into the rich musical heritage that preceded them, have brought to bear their creative impulses to collapse boundaries and push frontiers. Welcome to the world of players without borders. </span><br />
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<b><span face="" lang="">Compiled by:</span></b><span face="" lang=""> Shane Cooper & DJ Okapi<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span face="" lang="">Mastered by:</span></b><span face="" lang=""> Wouter Brandenburg<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span face="" lang="">Liner notes by:</span></b><span face="" lang=""> Sam Mathe<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span face="" lang="">Cover artwork by:</span></b><span face="" lang=""> Michael MacGarry<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span face="" lang="">Distributed by:</span></b><span face="" lang=""> Rush Hour Music<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span face="" lang="">Tracklist:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span face="" lang="">A1. Benjamin Jephta Quintet - Evolution, Pt. 2 (B. Jeptha) 3:30<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">A2. Thandi Ntuli - Cosmic Light (T. Ntuli) 6:16<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">A3. Mabuta - Slipstream (S. Cooper) 3:07<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">B1. Kyle Shepherd Trio - Dream State (K. Shepherd) 6:31<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">B2. Lwanda Gogwana – Maqundeni (trad, arr L. Gogwana) 1:58<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">B3. Siya Makuzeni Sextet - Out Of This World (S. Makuzeni) 5:46<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">C1. Bokani Dyer Trio - Fezile (B. Dyer) 5:50<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">C2. Vuma Levin - Hashtag (V. Levin) 2:02<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">C3 Reza Khota Quartet - Lost Is a Place (R. Khota) 7:48<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">D1 Zo</span><span face="" style="color: #52565a;">ë</span><span face=""> Modiga - The Healer (Z. Modiga)</span><span face=""> </span><span face="">7:25</span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">D2. Mandisi Dyantyis - Kuse Kude (M. Dyantyis) 4:29<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="">D3. Yonela Mnana - Leagan (Y. Mnana) 1:45<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="font-size: 12pt;"><span face="" lang="">Out in Q3 2020 - pre-order <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/new-horizons-2">here</a>!</span></b></div>
DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-1767371461271502442020-04-13T13:19:00.003+02:002020-08-25T15:50:57.323+02:00CHICCO - I Need Some Money / We Can Dance<div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 7.5pt; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="">A</span><span face="">FS048</span></span></b></div>
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</span> <span><span face="">Soweto-born Sello Twala emerged as a key figure in South Africa’s bubblegum scene, initially cutting his teeth in the early 80s as part of groups </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Umoja" target="_blank">Umoja</a><span face="">, </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Harari" target="_blank">Harari</a><span face=""> and </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Image" target="_blank">Image</a><span face="">, who in 1985 released the track that would give him his nickname: ‘Chicco’. </span></span></span></div><div style="background: white; line-height: 19.2pt; margin: 0cm 0cm 7.5pt; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="">Teaming up with co-producer Attie van Wyk, later that year he released his first single as a solo artist, ‘We Can Dance’. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: arial;">It was followed in 1986 by ‘I Need Some Money’. Both tracks add accessible English lyrics and catchy call-and-response vocals to infectious Shangaan-rooted dance rhythms, appealing to a wide audience that defied apartheid categories and established Chicco as a charismatic solo star as well as a talented producer, both in SA and across the continent. </span></div>
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</span><span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="">The latest 12" release on Afrosynth Records combines his first 2 breakout hits on one album for the first time.</span><br /></span>
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</span></span></span> <span style="font-family: arial;"><span face="" style="background-color: transparent;"><span face="" lang="" style="background-color: transparent;"><span>Chicco would go on to release politically charged pop albums </span><i>We Miss You Manelow</i><span> (1987), </span><i><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2011/12/chicco-thina-sizwe-esimnyama-1989.html" target="_blank">Thina Sizwe Esimnyama</a></i><span> (1989), </span><i><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2009/09/chicco-soldier-1989.html" target="_blank">Soldier</a></i><span> (1989), </span><i>Papa Stop the War</i><span> (1990) and </span><i>Nomari</i><span> (1991). As a producer he was behind <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Brenda%20Fassie" target="_blank">Brenda Fassie</a>'s landmark 1990 solo album <i><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2009/09/brenda-fassie-black-president-1990.html" target="_blank">Black President</a>, </i></span></span><span face="" style="background-color: transparent;">as well as</span></span><span face=""> </span><span face="" style="background-color: transparent;">other artists such as <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2011/12/nomuntu-chimora-being-bitchy-is-my-kind.html" target="_blank">Nomuntu & Chimora</a></span><span face="" style="background-color: transparent;">.</span></span></div>
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<span><br /></span><span face=""><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Pre-order AFS048 <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/i-need-some-money-we-can-dance" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
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DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-88321323317749611022020-02-09T09:12:00.002+02:002020-06-24T21:25:27.754+02:00ADAYE - Turn It Up<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ryk98ILsX-4pWfvEFHBviBB_7av8V8D0XYC_DsIhAxDH1fx5RFR19d0xc28IRSqt6Pch_14PKWaHmOUG1wUEq7Obxvoxa1w9-Ubg2__2uKMUUspB8TlVJCnsHraFAOMAESJAXmHzZbc/s1600/AFS038+ft.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="display: inline !important; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ryk98ILsX-4pWfvEFHBviBB_7av8V8D0XYC_DsIhAxDH1fx5RFR19d0xc28IRSqt6Pch_14PKWaHmOUG1wUEq7Obxvoxa1w9-Ubg2__2uKMUUspB8TlVJCnsHraFAOMAESJAXmHzZbc/s400/AFS038+ft.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlybio-GmriKX3qtbMDrv_R3-ewzLkuSOPCYTkqochR9d5MS7uDF_yBR8H4J6Q8OB87rHiJkZEfpZn4YTYoe0cdlI8kjBsh-C1fOQkKu7BRUCuaMtHe-6z2EXVWkvc6fVlvjCU6hyiMSA/s1600/AFS038+sA+label_12Inch_2019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline; float: right; font-family: times; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1252" data-original-width="1252" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlybio-GmriKX3qtbMDrv_R3-ewzLkuSOPCYTkqochR9d5MS7uDF_yBR8H4J6Q8OB87rHiJkZEfpZn4YTYoe0cdlI8kjBsh-C1fOQkKu7BRUCuaMtHe-6z2EXVWkvc6fVlvjCU6hyiMSA/s200/AFS038+sA+label_12Inch_2019.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;">South African disco 12” originally released in 1983, the start of the country’s ‘bubblegum’ era. Adaye was a once-off st</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;">udio project featuring members of <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Stimela" target="_blank">Stimela</a>, the SA supergro</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size: 14.0pt;">up formerly known as <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/The%20Cannibals" target="_blank">The Cannibals</a> and at the time also recording under aliases like the Street Kids and <a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Kumasi" target="_blank">Kumasi</a>. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: left;">As Adaye they roped in singer </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Al%20Etto" style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: left;" target="_blank">Al Etto</a><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: left;"> and went into the studio with Heads Music boss Emil Zoghby, who shares songwriting credits with Ray Phiri on the only track they released: ‘Turn It Up’ - an eight-minute slice of guitar funk throbbing to a disco beat. </span><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-align: left;">Remastered from the original tapes and reissued on Afrosynth Records.</span></span><br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="166" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/746292037&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true" width="100%"></iframe><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;"> <br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14pt;">Composed by R. 'Pierie' and E. Zoghby</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14pt;">Produced by Emil Zoghby for Heads Productions</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 18.6667px;">Engineereed by Phil Audoire</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Mastered by Wouter Brandenburg</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;">1983 Heads Music / 2020 Afrosynth Records</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Distributed by Rush Hour Music</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Photography: Georgina Karvellas</span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;">Thanks to Peter Moticoe</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 14.0pt;"><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 18.6667px; text-align: justify;">Buy it <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/turn-it-3" target="_blank">here</a></span>.</span></div>
DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-74276436234958575752019-09-09T12:08:00.001+02:002020-08-25T15:55:07.627+02:00KAMAZU - Korobela<b style="font-family: cambria; font-size: 12pt; text-align: justify;"><span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Afrosynth Records AFS043</span></b><br />
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<span face="" style="text-align: justify;"><div><span face="" style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>Amidst the madness of apartheid, South Africa’s music industry in the 1980s propelled artists quickly to stardom, often at a young age. Some dwindled at the prospect of newfound fame and fortune. Others took on the responsibility and used their power to spread messages of consciousness that would be instrumental in bringing the racist regime to its knees.</span><br />
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">By the mid-1980s, South Africa’s bubblegum era was already in full swing. One of the scene’s key acts was Harari, a band that launched the solo careers not only of founding members <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Sipho%20%22Hotstix%22%20Mabuse" target="_blank">Sipho ‘Hotstix’ Mabuse</a> and <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Om%20Alec" target="_blank">‘Om’ Alec Khaoli</a> but also <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Funky%20Masike" target="_blank">‘Funky’ Masike Mohapi</a>, <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Condry%20Ziqubu" target="_blank">Condry Ziqubu</a> and many others. Their 1985 album <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Heartbeat</i> featured two new artists who would go on to play a major role in taking SA music into the ‘90s: Sello Twala, known as <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Chicco" target="_blank">Chicco</a>, and Danny Malewa, who would soon become better known as Kamazu.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/668426534&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe><br /></div>
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</span> <span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Malewa was born in Orlando West in Soweto in 1961, an only child raised by his mother Thelma and grandfather Steven Malewa, who was forced to live under house arrest for his role in the then banned ANC, where he once rubbed shoulders with a young Nelson Mandela. This placed the Malewa house under constant scrutiny from police and local informants, who aimed to ensure that he complied with the law preventing more than two people entering the house at any given time, thereby prohibiting any form of meeting or gathering. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“Police used to come here, kick in the door looking for my grandfather, [see that] he’s here, [make him] sign, present.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then they go. Any time of the day they’d come in,” recalls Kamazu. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">His grandfather’s freedom of movement was also severely restricted. "If he had to go to town, he had to go the police station in Orlando, tell them, ‘I’m going to town’, then he gets a permit, then he goes to town.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">When Steven Malewa passed away in the early ‘80s, he left his grandson ready to step out into an increasingly volatile climate, armed with a deep insight into the brutal and absurd politics of the day, as well as a growing awareness of the power of music to fight it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">This spirit of activism had already fed into his own musical tastes, drawing him particularly to the politically charged sounds of reggae and Afrobeat. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph;"><span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"><br /></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">“What drew me to that music was because it was banned in SA. We were not ‘allowed’ to hear reggae, we were not ‘allowed’ to hear Fela, ‘cos it was political, it was conscious music. I used to go to these ‘serious’ shebeens as a kid - ‘cos I was a smart kid - where elderly people go and they play their records there. They’d have their DJ there. I was 19, 20 - fresh from school,” remembers Malewa.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Like many other youngsters in Soweto, American sounds were also always on his radar. “I loved the Gap Band, funk - the Commodores, I loved that sound. I did listen to some of that, but I wasn’t focused on that. I was focused on <a href="https://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Mahlathini%20and%20the%20Mahotella%20Queens" target="_blank">Mahlathini</a>, Mpharanyana and reggae. I liked playing music that nobody else was playing. People would think, ‘Oh, this is nice! Where did you get this from?’”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Compiled by DJ Okapi, this new anthology on Afrosynth Records brings together six songs from Kamazu’s career, all mastered from the original tapes: two of his biggest hits, his 1986 breakthrough ‘Korobela’ and his 1991 smash ‘Indaba Kabani’, two more obscure songs from his catalogue, ‘Victim’ and ‘Why’, and two songs from his kwaito-inspired 1997 comeback album, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ghetto Style</i>, ‘Mjukeit’ and ‘Atikatareni’. Common throughout is the artist’s commitment to addressing social issues in a positive, uplifting way.</span><br />
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<span face="">Buy it </span><a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/korobela" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;" target="_blank">here</a><span face="">.</span>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-37034264509970439382019-05-23T11:35:00.002+02:002020-08-25T16:30:23.983+02:00OBED NGOBENI & the Kurhula Sisters - Ta Duma<b style="background-color: white; font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;">Afrosynth Records AFS040</b><b style="background-color: white; font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;"><br />
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</span> <span face="">Obed Ngobeni and his backing singers the Kurhula Sisters were among the originators of Shangaan Disco, a genre that helped shape South Africa’s ‘bubblegum’ sound of the 80s.</span><br />
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</span> <span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The group emerged in</span><i><span face="" lang="" style="background: white; color: #333333;"> </span></i><span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">1983 with</span><span face="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;"> </span><span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">'Kuhluvukile Ka Zete', a hit that later gained international recognition as ‘Kazet’. <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">In 1984 </span></span><span face="" lang="" style="mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Ngobeni </span><span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">follow this up with the album <i>Gazankulu</i>, which included the irresistibly catchy ‘Ta Duma’, pioneering in its fusion of traditional and electronic - a sign of things to come.</span><br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/536359524&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe> </div>
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</span> <span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">Heads Music boss Emil Dean Zoghby also cooked up a disco version of the track with producer Peter Moticoe and engineer Phil Audoire for release as a 12” (with a dub, of course), replacing the original version’s guitars with another layer of stinging synths and a proto-house beat to drive the song’s emphatic call-and-response chorus.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<i><span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">Ta Duma, </span></i><span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">the latest release on Afrosynth Records, brings together all three versions of this massive track for the first time - a tribute to the roots of bubblegum. On the B-side, ‘Xikhobva’ offers a more traditional bass and guitar-driven Shangaan groove over simmering drums.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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</span> <iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/633623988&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe><br />
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<span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">‘Ta Duma’ was arguably Ngobeni’s crowning achievement, although his career would continue to grow. The albums <i><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/2013/06/obed-ngobeni-and-kurhula-sisters-mchoza.html" target="_blank">Mchoza</a></i> and <i>Tshiketa</i> followed in 1985 and ’86, the latter released on US label Shanachie as <i>My Wife Bought A Taxi</i> in 1987. Ngobeni’s audience even stretched to South America, where <i>Eka Diza</i> was released on Colombian label Discos Perla in 1988.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: #333333;"><br /></span>
<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mSfMZZoyBzQ" width="520"></iframe>
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<span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span face="" style="background: white; color: #333333;">Buy AFS040 <a href="http://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/ta-duma" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
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<!--EndFragment--> DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-42223213211545820502019-04-02T22:54:00.004+02:002020-06-24T21:27:43.814+02:00THE BEES - She’s A Witch (Tikoloshi)<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 16px;"><b>Afrosynth Records AFS042</b></span><br />
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</span> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcYfHb-cxrWN1zHctR_NrCBKN7YW9oVfVdP4lL2acBYDtHddsyFp_joRZ4lVDpxU_onrOvNoK8aqtUdTWRcgU6RxJ3e_oLkw_NViV3qacwCX3NGr0h_vyeNx_tRPnyciAB-g1d17r6Ceo/s1600/AFS042+Side1+sticker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcYfHb-cxrWN1zHctR_NrCBKN7YW9oVfVdP4lL2acBYDtHddsyFp_joRZ4lVDpxU_onrOvNoK8aqtUdTWRcgU6RxJ3e_oLkw_NViV3qacwCX3NGr0h_vyeNx_tRPnyciAB-g1d17r6Ceo/s200/AFS042+Side1+sticker.jpg" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Little-known trio The Bees consisted of </span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt;">Dominic Coka, Solomon Phiri and Anthony Sibanda. Their </span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt;">1988 album </span><i style="font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;">She’s A Witch (Tikoloshi)</i><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt;"> features six dancefloor-ready, distinctively South African tracks that show how bubblegum in the late 80s embraced house music. Produced by Steve Cooks, who would go on to work with heavyweights </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Senyaka" style="font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;" target="_blank">Senyaka</a><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt;">, </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Spokes%20H" style="font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;" target="_blank">Spokes H</a><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt;"> and </span><a href="http://www.afrosynth.com/search/label/Umoja" style="font-family: calibri; font-size: 12pt;" target="_blank">Umoja</a><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 12pt;"> in the years that followed. </span></div>
<iframe allow="autoplay" frameborder="no" height="300" scrolling="no" src="https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/599691597&color=%23ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&show_teaser=true&visual=true" width="100%"></iframe> <br />
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<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><span style="font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: 16px;">Buy it <a href="https://www.rushhour.nl/record/vinyl/shes-witch-tikoloshi" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
<br />DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-62111177713508576442018-12-07T20:29:00.000+02:002018-12-07T20:29:49.872+02:00<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v_OUAq-EFjI" width="500"></iframe>DJ Okapihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17782676497876234153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7188719455926929107.post-22666086280963165082018-11-24T22:12:00.001+02:002020-06-24T21:28:07.688+02:00SEA BEE - I Wanda Why?<div style="background: white; line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Afrosynth Records,</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> AFS039</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span></b></div>
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</span></span> <span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">Originally released in South Africa in 1994 on the Mighty Good Sounds imprint, Sibi Motloung’s debut album was a hit in the earliest days of kwaito, the house-infused soundtrack of a newly democratic nation. </span></span><br />
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</span></span> <span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">While it may have been Sea Bee’s release, key to the album’s success was the magic touch of Spokes H, who composed, produced and arranged all the tracks. Sea Bee would soon disappear off the radar, while Spokes remained an influential and popular figure in SA until his untimely death in 2013. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span><span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: medium;">The latest release on </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium; text-align: justify;">Afrosynth Records removes two tracks from the original six-track album, keeping four of the choicest downtempo dancefloor bombs – ‘Home Boy’, ‘I Wanda Why’, ‘Thiba’ and ‘Stoppa - all heavy on the bass, with uplifting vocals and unique lyrics guaranteed to not let any discerning (or aspiring) DJ down – ever!</span></span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: medium; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; text-align: start;">Buy it </span><a href="http://www.rushhour.nl/store_detailed.php?item=103115" style="font-size: 12pt; text-align: start;" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">A Spokes H Production. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">All tracks composed by Ishmael Hlatshwayo</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Engineered by Fab Grosso. Recorded at Grosso Studios</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Keyboards by Peter Chilly Tshabalala. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Backing vocals by Dolphy Maloka, Tutu Mogulatsi, Billy Lethoba & Sylvia Moloi</span><br />
<span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mastered by Wouter Brandburg</span></span><br />
<span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Cover Art by Grant Jurius/Future Nostalgia</span></span><br />
<span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Distributed by Rush Hour</span></span></div>
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