Malombo - 1984 Live from the Old Main Hall, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa

Gabriel 'Mabi' Thobejane and Philip Tabane, Market Café 1976 (Photo: David Marks)

Today another repost from the old matsuli blog:
Philip Tabane is the founder of the group Malombo, a Venda word for spirit. Today he is known as Dr Malombo and whilst the group has been through many iterations over the past 45 years they are still performing and astounding audiences worldwide. 

My introduction to Malombo was at University in 1982 when a friend passed on a dubbed cassette copy of The Indigenous Afro-Jazz Sounds of Philip Tabane and his Malombo Jazzman. Later I saw him play at the Rainbow Jazz Club in Durban and at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg. In 1984 I worked in a team to put on a series of concerts by Malombo under the auspices of the United Democratic Front - a non-racial coalition of about 400 civic, church, students', workers' and other organisations. We organised three concerts including one at the University's Old Main Hall from where the live recording being shared today comes from. 

Guitar scorcerer Philip Tabane at the Old Main Hall, University of Natal Pietermaritzburg, South Africa 1984 (Photo: Natal Witness) 

I find it difficult to express the power and beauty that comes from his performances. So I will leave it to a sleeve note writer to paint a picture: "Malombo's music is a blend of the sophisticated and the primeval, of electric and traditional instrumentation, of tone poems about the natural world and its close link to human communities. Malombo has strong roots in traditional African music but they draw from such a broad spectrum of influences as to render categorizations difficult. If you can imagine an African Chuck Berry who plays six flutes at one time awhile humming and singing, you're beginning to visualise the persona of Philip Tabane - leader of the group." (from the sleeve notes to the Kaya self-titled release)

For a long time I've lamented the fact that the Malombo back catalogue has fallen into disarray. Currently only five from a total of 13 releases are commercially in print. And of these five there is one obscure release - SIlent Beauty - not even credited to Phiip Tabane or Malombo. Recently Francis Gooding compiled an anthology of featuring the Julian Bahula branch stream of Malombo. You can find that here.

A (near) comprehensive discography is available at FlatInternational

The recording being shared was taped directed from the mixing desk but unfortunately has been through a few generations of dubbing before being digitised. I hope you enjoy it!
MEDIAFIRE

Malombo Jazz Makers Vol 2 (1971)

It seems the recording of Malombo Jazz Makers Volume 2 is not available elsewhere. In response to requests and kind comments, we are happy to share this 1971 gem with you.

You can buy the CD or digital download containing the hauntingly beautiful song “Sibathatu” from this album on Strut’s important compilation of SA Jazz: "Next Stop Soweto Vol 3". Explore further here and here.

This album is a follow-up to the 1967 one and the 1971 "Music of the Spirit" we shared on Electirc Jive earlier and here. All three of these albums are without Philip Thabane and feature Abbey Cindi, Lucky Ranku and Julian Bahula. Philip Thabane split  with Cindi and Julian Bahula  in 1967 and each went on to form their own versions of Malombo (Jazz Men and Jazz Makers, respectively).

As concerns the Malombo Jazzmen, around the time this "Jazzmakers" album was recorded in 1971, Philip Thabane and Mabi Thobejane did a series of six “Farewell to the USA” shows during May and June in South Africa. They then stopped in at the North Sea Jazz festival in London before making a splash in the U.S.A. from 1972 to 1975, including playing gigs with the likes of Charles Mingus at the Rafike Club in New York; Pharo Sanders at the Philharmonic Hall (NY); Miles Davis (Keystone Corner, San Francisco); Herbie Hancock (Washington DC); Max Roach and Leon Thomas; Stanley Turrentine; McCoy Tyner etc etc - someone somewhere has soundboard recordings of at least some of these concerts? They went on to play the Newport Jazz Festival and tour Japan, before returning home to play at the Mamelodi Stadium on 12th April 1975. A full listing of Philip Thabane’s important gigs can be found in a doctoral thesis, available online.

Sello Edwin Galane recently (October 2009) completed a Doctor Musicae Thesis on Philip Thabane and Malombo which was submitted at the University of Pretoria. The thesis: “seeks to investigate the origin and development of the thinking, make up, evolution, meaning, impact, essence of originality, and attempts to reclaim the true identity of African music of South Africa from 1963 to date by Philip Thabane through his concept of Malombo Music. The study introduces Philip Thabane’s biographical background, and sketches out the socio-political milieu in which he has had to do creative work, maps out the stages of development of Malombo music, and investigates how media was bent on shaping a particular public opinion about Malombo music.” The thesis also has interesting pictures and press clippings in the appendices – it can be downloaded here.
 
Also, be sure to check out Matsuli’s Malombo discography here. Thanks again Siemon for the original share.
 
RS here
MF here