Wednesday 2 December 2009

Watch out for "The Syndicate" (1975)


Bump, funk, afro-soul, and general get-up-and-groove kicks off ElectricJive’s festive season offerings in a quick-fire triple posting – Soul Brother 101, 102, 103.

Here’s a shady group of hot anonymous South African musicians moonlighting away from their usual recording contracts for producer Martin Mhlanga on the Soul Brother label.

Soul 101:- a solid fifteen minutes of bump jive followed by a deep funky nineteen-minute groove featuring top organ, guitar, trumpet and sax solos. Could that be Kippie we hear on the sax? Alan Kwela on the guitar? And that trumpet? Who knows – whoever they were, they could groove.

Talking about moonlighting anonymous musicians, Dabulamanzi tells me he has now worked out that the “Monwabisi” on our earlier Remember District Six posting, was indeed Winston Mankunku Ngozi himself!

Soul Brother 102 and 103:- to follow over the next few days.

Introducing: Syndicate
Africa’s ‘Bump’ Kings

1. Thula Mabota (14.55)
2. Watch Out (18.34)

Produced by Martin Mdelwa Mhlangu

Soul Brother: Soul 101 (1975).

7 comments:

  1. thank you so much for this nice poeces of this groovy south african jazz funk!!! very rare kind of sound around here!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice grooves, thanks1
    Now is the band name Syndicate and the release name Thula Mabota? Difficult to hunt for info without the right names..

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks Piet for the positive commnent - you got got it ... the band is "The Syndicate" - they were composed of session musicians in Johannesburg in the 1970s - there are two other recordings by them on the blog. Enjoy. Chris

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi
    I'm collector from Russia
    can you reload Syndicate albums? + some else if it possible)
    my mail funnik@yandex.ru
    if you need i can make some rip's from my collection

    Gosha

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi
    Im collector from Russia
    Can you reload Syndicate albums? and maybe some else)
    my mail: funnik@yandex.ru

    if you need i can make rip's for you from my collection
    pls write me
    Gosha

    ReplyDelete

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