Monday 7 June 2021 marks what would have been the 80th birthday of pianist, composer, educator and cultural industries advocate Hotep Idris Galeta (1941-2010) - a figure whose contributions to South African jazz at home and abroad have yet to be fully documented and understood. With this in mind, As-Shams is excited to announce a forthcoming digital release of Galeta's 1990 magnum opus Heading Home (available only on vinyl and cassette to date). The album was recorded in Cape Town during one of Galeta's first trips back to South Africa after living in exile for 30 years and he shines as a frontman and composer with the formidable backing of Khaya Mahlangu on sax, Spencer Mbadu on bass and Monty Weber on drums. Issued on the African Echoes imprint, Heading Home helped shape the profound themes and tone of South African jazz in the1990s and, over thirty years later, Galeta's compositions still exude a timeless vitality. Happy birthday Bra Hotep.
Hotep Galeta with friend and producer Rashid Vally (June 1990)
