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| As-Shams Archive Vol. 4: Tete Mbambisa - African Day |
Awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Cape Town in 2023, pianist Tete Mbambisa (82) is a legendary figure in South African jazz. Supported by the cream of the local scene, his albums from the 1970s are among the most cherished vinyl documents from this golden era. A monumental archival undertaking, African Day compiles unreleased recordings from 1976 to resurrect a "lost" Tete Mbambisa double album that falls between his seminal works Tete's Big Sound (1975) and Did You Tell Your Mother (1979).
Born in 1942 and raised in South Africa's Eastern Cape province, Tete Mbambisa’s childhood home served as an informal tavern where social gatherings orbited around the family's carefully curated music collection with live performances by a local pianist. Growing up in this environment, his musical roots are embedded in marabi, the syncopated piano sound that blended cues from American jazz, blues and ragtime with the cultural sensibilities that shape modern South African jazz.
A self-taught musician, it was as leader of the vocal group The Four Yanks in the early 1960s that Tete Mbambisa’s music career began in earnest. With encouragement from Abdullah Ibrahim, he dedicated himself to the piano and went on to record with The Soul Jazzmen in 1969. Mbambisa's two solo recordings from the 1970s were produced by Rashid Vally for the independent As-Shams/The Sun record label. With an abundance of strong material but limited resources, some of the label's prospective releases were not issued at the time of recording. Featuring the intended artwork commissioned for the project in 1976, African Day marks the first major unveiling of unreleased gems from the As-Shams master tape archive.
A. African Day 17:41
B1. Khumbula Jane 3:25
B2. Siviwe 5:13
B3. Kohinoor 5:12
B4. Mr. Mecca 4:58
C1. Siyanda 6:44
C2. Umsenge 7.55
D1. Relaxin' 8:49
D2. Untitled (For Duke Makasi) 6:22
Piano – TETE MBAMBISA
Bass – SIPHO GUMEDE
Drums – GILBERT MATTHEWS
Tenor Sax – DUKE MAKASI
Tenor Sax / Flute – BASIL COETZEE (A, B)
Alto Sax – BARNEY RACHABANE (A, B)
Trumpet – DENNIS MPALE
A, B
Recorded 27 February 1976 at Satbel Studios
Johannesburg, South Africa
Recording Engineer: Peter Thwaites
C, D
Unannotated session recorded in 1976.
Composed by TETE MBAMBISA
(except "Khumbula Jane" by Mackay Davashe)
Produced by RASHID VALLY
Cover Artwork by ZULU BIDI
(sourced courtesy Chris Albertyn)
ON PHYSICAL EDITIONS
Back Cover Photo by IAN BRUCE HUNTLEY
(under license from african.pictures)
Gatefold Photo by PERS ENGLUND
(used with permission)
Tape Transfers by Rob Allingham
Audio Mastering by Noah Mintz
Design & Layout by Rouleaux van der Merwe
Compiled & Produced by Calum MacNaughton
(with direction from Tete Mbambisa & Rashid Vally)
Cat. No. ASA104
℗ 1976 © 2024 As-Shams Archive
