POPS MOHAMED (1949-2025)

5 December 2025: We join countless others whose lives were touched by the gentle spirit of Pops Mohamed (1949-2025) to pay the deepest of tributes to a life dedicated to music. To be sure, Pops Mohamed was far more than just an esteemed composer and multi-instrumentalist with a professional career that stretched over half a century. He understood the profound role that music plays in bringing people together, healing the soul and illuminating the transcendent. He loved people, believed that each and every one of us play an important role in making the world a better place and tirelessly dedicated himself to embodying and sharing this powerful message. With gratitude for his proud musical legacy, we bid farewell to a creative force and spiritual mentor and offer our condolences to his beloved family and friends.

MOVEMENT IN THE CITY - Movement in the City 3

As-Shams Archive Vol. 6: Movement in the City - Movement in the City 3

Transitioning from Black Disco through Movement in the City to releasing albums as a solo artist, Pops Mohamed's 20-year trajectory through the As-Shams catalogue is second to none. Coming in the wake of the Black Disco compilation Discovery 1975-1976, Movement in the City 3 is an archival release that spans the late-70s and early-80s and assembles hidden gems from Mohamed's second progressive South African jazz ensemble.

Featuring four outtakes (three of which are previously unreleased) as well as an alternate version of a track from the band's self-titled debut of 1979 and a single edit from its 1981 follow-up Black Teardrops, Movement in the City 3 provides the long-awaited final instalment of a trilogy that echoes the three-album output of Black Disco. Alongside Mohamed on organ are stalwart compatriots Sipho Gumede (bass) and Basil Coetzee (tenor sax/flute) as well as Robbie Jansen (alto sax) and three fine drummers by way of Gilbert Matthews, Roger Harry and Monty Weber. That these extraordinary recordings didn't find their way onto an album in the 1980s is testament to the depth of quality produced at the time.

Movement in the City 3 is Volume 6 in a series of compilations and previously unreleased recordings from As-Shams Archive that include Tete Mbambisa's African Day (2024) and Kippie Moeketsi's Hard Top (2025).

1. Can't Think 08:20

2. Philly Sound 05:21

3. Jackie (Flute Version) 05:07

4. Eventide (Happy Feelin') 08:30

5. Monty's Groove 03:32

6. Lament (Single Version) 06:18

DIGITAL ALBUM

Tracks 1, 2, 5: Previously unreleased Movement in the City outtakes.

Track 3: An alternate version of "Jackie" featuring Basil Coetzee on flute instead of tenor sax from Movement in the City's self-titled debut of 1979.

Track 4: Movement in the City outtake renamed and issued as "Happy Feelin'" on the Pops Mohamed album Kalamazoo in 1990.

Track 6: Single edit issued in 2020 of the album opener "Lament" from Movement in the City's 1981 album Black Teardrops.

TRACKS 1, 3:

Organ – Pops Mohamed

Flute – Basil Coetzee

Bass – Sipho Gumede

Drums – Gilbert Matthews

TRACKS 2, 4, 6:

Organ, Fender Rhodes, Synth – Pops Mohamed

Tenor Sax, Flute – Basil Coetzee

Alto Sax – Robbie Jansen

Bass – Sipho Gumede

Drums – Roger Harry

TRACK 5:

Organ – Pops Mohamed

Tenor Sax – Basil Coetzee

Bass – Sipho Gumede

Drums – Monty Weber

All Tracks Composed by Pops Mohamed

Sessions Produced by Rashid Vally

Tape Transfers by Rob Allingham

Remastered by Richard Vossgatter

Design and Layout by Ash Pederick

Compiled & Produced by Calum MacNaughton 

(with direction from Pops Mohamed)

Cat. No. ASA106

℗ 1979, 1981, 1990 © 2025 As-Shams Archive

BLACK DISCO - Black Disco & Black Disco 3

With a Yamaha organ and a dream, Pops Mohamed started his musical journey in mid-1970s South Africa as the founder of Black Disco, creating a hip and innovative blend of chill-out jazz with spiritual overtones. Playing original compositions as well as reimagined soul and pop hits, the group appeared on producer Rashid Vally's As-Shams/The Sun label alongside Abdullah Ibrahim and Harari.

On the band's self-titled debut from 1975, Mohamed's cosmic organ is supported by two of the most sought-after session players on the South African jazz scene, Cape Town's sax and flute wizard Basil Coetzee, who had risen to fame in 1974 as one of the soloists on the hit “Mannenberg,” and Sipho Gumede, the young bass prodigy from the city of Durban. The album is a mostly downtempo affair with the drum machine on Mohamed’s organ laying down the beat while the trio soars in blissful improvisational territory.

Bassist Peter Odendaal and drummer Monty Weber join Mohamed and Coetzee for Black Disco 3 in 1976, preserving the New Age lounge aesthetic but allowing the group to flex their jazz chops more adventurously. “Spiritual Feeling” from the debut album is revamped as “Spiritual Feeling Riding the Blue” but the album opener “Dawn” is the centrepiece – a trippy, flute-driven awakening that unfolds over a period of ten minutes.

BLACK DISCO (1975)

Organ - Pops Mohamed

Flute / Tenor Sax - Basil Coetzee

Bass - Sipho Gumede

BLACK DISCO 3 (1976)

Organ / Guitar - Pops Mohamed

Flute / Tenor Sax - Basil Coetzee

Bass - Peter Odendaal

Drums / Bongos - Monty Weber

BLACK DISCO - Discovery 1975-1976

As-Shams Archive Vol. 3: Black Disco - Discovery 1975-1976

With a Yamaha organ and a dream, Pops Mohamed started his musical journey in the mid-1970s as the bandleader and composer of Black Disco, creating a hip melange of chill-out jazz with futuristic drum machine sounds and spiritual overtones. His cosmic organ transmissions were accompanied by two of the most sought-after session players on the South African scene, the sax and flute wizard Basil Coetzee, who had risen to fame in 1974 as one of the soloists on the hit “Mannenberg,” and Sipho Gumede, the young bass prodigy who was already rubbing shoulders with the old guard at the outset of his career. Backed at first with polyphonic beats from Mohamed’s electric organ and later taking on a drummer, Black Disco created a signature sound and a trilogy of innovative albums in a burst of studio creativity between 1975 and 1976.

Distilling the group’s recorded output into a single commemorative document, Discovery 1975-1976 compiles cuts from the lauded Night Express album alongside rare gems from the group’s long-out-of-print first and third albums. The newly remastered selection features previously unissued single versions of the mighty “Night Express” itself, a funk juggernaut with piercing flute whistles and rapturous sax cries as well as “Dawn” from the album Black Disco 3, a trippy, flute-driven awakening of soft light and gentle colours.

LINER NOTES

1. Spiritual Feeling (Riding the Blue) 6:44

2. Pops Blue 3:06

3. Night Express (Single Version) 5:20

4. Kids in the Dark 5:00

5. Dawn (Single Version) 4:42

6. I'm Organized 6:42

7. Yasmeen's Blues 4:51

8. Dark Clouds Part 1 3:19

Tracks 2, 6, 8 from the album BLACK DISCO (1975)

Tracks 3, 7 from the album NIGHT EXPRESS (1976)

Tracks 1, 4, 5 from the album BLACK DISCO 3 (1976)

ORGAN AND DRUM MACHINE – Pops Mohamed

TENOR SAX AND FLUTE – Basil Coetzee

BASS – Sipho Gumede / Peter Odendaal (1, 4, 5)

DRUMS – Peter Morake (3, 7) / Monty Weber (1, 4, 5)

Recorded by Peter Ceronio at Gallo Studios

Produced by Rashid Vally

Audio Mastering by Noah Mintz

Design and Layout by Ash Pederick

Compiled and Produced by Calum MacNaughton

Cat. No. ASA103

℗ 1976 As-Shams/The Sun © 2023 As-Shams Archive

DIGITAL ALBUM

MOVEMENT IN THE CITY - Movement in the City

In the wake of a 2020 edition of Movement in the City's second album Black Teardrops (1981), Sharp-Flat Records returns with a prequel by way of a reissue of the band's self-titled debut from 1979.

As the 1970s were drawing to a close, the epic Black Disco studio project with its signature pairing of drum machine and organ had run its course. After delivering a killer trilogy of cosmic lounge outings dating back to 1975, the group yearned for funkier grooves and the core trio of composer Pops Mohamed on organ with Basil Coetzee on tenor sax and Sipho Gumede on bass decided to hire a drummer and rebrand as Movement in the City. In contrast with the New Age detachment of Black Disco, Movement in the City was conceptually grounded in the bleak social realism depicted on its photographic album covers and leaned into the vivid sensibilities of library music from the era. Blending Cape jazz with funk and soul, the group's output evokes a soundtrack for South African city life at the outset of the 1980s while nodding allegorically to the subterranean movements that were in the course of shaking the cage for political change.

With its cast of jazz fusion all-stars, Movement in the City is the manifesto of a band in transition - a bold and slick first offering that delivers a modern South African sound capable of both the funky exuberances of "Mister Lucky" as well as the down-home pathos of "Blue Sunday." Restored from its original tape masters and released in partnership with As-Shams Archive and Pops Mohamed, this rare artefact of South African jazz history is back in print for the very first time since its original 1979 release.

Organ, Electric Piano, Piano – Pops Mohamed

Saxophones – Basil Coetzee

Bass – Sipho Gumede

Drums – Gilbert Matthews

Bass on "Blue Sunday" – Peter Odendaal

Drums on "Blue Sunday" – Monty Weber

All Tracks Composed by Pops Mohamed

Produced by Rashid Vally

Cat. No. SRK 786147

℗ 1979 As-Shams/The Sun

DIGITAL SINGLE

BLACK DISCO - Night Express

Pops Mohamed leaned heavily on his Yamaha Electone's "auto rhythm section" to produce the Timmy Thomas-inspired signature drum machine sound that characterised Black Disco's 1975 self-titled debut. Following in 1976, Night Express took the group to new heights with the inclusion of drummer Peter Morake (Anchors/Dollar Brand/Roots) on most of the tracks.

In addition to Mohamed on organ, founding members Sipho Gumede (bass) and Basil Coetzee (sax/flute) round out the Black Disco sound with memorable original compositions and a smattering of unique takes on unlikely covers. The result is an album more deeply rooted in South African jazz with a title track that has become one of the most widely admired artefacts of downbeat 1970s Afro-funk.

Organ - Pops Mohamed

Tenor Sax & Flute - Basil Coetzee

Bass - Sipho Gumede

Drums - Peter Morake

Recorded in the Gallo Studios

Recording Engineer - Peter Ceronio

Produced by Rashid Vally

Cat. No. GL 1831

℗ 1976 As-Shams/The Sun

DIGITAL ALBUM

POPS MOHAMED & MORRIS GOLDBERG - Sophiatown Society

While the Kalamazoo Series of the early 1990s revived Pops Mohamed's long creative journey with bassist Sipho Gumede, it also gave rise to an exciting new collaboration with saxophonist Morris Goldberg and a memorable album entitled Sophiatown Society. Goldberg's association with As-Shams dated back to the label's inaugural release in 1974, providing the third epic sax solo on Abdullah Ibrahim's "Mannenberg" alongside Robbie Jansen and Basil Coetzee.

Like Ibrahim, Goldberg had settled in New York City by the late 1970s. As the pennywhistle soloist on "You Can Call Me Al" from Graceland in 1986, he was part of a pool of South African musicians that Paul Simon enlisted for the Grammy-winning album. Bakithi Kumalo (bass) snd Vusi Khumalo (drums) were also among the Graceland contributors, with Bakithi's fretless pyrotechnics holding down the core rhythm section for much of the album. The cousins had been frequent collaborators since the early 1980s and had backed Masike "Funky" Mohapi on his earliest offerings.

On Sophiatown Society, this unique quartet emerges with a nostalgic, hopeful and beautifully-crafted South African jazz sound for the 1990s. With the Convention for a Democratic South Africa (CODESA) beginning to drive the development of a new constitution, principal composer Mohamed steps up with a soulful and healing palette that marked his early forays into weaving traditional instruments and new-age sensibilities into South African jazz.

Keyboards/Mbira - Pops Mohamed

Saxophones/Pennywhistle - Morris Goldberg

Brass/Percussions - Bakithi Kumalo

Drums - Vusi Khumalo

All compositions composed by Pops Mohamed except "Sophiatown Society" composed by Pops Mohamed and Morris Goldberg.

An Original Recording by Sun Music Group

Producer - Pops Mohamed

Recorded and Mixed by Richard Felani Gumbi

Cover Design - Eirfaan Gillan

Photography - Joe Sefale

Executive Producers - Rashid Vally & Eirfaan Gillan

Original Release 1991 • Cat. No. KMH 1003

POPS MOHAMED - Inner City Funk EP

AUGUST 2021: Hillbrow Tower gazes across a duotone Johannesburg cityscape at sunset. This is the Afrofuturist world that the music of Pops Mohamed inhabits in 1985. Following the recording of Movement in the City's Black Teardrops in 1981 and prior to the Kalamazoo EP of 1990, Inner City Funk documents Pops Mohamed's sound in the heart of 1980s. The EP features keyboards and drum programs by Mohamed with long-standing collaborator Sipho Gumede on electric bass.

Originally issued as a rare 12-inch Maxi single, Inner City Funk is part of a generation of important synth-heavy South African dancefloor releases presented in this format during the 1980s. The drum program on the title track takes inspiration from Sipho Mabuse's "Burnout" and is a cheerful companion to the iconic 1984 hit. "Movement in the City (Woza)" reflects on the integrated dark and light sides of city life while "Spring Fever" is a minimal electronic rendering of the classic marabi jazz groove.

Despite a decade-long recording career as bandleader and composer of the groups Black Disco and Movement in the City, 1985's Inner City Funk is Pops Mohamed's first release as a solo artist. Presented digitally for the first time in August 2021, it provides an important snapshot of Mohamed's continuously evolving body of work that now spans close to half a century.

Keyboards & Drum Programs - Pops Mohamed

Bass - Sipho Gumede

Produced by Pops Mohamed

Executive Producer: Rashid Vally

Cat. No. XPD 2403 

℗ 1985 As-Shams/The Sun

DIGITAL EP

POPS MOHAMED - Kalamazoo EP

JULY 2021: Having created albums together as Black Disco in the 1970s and Movement in the City in the 1980s, Pops Mohamed and Sipho Gumede returned to the studio yet again in 1990 to record what many believe is Mohamed's most enduring composition. "Kalamazoo" heralded the return of a classic South African jazz sound that distilled marabi and goema and like its forebear, Abdullah Ibrahim's "Mannenberg" from 1974, took inspiration from the streets and its name from a vibrant urban community. The township in Boksburg's Reiger Park neighbourhood is where it was happening and Mohamed captured its vibe with incredible pathos at the outset of a new decade of hope during the turbulent years preceding regime change in South Africa in 1994.

The recording was produced by Mohamed and Gumede, who enlisted the accompaniment of Mzi Khumalo on saxophone and Ian Herman on drums and sought out engineer Felani Gumbi to craft the sound. The session yielded three tracks that occupy Side A of the original 1990 vinyl release from Sun Music. Side B culled archival material from Movement in the City and included a track from Mohamed's 1985 EP Inner City Funk. With this digital release, we present Kalamzoo as just the core EP of new material from 1990. The filler tracks can now be found in their appropriate places in the As-Shams Archive digital catalogue.

B1. "Spring Fever" appears on Inner City Funk

B2. "Blue Sunday" appears on Movement in the City

B3. "Eventide (Happy Feelin')" appears on Movement in the City 3

In addition to its title track, Kalamazoo includes another tribute to the marabi era by way of "Kort Street Bump Jive," referencing the location of the Kohinoor World of Music and highlighting the store's role as the standard bearer of the jazz community in Johannesburg. The EP is rounded out by a dedication seeped in South African gospel and blues entitled "Song for Emma." Kalamazoo was the inaugural release of a Kalamazoo Productions imprint produced by Mohamed and Gumede for Sun Music Company that includes the albums Evelinah Wami (1990) by the group Jika and Gumede's own Banana City Jive (1991). A series of Kalamazoo follow-up albums emerged from 1999 to 2003 on Sheer Sound and Mohamed has since adopted Kalamazoo Music as the name of own label.

All Songs Composed by Pops Mohamed

Keyboards - Pops Mohamed

Bass - Sipho Gumede

Alto Sax - Mzi Khumalo

Drums - Ian Herman

Produced by Sipho Gumede & Pops Mohamed

Engineered & Mixed by Felani Gumbi

Cover Photo by Lauren Shapiro

Artwork Mural by Joseph Phekela (a student of the FUBA Academy)

Executive Producer: Rashid Vally

Cat. No. KMH 1001

℗ 1990 Kalamazoo Productions for Sun Music Company

DIGITAL EP

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"I met Basil Coetzee and Sipho Gumede in the mid-70s when we recorded my first LP together entitled Black Disco. Several LPs followed after that, trying to achieve a South African jazz sound that was strong and fresh. Basil and Sipho helped with that sound. We all lived for the music and what we were doing meant a lot to us and our followers. In 1990, Sipho and I got together and discussed the importance of recording yet another LP, which would be "the one." Sipho suggested that we get a very good drummer (Ian Herman from Tananas) and an engineer who would be capable of helping shape the sound. We chose Felani Gumbi. The result was Kalamazoo and it became a huge success. It was named after is a very tiny township at the entrance of Reiger Park in Boksburg (which was a part of my upbringing). The album has been out of print for almost three decades and African jazz lovers from around the country and abroad have been putting pressure on me to reissue it. And now my friends, I have heard you. May this album bring you many years of enjoyment and good memories.

I dedicate this reissue to the following musicians (all now late): Sipho Gumede, Basil "Mannenberg" Coetzeee, Robbie Jansen, Monty Weber and sound engineer Felani Gumbi. My heartfelt thanks to the families of the brothers who we have lost. I would also like to thank Rashid Vally for the role he played in the Kalamazoo series. Ian Herman for his amazing drumming on the album. Mzi Khumalo for playing a very big part on saxophone with his thundering melodies and solos. My family for always being there. Damon Forbes for always pushing me. All my friends on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for encouraging me not to quit. Radio stations and broadcasters for keeping me relevant. Last but not least, I would like to thank Almighty God for making everything in my life possible, Without Him, there is no me." - Pops Mohamed (from the liner notes to the 2019 CD edition of the complete album on Kalamazoo Music).

MOVEMENT IN THE CITY - Black Teardrops

Keyboards • Organ • Guitar - Pops Mohamed

Tenor Sax - Basil "Manenberg" Coetzee (Flute on "Camel Walk")

Alto Sax • Flute - Robbie Jansen

Bass - Sipho Gumede (Peter Odendaal on "Camel Walk")

Drums - Roger Harry (Monty Weber on "Camel Walk")

 

Recorded at Satbel Studio ("Camel Walk" at Gallo)

Engineer: Phil Audoire

Produced by Rashid Vally

Original Release 1981 • Cat. No. SRK 786150

DIGITAL SINGLE

DIGITAL ALBUM

DECEMBER 2020: 1981 South African Soul-Funk-Jazz by the creator of the Black Disco albums. As underground jazz fermented in the social and political powder keg of early-80s South Africa, composer and bandleader Pops Mohamed retired the Black Disco moniker in favour of Movement in the City. The group's second offering under their new name yielded one of the most treasured releases in the As-Shams/The Sun catalogue by way of Black Teardrops, a singular blend of down-tempo and atmospheric South African rare groove featuring Dollar Brand saxophonist Basil "Manenberg" Coetzee and bass wizard Sipho Gumede. Sharp-Flat's 2020 reissue puts the album back in print for the first time in 40 years.

Pops Mohamed in Actonville, Benoni in January 2021

(Photo: Calum MacNaughton)

ANNOUNCING // MOVEMENT IN THE CITY - Black Teardrops

NOVEMBER 2020: "I can't wait. I wish Basil and Sipho were still alive to see this!" Pops Mohamed, October 2020. When Mohamed approached label director Rashid Vally at As-Shams in the mid-70s to pitch the idea of his Timmy Thomas-inspired Black Disco project, he never imagined that he would be tethered with two of the most sought-after session musicians in South African jazz, As-Shams stalwarts Basil "Manenberg" Coetzee (left) and bassist Sipho Gumede (right). Their 1975 debut would spur a string of memorable professional collaborations and a friendship that lasted decades. As alternative urban culture fermented in the social and political powder keg of early-80s South Africa, Mohamed retired the Black Disco moniker in favour of Movement in the City. Their second offering yielded one of As-Shams' most treasured releases by way of Black Teardrops (SRK 786150), a singular blend of down-tempo, atmospheric Soul-Funk-Jazz that's been out of print for nearly 40 years. We're pleased to announce a 2020 reissue in partnership with SHARP-FLAT. Grab this LINK for more details.

Movement in the City (L-R): Robbie Jansen (Alto Sax & Flute), Roger Harry (Drums), Pops Mohamed (Keyboards), Basil Coetzee (Tenor Sax). Absent: Sipho Gumede (Bass Guitar). Also featured on Black Teardrops are Peter Odendaal (Bass) and Monty Weber (Drums).