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Abdullah Ibrahim
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
Abdullah Ibrahim, first known as Dollar Brand, grew up in Cape Town with church music, marabi and American jazz; Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk became his models. In 1959 he formed The Jazz Epistles with Hugh Masekela and Kippie Moeketsi. After apartheid was tightened he left in 1962 with singer Sathima Bea Benjamin for Zürich. There Ellington heard his trio and arranged a recording. In 1968 he became a Muslim and took the name Abdullah Ibrahim. On a visit to Cape Town in 1974 he recorded Mannenberg, which became a song of resistance. His music blends hymns, Cape rhythms and jazz. He died in 2026.
Listening
Mannenberg · Abdullah Ibrahim (Dollar Brand), 1974
The Wedding · Abdullah Ibrahim & Ekaya, 2010
Ntsikana's Bell · Dollar Brand (Abdullah Ibrahim), 1973
Ubu Suku · Dollar Brand, 1964
Discography
Studio albums
- 1964Duke Ellington Presents the Dollar Brand Trio
- 1968Hamba Khale
- 1971Peace
- 1973Dollar Brand + 3
- 1973Sangoma
- 1973This Is Dollar Brand
- 1974“Memories”
- 1974African Breeze
- 1974African Sketchbook
- 1974African Space Program
- 1974Good News From Africa
- 1974Mannenberg ‘Is Where It’s Happening’
- 1974Ode to Duke Ellington
- 1974Underground in Africa
- 1975African Herbs
- 1976African Portraits
- 1976African Songbird
- 1976Banyana: Children of Africa
- 1976Black Lightning
- 1976Blues for a Hip King
- 1977Buddy Tate Meets Dollar Brand
- 1977Natural Rhythm
- 1977The Journey
- 1978Anthem for the New Nations
- 1978Nisa
- 1978Streams of Consciousness
- 1979Bra Joe From Kilimanjaro
- 1979Echoes From Africa
- 1980African Marketplace
- 1981Duet
- 1983African Dawn
- 1983Ekaya
- 1983Zimbabwe
- 1986Water From an Ancient Well
- 1988Mindif (soundtrack)
- 1989African River
- 1991Mantra Mode
- 1992Desert Flowers
- 1993Knysna Blue
- 1997Cape Town Flowers
- 1998African Suite - For Trio and String Orchestra
- 1998Township One More Time
- 2001African Symphony
- 2002No Fear, No Die (S'en fout la mort)) (soundtrack)
- 2008Senzo ～先祖
- 2009Bombella: Gold Train - South Africa
- 2010Sotho Blue
- 2013Mukashi: Once Upon a Time
- 2014The Song Is My Story
- 2019Dream Time
- 2019The Balance
- 2021Solotude
- 20243
Other work
- 1974Mannenberg · Is Where It's Happening
In School of Rock
The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.
- Jazz MapNL Map
- After Hours: Session 3NL Reader
- After Hours: Session 3NL Reader
Mentioned in other articles
- South African jazz Genre
In 1959, the pianist Dollar Brand (later Abdullah Ibrahim), the alto saxophonist Kippie Moeketsi and the trumpeter Hugh Masekela formed The Jazz Epistles, the country's first Black bebop group with an LP of its own.