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Jazz Epistles
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
The Jazz Epistles were the first important bebop band in South Africa, even though the group existed only briefly. They drew inspiration from Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. The members included Dollar Brand, later Abdullah Ibrahim, on piano, Kippie Moeketsi on alto saxophone, Jonas Gwangwa on trombone, Hugh Masekela on trumpet, Johnny Gertze on bass and Early Mabuza or Makaya Ntshoko on drums. The group became known through the jam sessions Jazz at the Odin at the Odin Theatre in Sophiatown.
Music and breakthrough
The band was formed in the mid-1950s, when Brand and Mackay Davashe began working with Gwangwa and Masekela. In 1959, just before breaking up, they recorded the first album by a Black South African band, Jazz Epistle, Verse 1. That same year the musical King Kong by Todd Matshikiza became a hit in Johannesburg. With a jazz score, it told the tragic story of the boxer Ezekiel Dhlamini. Miriam Makeba, members of the Manhattan Brothers and the musicians of the Jazz Epistles worked on it.
Influence
After the Sharpeville massacre in 1960, apartheid became even harsher. Performances were banned and jazz was not allowed on the radio. When the makers of King Kong were invited to Europe, the government issued passports, expecting it to be propaganda. Many musicians chose exile in Europe. As a result, much of the most adventurous South African music developed outside the country for decades. In 2016 several members played two reunion concerts in Johannesburg after 56 years.
Listening
Scullery Department · Jazz Epistles, 1960
Discography
Studio albums
In School of Rock
The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.
- 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.