RIP Joseph Shabalala

Stanley - Thursday

Joseph Shabalala

I grew up next to a golf course in Johannesburg. An enduring memory of those times is lying in bed at night listening  to singing and often drumming coming from the sleeping quarters of the caddies--all black of course. These voices were distant, but still distinct.

Similarly, whenever there were road works and digging was required, there would be groups of black workers singing in a call-and-response style. The leader would sing sing a line and the rest of the group would respond. Often this occurred in time with the swinging of the picks or shovels.

I never understood what was being sung, largely because the education of white kids in those days didn't include learning a language of any of the majority groups in the country. To this day, I resent the fact that I didn't grow up learning Zulu or Xhosa. Given the choice, I would have chosen Zulu. It is a beautiful language with many onomatopoeic words. For example, the word for scooter is isithuthuthu (pronounced isitututu). There is a game reserve in KwaZuu Natal province named Hluhluwe. The hl sound is similar to the ll sound in Welsh - put your tongue on the back of your front teeth and exhale. The sound comes from the edge of the tongue. Try saying Hluhluwe. It means the rustling of the reeds.

Back to the main story!

The a cappella singing by the caddies and road workers crept into my soul, not only the style, but also the rhythms, uniquely African.

It is not surprising, given how common this style of singing was, that formal groups formed to sing it. And it is not surprising, too, that groups starting competing.

Here's a clip of the importance of these competitions to the community.

This style of singing is called isicathamiya, pronounced isi c utu mee ya (with the c a dental click and the u as in up). 

Here's a clip of isicathamiya in everyday life.

Very few people have not heard of Ladysmith Black Mambaso, the isicathamiya or a cappella group from KwaZuku Natal in South Africa. It was founded by Joseph Shabalala, who died last week.

Bhekizizwe Joseph Siphatimandla Mxoveni Mshengu Bigboy Shabalala, as he was named at birth in 1941, started his first isicathamiya group, Ezimnyama ("The Black Ones"), in 1959 after a choir he was in refused to sing any of the songs he composed. 

In a series of dreams in 1960, in which he saw a group dressed in robes singing a different type of a cappella song, he changed the group to be able to create the sound he had heard. It started winning many of the competitions, so he changed the name to Ladysmith Black Mambaso -- Ladysmith after the town in which he was born and Mambaso meaning axe, symbolising the fact that they were cutting down all opposition at the competitions. 

The group was quite successful in South Africa, cutting and selling a number of records.

The break-out moment came in 1986, when Paul Simon arrived in South Africa to record Graceland. He and Shabalala collaborated and co-wrote Homeless, which put the group on the map worldwide. You can listen to it here.

And you can listen to Diamonds on the soles of her shoes here with Simon singing with Ladysmith Black Mambaso.

The froup went from strength to strength eventually being nominated for many Grammys and winning two.

This is one of my favourites - Wentomb'unecala.

Shabalala's life was full of successes, but also tragedies. In 1991, Joseph's brother and fellow  group member, Headman Shabalala, was killed by an off-duty white security guard in what was thought to be a racial murder. In 2002, Joseph's wife of 30 years, Nellie, was shot and killed by a black assailant outside the couple's home. A man was tried and found guilty, but one of Shabalala's sons was found not guilty of paying the perpetrator to murder his stepmother.

Then, in 2004, when Joseph's brother, Ben Shabalala, was shot and killed by an unknown assailant whilst driving his two children to school. In 2006, Joseph's brother Jockey (his only brother remaining in the group), died of natural causes at his home in Ladysmith, South Africa. 

When Shabalala retired in 2014, his youngest son, Thamsanqa, took over as leader.

A very humble man, Shabalala brought calm and happiness to millions around the world. Certainly, his music resonates at my core.

Rest in Peace.

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