a Zulu groove bomb

October 3, 2018 12:39 PM

Blinded in the age of 5 due to illness, Steve Kekana was one of the most successful south african musicians of the eighties, and actually one of the first to take his band to perform overseas. In 1980 he probably had a big continental-european hit called "Raising my family", that tooped the charts in Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Austria etc. "Bushman" was another hit from this era (reminds me Sting & The Police), and so "Africa". Most of his work is collected in an english-album compilation "The English Album".

All the lovers of Hugh Masekela, Juluka, Alec Khaoli etc hail for that brilliant ZA music! and start namedropping.

posted by avi111 (4 comments total)

This is great, thanks for introducing me to him. I especially like the kid making his own dance video (the link for Africa).
posted by LobsterMitten at 2:25 PM on October 3, 2018

Previously last year, Awesome Tapes From Africa reissued Om Alec Khaoli's own Umoja topic, "707 EP" which topped the SA charts in 1988 and reached double platinum - even when the censor tried to block them as a black african band. Khaoli was actually the first black artist to perform at the Apartheid SA TV in the 70s, as the leader of the Harari band.
posted by avi111 at 2:35 PM on October 3, 2018 [1 favorite]

> a big continental-european hit... that tooped the charts in Finland

I choose to believe that is not a typo, but rather a Finnish word.
posted by rokusan at 7:13 PM on October 3, 2018

Yep typo. I have actually introduced to this song back in 1993 with this Gary Clail esque version. Years later I realized that this is a cover.
posted by avi111 at 10:30 PM on October 3, 2018