Zimbabwe: Mandebvu Journey No Easy Sailing

Source from:  The Herald (Harare) January 24, 2007 01/26/2007

ONCE they played before huge crowds in Harare but today they only have handful diners to entertain in the resort town of Victoria Falls. But even then, the afro-jazz group Mandebvu plays as if they have a crowd before them and it suits them because Victoria Falls has become some kind of a hideout ever since the group left Harare. Just like any other group formed in the early 70s, Mandebvu's journey has not been easy sailing. Thirty-five years ago, they called themselves Dead Civilisation, then they assumed the Players Please Band when they were signed on as the official band for the Gold Leaf tobacco brand. Later they were called Destiny and then Mandebvu, a name that was derived from the long beard each member wore during those days. The members, Brookes Mupawaenda, Robert, Isaac and Lucky Manthenga, Laban Kandi and Manu Fadeo knew each other either from school or the neighbourhood. "We did not know Laban at first. In fact, we used to see him playing his guitar sitting under a tree at his home in Old Highfield," Brookes, who is still with the band, said. "The boys called me mudhara wehat yemurara but I had known Lucky from school when we were both in the choir. He introduced me to the others," said Laban who did not last long with the group Dead Civilisation. Using Robert's residence as their practising venue, they started playing copyrights of such artistes as Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Jimi Hendriks. "We were invited to share the stage with many other groups such as the Baked Beans and the Four Aces among many others. We played in halls -- Cyril Jennings, Mabvuku and at a music festival held in Gwanzura Stadium," said Brookes. But their break came in 1974 when Greenford Jangano of the Harare Mambos heard them playing. "Jangano had been asked to find a band that would promote the British American Tobacco's new cigarette brand, the Players Gold Leaf," explained Brookes, "and he called upon us to do the job." The promotional work involved touring the country and it came with a new name -- the Players Please Band. During the tour, they were accompanied by one of this country's greatest comedians, Lucky Kembo Ncube. At the time, Laban had found employment and could not be part of the band and so Christopher Mbirimi replaced him. When the road show ended, there was nothing much to do in the then Salisbury. But the group was lucky when the Golden Mile Hotel in Kwekwe signed them as its resident band in 1976. Its name changed to Destiny Band. "When we moved to Kwekwe, Christopher did not go with the group. Instead, the late Stanley Zimi and William Mafusire moved in. Mafusire did not stay long though," revealed Brookes. The group stayed at the Golden Mile for three years during which they shared the stage with great musicians of the time such as Eddie Calvert, Brian Mulder, Jessica Jones, Sylvia Meyer, Mitch Mitchell, the South African song bird Abigail Kubeka, Cathy Cota and Alan Garrity. "The three years we spent at the Golden Mile were formative years for the group," put in Brookes. "We found ourselves inclined to change the style of our music from playing copyright stuff to composing songs in our local languages.' When the group left for Salisbury's Federal Kudzanayi Hotel (now Hollies) in 1979, they had a number of their own compositions. Fadeo did not relocate to Salisbury then but three others -- Alois Jentala, Adios Chiyaka and Temba joined. Steve Roskilly who was to own Shed Studios worked with the group during its stint at the Federal and was instrumental in the recording of their single, Zvichanaka Chete. More were to come. There was Qakeza, Mandu, WeManyoni, Sihlobo Sami, Pano Pamusha, Shamwari Wakashata Moyo Kwazvo and Haisi Mhosva. "But these records were not accorded enough airplay and they did not sell much," remembered Brookes sadly. As a result of the poor returns, Steve left. The group's stay at the Federal ended in 1980 when the Victoria Falls Hotel signed them on as its resident band, a move that saw them assuming another name -- Mandebvu. By then, the group had Brookes, Robert, Llyod Mungoshi, Isaac Manthenga and the late Newton Kanengoni who sadly committed suicide when he through himself into the Zambezi River as its members. But Llyod has since left to pursue a solo career and is based at Ilala Lodge where he entertains tourists. Israel Bhebhe has been replaced. The group's debut album came seven years after their relocation to Victoria Falls following the legendary producer Tymon Mabaleka of the Zimbabwe Music Corporation's discovery of the group performing. The group recorded the albums Mandebvu I and Mandebvu 11 in 1987 and 1989 respectively. While Mandebvu I was in a way a compilation of the group's earliest hits, Mandebvu 11 had new songs such as Gudo Guru, No Hurry in Africa, Scratch My Back and Thandi Njalo that made their way onto radio and are still being played today. Laban is still based in Harare where he is going solo. He released an album Nzwisa in 2003 and another one Expressions of Love in 2004. According to Brookes, their contract does not give them enough time to tour the country since they are only free during the month of June every year. The only time they were able to leave Victoria Falls was in 2003 when they played during the Winter Jazz Festival at the Jazz 105 in Harare. Enditem