Cool Crooners fall on hard times

THEY have at one point been regarded as one of Zimbabwe's most reverred jazz sensations and besides they have proved their mettle both at regional and on the international stage.

Their melodious and tantalising vocal prowess ensured they achieve the iconic status as the gran-daddies of jazz music in the country in the process putting the name of the former capital of King Mzilikazi on the map.

Such is the story of Bulawayo-based jazz outfit - the Cool Crooners.

As much as their music may appeal to greater levels, their personal well-being suggests otherwise.

Talking to them, one can easily notice that the musicians are really finding it tough on and off the artistic field.

Speaking to Saturday Leisure, one of the founders of the group, Abel Sithole, recounts a story of how life has turned to be a tough journey for the past few years.

Unlike most of their peers whom they kick-started a music journey with, the lovely men in white suits have not accrued meaningful wealth through music.

Most musicians have built their empires through the guitars but the same cannot be said of the three artistes who despite the somewhat apparent tough road they have remained resolute.

"Since our formation, we have toured several countries that include France, United States, Botswana, Reunion, Tanzania among other countries.

"We have also shared the stage with some of the country's renowned jazz musicians such as Dudu Manhenga, Bob Nyabinde, Jazz Invitation, Tanga WekwaSando and other internationally recognised artistes but nowadays people in Bulawayo seem to have fallen out with our style of music," said Sithole.

He said things have not been easy for them financially of late as they had not been hosting any shows.

"Life has not been easy for us, our children have been looking after us but we cannot rely on children forever because they have their own lives and families to take care of," Sithole quipped.

Talk of a group which extensively toured many European countries during the peak of its career.

"We are now trying to revive our music as most of the music promoters in Bulawayo have neglected us and prefer other music genres to jazz. This has made our idea to survive through music almost unbearable," said Sithole.

He blasted the Bulawayo City Council for neglecting the city's recreational facilities which many artistes used to use for different purposes back in the days.

"We are old time vocalists and there are no more functions to promote us, the Bulawayo City Council has left some of the traditional halls and taverns going down the drain and that is where we made our names from," he said.

What may come as a surprise to many is that despite their stay in the volatile showbiz industry, this does not tally with the number of their recorded albums.

To date, they have only three albums Blue Sky, in 2001, Ibhulugwe Lami in 2002, and Isatilo in 2005.

Well placed sources allege that the group sold rights of their last album Isatilo to a French promoter who used to send them royalties which they heavily relied on in the past years. However, they denied these         claims.

"We did not sell our rights but the producer used to send us money since 2005 but he stopped in 2009.

"We used to collect it in Botswana and it used to help us a lot now we don't know whether the album is no longer selling there," Timothy Mkandla, one of the band leaders, said.

"We mainly rely on live performances and corporate functions but of late it has been dry," said Mkandla.

While it is crystal clear that the band's survival in the industry is by the grace of God, they still believe that they have more to offer.

"We have already started rehearsing some of our tracks for our forthcoming album which we hope will be released by the end of the year but we are still trying to raise enough funds to record," he said.

In an apparent bid to add flair to their existence, the outfit has conscripted a new member on board, George Salimu, from the disbanded Submarine Band. Salimu was the leader of the Submarine jazz outfit.

The Bhulugwe Lami hit makers came into existence after the two rival jazz groups of the 50s in Southern Rhodesia, the Cool Four and the Golden Delicious Rhythm Crooners, came together giving birth to the legendary Cool Crooners.

Founded by Abel Sithole, Lucky Thodhlana and the late Ben Gumbo, the group was always destined for great things and have since graced several arts festivals across the world.

As a replacement for Gumbo, Timothy Mkandla has since been taken on board by the team famous for their striking white suits.

Since then the group has never looked back, not even the death of fellow members as Eric Juba and Gumbo upset their determination.

It was during the 50s that Southern Africa was bursting with creativity in the arts and it was then that township jazz was created and its name "mbaqanga" was coined.

Its music tipped its hat to jazz and its tone and swing, but mixed the western music with African rhythms and language - Ndebele, Zulu and KiSwahili in the case of the Crooners.

Those who have witnessed the Jazz maestros' live on stage will concur that their music will always leave jazz lovers calling for more.

Their music is well polished and old-time. The flawless vocals coupled with a lively brass section have the feel of music halls, synched waists and men in suits.

But the language, rhythm, lilting electric guitar and laid back cool is purely African and one can simply love every bit of it.