Online Reporter
IN 2011, we took time to track down Mbuya Silver Zhuneya, Macheso’s maternal grandmother in Chiroodza Village under Chief Musana, and she told us the story of the legend who turned 57 yesterday.
Alick was fathered by Hardson Mbewe, a Malawian immigrant farm worker at Hereford Farm in Shamva in 1968.
But, before the young boy was even at the crawling stage, Mbewe took off.
His mother moved in with her mother Mbuya Zhuneya and left the young Alick there as she remarried.
Mbuya Zhuneya brought up her grandson together with her own son, Danlos Macheso, who was two years older.
Danlos recalls that during their days at Hereford Primary School, Alick was not too keen on books and even at that early age he wanted to concentrate concentrate on his musical career.
Danlos remembers the makeshift instruments.
“At that time it was made up of discarded tin cooking oil containers which he fashioned into guitars with twine stolen from the fishing of rods of my father, his grandfather.”
The enterprising would-be musician also helped himself to the half-drums that the women in the area used for beer brewing.
With those, Alick invented what he termed a “spring base guitar”.
Danlos said his nephew dug a hole and used an upturned half-drum with a hole in the middle dug into the ground.
He would pour water into the ground through the hole and then place a stick strung with twine across the drum to produce a deep bass.
The rest, as the story goes, is history and today Alick Macheso is the finest sungura artist in this country.
“At that time no one realised that Alick’s future was in music and what with his pilfering twine and drums, his grandfather was always after the young scamp,” Danlos said.
But there was also a lot of empathy, as the maternal family believed that Alick could not help his nature; music was obviously in his blood.
His father, Hardson Mbewe, used to move around playing a pennywhistle and a banjo in those days.
“He still dances in masquerade, but no one ever realises that it is him as Nyau dancers are always mysterious,” Danlos said.
Danlos and Mbuya Zhuneya lauded Alick and his wife Nyadzisai for holding the family together.
Mbuya Zhuneya had nothing but praise for the wife, Nyadzisai, whom she described as an exemplary woman who is just one call away whenever a family member is in need.
Alick bought the homestead in Chiroodza for her and takes care of the extended family.
So, away from workplace pressure, Macheso is finding joy and solace in the arrival of his grandchildren who have been named after their grandparents.
Ten years ago, in May 2015, there was double joy for Macheso when his children – Esau and Sharon – were blessed with kids within a space of a week.
Sharon’s daughter was named Nyadzisai, after Macheso’s wife, while Esau’s son was named Alick.
It was an amazing moment for Macheso.
“Children are a blessing and it is every parent’s wish to see his grandchildren,” he said.
“I arrived at the maternity home only to hear that the child was named after my wife. At the same time Esau named his son after me,” he said.
