adminRobert Manthenga, a long-serving member of the group since 1980, said they were putting final touches on the album.
“We are currently in the studio working on our comeback album. The group was a male outfit but we have managed to incorporate female band members. Some of the founding members are dead and some have gone to the Diaspora but Mandebvu band will always be there,” he said.
Born in Kwekwe 60 years ago, Manthenga is a renowned vocalist, guitarist, keyboard player and saxophonist. He is also a composer of note, having composed a number of songs including Prudence Katomeni-Mbofana’s Baba Bhoyi, an authentic, organic afro-jazz tune that has hit the right chord with many since its release on her debut album.
“I am always on the music scene. I am music. I breathe and live music. I always have a musical instrument in my hand; there is always music playing in my head, songs to be sung and music to be composed,” said Manthenga.
“The band Mandebvu will always be there. It’s an established jazz institution that will always cater for those loyal fans that have always supported us. But I have grown musically and need to output more of the sounds that I hear in my head without having to compromise, hence the creation of the new band,” he said.
Manthenga said people should not brush aside them as a spent force.
“There is more where that came from. I am honoured that Prudence chose to sing Baba Bhoyi because I wrote it from a woman’s perspective and her sweet voice in mind.
“I knew she was going to own it and make it hers, with her distinct style. Her voice and her understanding of the song just warms my heart.”
Manthenga started playing guitar at the age of seven. His passion for music was so great that he used to sneak out of home to attend concerts by Mahotella Queens and most of the well-known South African musicians of the era.
Online Reporter