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Chris McGregor - Cry Freedom

28/11/08
As a new boxed set tracing the work of the pioneering South African jazz group the Blue Notes is released, Duncan Heining charts the genesis of the distinctive group and the charismatic figure of Chris McGregor from early days in apartheid-era South Africa to exile in Europe and the subsequent development of Brotherhood of Breath and other offshoot groups

Early one August morning in 1964, seven people crossed the border by train passing from South Africa into Mozambique. It was an unusual group of people – five black guys, one white and one white woman. Any “mixing of the races” was, of course, immediately suspicious in apartheid South Africa. The six men – Louis Moholo-Moholo, Chris McGregor, Dudu Pukwana, Johnny Dyani and Nikele Moyake – made up The Blue Notes. South Africa’s only multi-racial jazz group was ostensibly travelling via Mozambique to Paris and then to the South of France to play at the jazz festival in Juan Les Pins. The woman was Maxine, pianist Chris McGregor’s partner and the group’s manager, publicist and often main source of financial support. It was true that they were heading for France but there was no question that they were coming back.

On the train in Mozambique, though the country was still subject to the often brutal colonial rule of the Portuguese, there was an air of freedom amongst the party, in particular the black guys. For the first time, they could stand next to a white man in the bar on the train without fear of arrest. Playing gigs and touring in their native land had become harder and harder. Concerts were segregated. They might play for whites in the evening and for a black audience in the afternoon. Even though they might not have been doing anything illegal, by their very association they were always at risk.

When the Blue Notes formed in 1962, there was a great deal of interest in jazz in South Africa. Venues might have been few but the country did have a couple of festivals, sponsored by one South Africa’s breweries. That fact is astonishing enough, in the context of a country that had become increasingly repressive following the Sharpeville uprising and massacre in March 1960. Nelson Mandela had been arrested in August 1962, tried and sentenced to five years imprisonment after the CIA had tipped off the South African authorities as to his whereabouts. Of even greater significance was the Rivonia Trial of 1963/4. In June 1964, 11 leaders of the banned ANC, including Mr. Mandela, were convicted of sabotage and treason, each one receiving a life sentence.

This is an extract from Jazzwise Issue #126 – read the full article click here to subscribe and receive a FREE CD

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