Why I'm going back 37 years in my life I'm not sure. Maybe I'm trying to convince myself that playing with all those different musicians was character building.
After being fired from "The Top of The Carlton" on New Year's Eve 1976, I spent the next couple of days contemplating what the future may hold for an unemployed musician with numerous accounts at the local music shops.
I had a Hohner Electric Piano on appro', my dream synth Arp Odyssey was at that stage still a dream, the Hammond L100 wasn't paid for yet,and neither was my Marshall 100 Watt Lead Amp that I used to power my two home built "Leslie" cabinets.
Home built sounds so much better than home made...
In those days you could buy a "Leslie" kit from a company called Polliacks in Johannesburg.
At that stage I hadn't had the opportunity to learn to drive, let alone own a car, so you can picture this: I take the bus from Hillbrow to town; the next bus will drop me near Polliacks.
I then walk to the company, buy the "Leslie" kit which comprised of a polystyrene drum, drive belt, motor etc. and was subsequently quite a handful. Then walk back to the bus stop, wait for the bus to town, catch the connecting bus to Hillbrow and then walk back to the flat, only to be in time for the four o'clock argument.
This of course was another way to build character...
I've always been very handy with woodwork and as a result made this brilliant "Leslie" speaker cabinet that ultimately had two revolving drums - one at the top and one at the bottom. The sound was amazing!
The only problem was that I'd built it in the flat and had failed to measure the width of the flat's front door.
I, nor anybody else could get the speaker cabinet out of the flat!
With my woodworking skills in those days, I didn't glue and screw everything together (luckily), so I managed to take it all to bits, remeasure, and landed up with two smaller and much more manageable cabinets.
I've become a bit side tracked here talking about my gear from the 70's.
The "Carlton" contract was due to finish end of January 1977.
My dear friend Anton and I had decided to form a trio which we thought was going to be the trio to end all trios.
Anton knew this drummer Gary, from Cape Town. He moved up to Johannesburg three months before the "Carlton" gig was finishing. We made this arrangement with the "Top of The Carlton" manager that we could rehearse after the band's performance.
So what would happen was we'd play our cheesy repertoire, back whatever "cabaret" act was booked, play more cheesy stuff and finish at more or less 1:00 am. (The gig was from 9 till 1).
The others in the band would then go home and Anton, myself and Gary would rehearse from around 2:00am till about 4:00am, sometimes 5:00am.
Gary had a car - so no taxis for us in the wee hours Jim!
And more importantly no 4:00am arguments - she was asleep.
The hotel manager and the 'band leader' decided in their infinite wisdom that they needed me back to finish the last month of the contract. Not being in a financial situation to tell them to shove it, plus we were quite pleased with the "free" rehearsal room, I agreed.
The remainder of the contract was without incident except after the one late rehearsal.
It must have been about 4:00 am, and we were finished, (in more ways than one), when one of the night cleaning staff asked us if we could please give him a lift home.
We said as long as Gary doesn't mind - Gary's cool, so we all pile into the car and take this guy to Soweto!
In 1977 in South Africa, you did not go to Soweto at 4:30 in the morning unless your were up to something nefarious.
We, in our non political innocence, go sailing into Soweto, following the cleaners directions, only to discover a set of serious headlights following us.
When we'd dropped our friend at his house, these huge cops got out the police van that had been following us and demanded that they escort us to the police station.
We were interrogated for possibly an hour! What are you doing here?, How do you know where this man lives etc. etc. Plus we all had long hair and were musicians - obviously part of the uprising!
After a lot of talking we were allowed to leave, but not without a police escort to make sure we really did leave.
My one and only time in Soweto.
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