This stuff goes back to 1960 or thereabouts. I know all the bands, muscians, hangers on etc from that era. My band, the Cyclones, the Diamonds, the Stereos from Bulawayo, Nic’s original Drifters later became Holy Black, Etonians,Soul and Blues Union, Otis Waygood, Jumping Jack Mcgraughty, Jazz guys, Hennie Bekker, Brazilian keyboard player, Izio Gross, for years a feature of the nite club scene, Alain Delon and lots more. I was also involved with promoting. We brought to Rhodesia Percy Sledge, Richard Jon Smith, The Flames from Durban who later joined the Beach Boys. My band, the Cyclones, were the first band to play on TV live in those days, first to record a long playing record, first to get on the local hit parade with a single, and we won the annual rock band competition, I think 3 or 4 times. It was promoted by a tobacco company. How times change. I also owned Barry’s Music Shop in Manica Rd, it was the only real musical instrument shop in Rhodesia, so I got to meet all the musos – including some of the most amazingly talented guys from the Congo whose playing would take your breath away. Jazz Limpopo springs to mind. They became very big in France I think.
– Barry Taylor