Thebe Mabanga
MUSIC
Guitar prodigy Selaelo Selota will be well advised to savour the adulation that comes with the status of being in vogue on the music scene a fact that was confirmed with a South African Music Award (Sama) for best newcomer recently.?
For lurking ominously in the background is Ernest John Smith, who prefers to be referred to as Ernie Smith. He is a native of Wentworth in Durban for whom years of pounding pavements and persevering as a session musician have culminated in the release of what he describes as an overdue debut, Child of the Light.
Smith’s entry into the music business was by a profound, cathartic process. “It all began with the acceptance of the Lord,” he says reflecting on how an upbringing in Wentworth in the Eighties surrounded him with a life of gangsters and crime, and church offered not only a viable escape, but also exposure to live music.
Smith instinctively picked on a guitar as his instrument of choice and has been strumming for about 17 of the past 30 years.?His Christian roots brought him an opportunity to work with Mthunzi Namba and his gospel troupe, Joyous Celebration. Thankfully though, he decided to transcend his gospel orientation.
“That is because part of being a Christian is being a person and even as a Christian you experience a range of emotions including love, hate and anger. I would like to be able to express those emotions through my song writing,” Smith says of his decision to spread his wings beyond the church.
His versatility has allowed him to work with luminaries such as Hugh Masekela and Pops Mohammed, who rejoins him on stage this weekend as part of Kalamazoo, a duo with celebrated bass guitarist Sipho Gumede. The bill also features the band Absolute Zero.
To calm his nerves at the prospect of playing in the presence of such august company, Smith will be self-confident a trait he learned from Masekela. He will also be spurred on by encouragement from Jonathan Butler, whom he had the honour of speaking to before recording this album, and contemporary Jimmy Dludlu, who advised him not to hold back, just give it a good shot and make an impression with his first attempt.
The album kicks off mild and then comes a sudden burst of energy in Lonely, where Smith competently delivers vocals which he admits is his secondary and less-used strength. It then flows in an ebullient and seamless fashion and before you know it, you’re more than half way through a 13-track journey and the mood transforms to being brooding in Mary Kate and then lightens up in Everything About You, a duet with Gloria Bosman.
A disappointing aspect of Smith’s album is its title, Child of the Light. It sounds like the ranting of a New Age fundi, but Smith explains: “We live in a time where the concern is for oneself and not the next person. I refuse to accept the status quo and this title is to say I live my life the way God wants me to, while acknowledging that I will make mistakes.”
Fortunately the music is much clearer. Of all the influences that Smith acknowledges including Butler, Louis Mhlanga, Sandile Shange and to a lesser extent George Benson the one that fits most comfortably is that of Pat Matheney. Parts of this album bring to mind Matheney’s We Live Here.
The foreseeable future consists of selling the album in South Africa where Smith’s?”passion, patriotism and integrity with the audience lie”. The next stop will be Malaysia, where the album has been licensed for release.
A year from now, don’t be surprised to see him collect his Sama for best newcomer.
Catch Ernie Smith, Kalamazoo and Absolute Zero at the Civic Theatre in Johannesburg on April 21. Tickets at Ticketweb, Tel: 0861 400500