Kabasa -

Kabasa was a South African funk band from Soweto behind the 1980/81 Atlantic albums Kabasa and Searching, followed by the 1982 Lyncell Records release African Sunset.

Members: Robert “Doc” Mthalane (guitar), Tata “TNT” Sibeko (bass, vocals), Oupa Segwai (percussion)

Background

Kabasa formed in 1980 in Soweto when guitarist Robert “Doc” Mthalane and percussionist Oupa Segwai left Harari and joined singer and bassist Tata “TNT” Sibeko. Mthalane took after his guitarist older brother Enoch and played in the rock group Naked Truth. He joined Harari in 1978 and played alongside Mthalane and Segwai on the band’s 1979 album Kala-Harari Rock.

The group also included keyboardist and singer Madoda Malotana and drummer Johnny Motuba. Motuba drummed on Shingwanyana, the 1974 album by the Mamelodi group Xoliso. The five musicians recorded for Atlantic at Satbel Studios with producer Nunka Mkhalipe.

Discography:

Kabasa (1980)
Searching (1981)
African Sunset (1982)

Sources

Max Mojapelo, Beyond Memory (2008), p. 8. Mthalane’s brother, Naked Truth, and his move to Harari. (African Minds)
Harari, Kala-Harari Rock (1979). Album personnel place Mthalane and Segwai in Harari. (Afrisson)
Xoliso, Shingwanyana (1974). Reissue credits identify Motuba on drums. (SHARP-FLAT)
Kabasa, Kabasa (1980). Archive transcription of the original sleeve identifies all five musicians, Mkhalipe, Satbel Studios, and Atlantic. (Flatinternational)
Kabasa, artist histories. The accounts date the formation to 1980 and identify Mthalane, Segwai, and Sibeko as the core of the Soweto group. (Mixtapes ZA)