Stimela

With the November 11, 1996 release of their thirteenth album, Out of the Ashes, on Armistice Day, Stimela marked a homecoming to South Africa after an extended self-imposed exile. South Africa’s most commercially successful band carried forward the commercial momentum of earlier releases that had earned gold, double-gold, or platinum certifications. South African music zine Amuzine observed, “this is clearly one South African band who have battled their way through the dark days to take their rightful place in the forefront of the South African music invasion.” The quartet that first united as the Cannibals during the 1970s—Ray Phiri on guitar, Jabs on bass, Isaac on drums, and Lloyd on keyboards—later supplied instrumental support for recordings by Irene Mawela and the Mahotella Queens, among numerous other artists. In 1975 the musicians aligned with vocalist Jacob “Mparanyana” Radabe and sustained that partnership across the next four years. Rechristened Stimela in 1982, the group augmented its lineup with keyboardists Charlie and Thapelo plus lead singer Atokozo.