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m” class=”f”>Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 6/22/13
Uncle Rex on ‘Grill’
By SAKABILO KALEMBWE
THERE is every reason for fans’ adrenalin to rise, especially if they are lovers of live music as Uncle Rex, a seasoned guitarist sentences his band to roast it live on the ‘Grill’on Nangwenya Road in Lusaka.
The show dubbed ‘The Big One’ is also expected to attract other big names like MC Wabwino, Mampi, B1 and Exile [Israel].
As if this is not enough, beauties running up for Miss Tourism will be ushers at the event.
“The focus of the Big One concert at Polo Grill on June 28 is live music, we want to bring back the aspect of live music.
“We have seen that a lot of young artistes are just doing playbacks, and you know that if you go on the international scene, they will not allow you to do playbacks,” he says.
With Kenneth Tsana on the base guitar, Jones on the keyboard, John on saxophone, and the three vocalists; Masi, Kune and Mark, the outfit seems a complete one.
During the interview, Uncle Rex urged artistes to engage in live music for international exposure and announced the coming of his new project titled Fellowship.
“I have been going to church for a long time and I have decided to do something gospel and that is about my new project,” he says.
Born and bred in Ndola, Rex Mukubonda, a father of two daughters, is one of the few local artistes that have stood the test of time.
He came onto the scene just after leaving Chifubu Secondary School in 1981 and was already playing with a band that performed several shows in Ndola.
“I have been doing music, because even at school, I was doing music, so from there I knew what I wanted to do in life and this is what I am doing,” he said.
“Just from school we started jamming with the big guys, you know we had the likes of The Witch, guys like Keith Mulevu…” he said.
If what Uncle Rex has recently been showcasing at Lusaka’s Raddison Blu Hotel and O’Hagans is one’s yardstick, then it is correct to refer to him as the pioneer of jazz music in Zambia.
He is rated among the most gifted guitarists that Zambia has ever produced. His reticence might be deceiving for a guitarist who earned his experience in the 70s as a child but Rex continues to mentor young upcoming artistes; a truth revealed during his performances.
There are indeed very few Zambian music artistes who can boast of a career spanning almost four decades.
