A selfless, ever curious character
THE tears haven’t dried up for the friends, family and fans of legendary musician Johnny Clegg, whose funeral took place on Wednesday at Westpark Cemetery.
Andy Innes, his musical director, is still coming to terms with the giant void in their life.
Clegg succumbed to a long battle with pancreatic cancer on Tuesday afternoon. He is survived by his wife of 31 years, Jenny and their two sons, Jesse and Jaron.
In an emotional interview, Innes recalled the life and times he shared with Clegg during their 27 years together.
He recalled: “In 1992, Johnny auditioned for a guitar player in the band. Dudu Ndlovu had recently passed away. And he’d just finished the Heat,
Dust and Dreams album in Los Angeles. “He decided to get a guitar player on board because up until that time, he had been playing the guitar himself. I think it would have freed him up a bit if he had another guitar player in the band. I was one of the candidates who auditioned and was lucky enough to be successful.”
“It was very exciting and challenging to be a part of Savuka. I’d grown up with that music, so it was an important part of the soundtrack to my formative years. It was a huge privilege to work with them. I was working with childhood heroes. It was very exciting.
“It was also great to be a part of something that was politically relevant at the time, as opposed to playing music for the sake of playing music. It was something that I felt had a much wider social impact for me.”
Having accumulated a plethora of memories with Clegg, describing him was effortless.
“He had a larger-than-life presence; he was a real great heart. He had a sharpened sense of humour and awareness of the absurd. He saw beauty in life and the things around him.
“He was an exceptional person and an excellent father, who prepared his boys for life. He always said the value system that he gave them was the most important thing he could leave them with.”
Innes said being on the road with Clegg was never dull.
“He was a very interesting guy to be on tour with. He always had his notepad and a book on the tour bus. On a long journey, he would put down his book and explain very excitedly to whoever was closest to him the most basic things… like talking about economics.
“There were lots of moments like those throughout the 27 years I worked with him. It never stopped. He was always curious and thirsty for knowledge and keen to share and discuss.”
Reflecting on his demeanour after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2015, Innes said: “I describe it as bravery. He was brave and selfless throughout the process. He always made time for people. He tried to be gentle and sensitive.”
At this point, Innes got choked up with emotion and had to take a minute to compose himself.
“I would say, Johnny was like the quintessential example of what a new South African should look like. He defined the way we should live in post1994 South Africa. He defined it before it was a popular concept. He swam against the stream. His ideas were very unpopular at the time. I think we all owe him a bit of gratitude for that.”