BELLA1535 // 31 May 2024

Bella Union are thrilled to announce the vinyl reissue of 1990: The Hidden Years Recording by celebrated South African musician Madala Kunene. The album will be reissued on 24th May 2024 via the label.

Madala Kunene (better known to his friends as Bafo) blends Zulu folk with township blues to produce a unique hybrid and contemporary music he calls “Madala-line”. Apart from his own colourful life-experiences Madala often uses traditional songs, nursery rhymes and lullabies as the basis for his material. His highly spiritual music is guided by the mood, moment and the experience he brings to his playing. Most compositions are inspired by dreams and messages from the ancestral realm as well as the teachings of Zulu culture and folklore. Madala’s music has been researched and taught by musicologists as a course material in music studies. In May 2023 Madala was awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree by the University of KwaZulu-Natal for his contribution to the development of indigenous music and his contribution to the music of Africa and that of the world. 

Madala Kunene’s debut album was produced in 1990 by Sipho Gumede for David Marks label 3rd Ear Music and released on Vinyl and Cassettes. 30 years later the album was re-released digitally and now you are holding the first Vinyl re-release in your hands. 

The Hidden Years Music Archive was established by David Marks in 1990 to look after the collection he had built up over his years working in the South African music industry. The archive includes rare and unique music material recorded and collected by Marks of alternative popular music and musicians from the late 1960s to the early 2000s. David Marks donated the collection to Stellenbosch University in 2013 and since then the collection has kept on growing. 

1. U-Gongo
2. Vumela Abaphansi
3. Ku-Khon' Othwele
4. U-Ncede
5. A-Bagoma
6. Sanibonani
7. U-Mata-Gota-Fri