Wellington's finest playing some of the golden funky beats and groove tunes of the Ethiopiques era.
This edition of Khufu's Ethiopiques features the renowned jazz maestro Lucien Johnson on sax, Afrobeat master-drummer Myele Manzanza, colourful sonic-boom Trinity Roots keyboardist Ed Zuccollo, amphibious cross-dimensional guitarist Justin Firefly Clarke on wah-guitar, and legendary Blerta bassist Patrick Bleakley on double-bass.
Myele Manzanza: drumkit
The son of Congolese master percussionist, Myele was introduced to the language of the drum and traditional African rhythms from an early age. As a child he performed on hand drums with his father who was also one of the first Africans to perform traditional African Afrobeat and high life music in New Zealand, but it wasn’t until Myele was 14 that he started playing a kit. Upon completion of high school Myele was awarded a scholarship to continue his music studies and went on to graduate from the New Zealand School Of Music with a Degree in Jazz performance in 2008. Since then Myele has gone on to become one of New Zealand’s leading exponent’s in his field. His dexterity and extensive skill as a drummer see him able to traverse styles seamlessly and his performances are always brilliantly captivating.
Lucien Johnson: saxophone and arranger
An outstanding saxophonist and composer who has been involved in Wellington’s music scene for around 15 years. He has led many bands including Shogun Orchestra and The Troubles and been a member of many others including The Black Seeds, The Yoots and Lord Echo. He has made music for many live theatre and dance shows, TV and the last feature film by Geoff Murphy. He lived in Paris for several years, playing with legends of free jazz and has toured around Europe, the US, Brazil, India, Haiti, Japan, China and the Pacific with various ensembles.
Ed Zuccollo:
Ed has recorded and performed with Hollie Smith, Electric Wire Hustle, Ria Hall, Mel Parsons, Iva Lamkum, Thomas Oliver and Bella Kalolo and he joined Trinity Roots this year for their China Tour. Ed provides fly jazz nuances & intergalactic soundscapes from his vintage 1970s MOOG synth. A master keyboardist close your eyes and you'll think he has 8 hands.
Justin Firefly Clarke: Wah-guitar
A prolific guitarist and composer who has won awards at festivals in Europe and collaborated with world-class performers from all over the globe. Locally he is known for producing the Woolshed Sessions and Jess Chambers as well as featuring with Fly My Pretties, Fat Freddy’s Drop and with the NZSO.
Patrick Bleakley: bass
A local bass legend known for playing with Blerta in the 1970s and 80s and being the rock to Jonathan Crayford's jazztrio as well as The Troubles.
The Khufu ship is an intact full-size vessel from Ancient Egypt that was sealed into a pit in the Giza pyramid complex at the foot of the Great Pyramid of Giza around 2500 BC. The ship was almost certainly built for Khufu (King Cheops), the second pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom of Egypt. Like other buried Ancient Egyptian ships, it was apparently part of the extensive grave goods intended for use in the afterlife, and contained no bodies, unlike northern European ship burials.
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