Simon Chimbetu - Rise To Fame

Rise To Fame

Chimbetu realised greater success when he went solo, recording all-time classics like Kuipa Chete, Ngoma Yanditora Moyo, Mwana Wedangwe, Southern Africa and many others. He called his brand of sungura dendera, a reference to a common tropical bird with a booming bass sound. Chimbetu's songs are distinguished by this deep, booming bass guitar that can be heard from way off.

What also distinguished Simon from many other sungura/museve artists at this time and throughout his career was that his music was always politically conscious, for better or for worse. The song Kuipa Chete for example bemoans a situation whereby "free" Zimbabweans continued to be exploited by largely unrepentant white farmers who virtually continued to live in Rhodesia, spurning the hand of reconciliation. Towards the end of the 80s, Cimbetu recorded many hits and grew to be force to reckon with on the scene. He is famous for penning and singing such songs as Samatenga, One Way, Dzandipedza Mafuta and many others. The man had great charm, a cheeky smile and a very warm personality. The Rhythm guitar work on his songs is most extraordinary. Simon also had a great facility with languages, being fluent in several and having in sung in Shona, Chewa, Ndebele and Swahili, among others. Having at one time joined the liberation war, Chimbetu is also noted for his critical lyrics such as in the songs Southern Africa, Kuipa Chete and Simba Nederere, among many others.

Upon returning to Zimbabwe from Tanzania in the late 1970s, Chimbetu worked for a tobacco processing firm while learning the musical ropes. During these days he sang at clubs and hotels with the Sungura Boys, fronted by John Chibadura. The Sungura Boys however just provided the instrumental backing, with Simon and Naison, his brother doing their own vocals. Together, the two rose to fame as Marxist Brothers, a name that sums up Chimbetu's ideological orientation at the time. After recording several albums together, the two split in 1988 with Simon forming his own band, The Orchestra Dendera Kings while Naison formed his Gee(Great) 7 Commandos. It was after splitting with Naison that Simon recorded the all-time hit, Nguva Yakaoma(Hard Times).

The album carried hits such as Spare Wheel, the soulful Samatenga, Pasi Rapinduka, among others. Samatenga stayed at the number one spot for a long time. The song Samatenga was somewhat prophetic in that the suffering it describes was mirrored in Simon's own life soon after when he was arrested for theft/receiving stolen property. Although he pleaded his innocence, he was found guilty and incarcerated at Khami Prison in Bulawayo.

Out Of the two brothers, Chimbetu evidently had the greater talent and share of the market and enjoyed success upon success. This was interrupted by his 4-year imprisonment from 1989 after being convicted of receiving stolen property (a car). He was released in 1994 and immediately shot to the top with Pachipamwe (Welcome Back). The song Saina, off Pachipamwe, was favourite of many at weddings and social gatherings. Many say his best ever albums are 1997's Survival and 1998's Lullaby which are highly critical of the Mugabe regime. One of Chimbetu's distinct success was being able to reclaim his top spot even after being jailed for such a long time. While in prison, another musician, Leonard Zhakata had wooed many fans with his similarly styled beat and well thought out lyrics. There is little doubt that Chimbetu outshone Zhakata when he re-entered the Zimbabwean musical jungle. After this purple patch, Simon's career plummeted after he became more directly linked to the ruling ZANU-PF party.