Simon ” Chopper ” Chimbetu – THE MASTER OF SONG WHO MADE THE WORLD DANCE TO THE SOUND OF A HORNBILL

Simon Chimbetu 

By Kamangeni Phiri    27/10/22

 

Late Dendera music king, Simon Chopper Chimbetu was as fussy about his dressing and appearance as he was about his music.

Chimbetu, a creative genius who came up with a unique sound known today as Dendera, was a man who chased fashion.

Before the late Tongai Moyo popularized smartness on stage, there was a more dapper Simon.  His talent in music and love for fashion earned him many monikers like Chopper, Mr Viscose, Cellular, Simomo and Mukoma Sam.

A story is told of how the man everyone called the “Master of Song” came for an interview at the Herald House in 2004 but refused to have a photo-shoot because he felt he was not dressed for the occasion.

The interview was centred mainly on why he included a song or two about the liberation war on his albums.

“When I asked him about his war credentials, he was non-committal. I did not push further. He then refused to have pictures taken then because he wanted a proper photo-shoot and he had to get a new suit and have his hair done. We had to arrange for the next day,” says then Herald Senior Entertainment Reporter, Wonder Guchu, writing on his blog, Intimacy With Zim Musicians.

Simon, for one thing, had a penchant for good clothes. He even admitted in one interview that when their music began to sell well, they spent a lot of money on clothes.

Indeed, Chopper came back the next day as per his promise. He was wearing a dark pin-stripped suit and had his hair done the traditional Chimbetu style – ‘bhibho’ box cut.
But again, the photo-shoot was not a straight thing. The news crew had to spend some time driving around scouting for a suitable site.

“The Africa Unity Square was not suitable, he said, too many people. The streets, he said no again. We had to drive to Masasa. It took us about an hour to get the pictures right. Every time he would ask to see how the shots looked like,” said Guchu.

Apparently, the story (and pictures) was important to him then because it was a critical time in Chopper’s musical career. His shows were struggling to draw huge crowds. People were shunning him because of his album Hoko. The title track was in praise of the controversial land reform programme while Kure kuState House told opposition leaders of their inadequacies in assuming the country’s presidency.

Chimbetu was a known Zanu-PF supporter who never made his love for the ruling party a secret. He even claimed to have gone to Tanzania to train as a freedom fighter. As a result, Chopper would always include a song or two about the liberation war and Pan-Africanism on every album he recorded.

“I fought in the liberation war and still think of my comrades who died in my arms. They never fought for their own families alone but they fought so that Zimbabweans can repossess what had been taken away from them by the whites. I look at the opposition parties across Africa, just as I look at all new things that come up, and I realise that they have no base. I am a revolutionary and what I see in most of our opposition parties is a group of people who have no foundation, they can’t think on their own,” said Chopper unflinchingly in one of his many yesteryear interviews.

Most, if not all, of his songs about the war or land reform were hits that still sound fresh even today. Who can forget timeless songs like Ndarangarira Gamba, Zimbabwe Iyoyi, Pane Asipo, Africa, Rwendo Rurefu and Hoko, among others?  

His variation of Sungura music, inspired by the sound of the ground hornbill (dendera) bird, remains irresistible. It has a heavy bass guitar which brings out the hornbill bird sound, with the rhythm and sub rhythm guitars playing a harmonious complementary role. Even when some people tried to punish Chimbetu for his love of Zanu-PF by boycotting his shows, they still continued to buy his music.

Chimbetu was born in the Musengezi area of Mashonaland West Province on September 23, 1955. He was of the Yao tribe and his ancestral roots are in Southern Tanzania. Simon attended the local Musengezi High School, and like most youths of his time, went to Harare in search of employment. He worked for a tobacco processing company for many years after the attainment of Zimbabwe’s independence in 1980. Growing up, young Simon would regularly accompany his father, Benson Mwakalile, a bricklayer, on his business errands.

But Chopper’s dream was to be a musician.

It is said Simon’s singing prowess came to the fore during the Rhodesian Bush War days, when he went to Tanzania to join the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) freedom fighters. He used to entertain freedom fighters through music as a way of keeping morale high among the fighters. Simon returned home in 1980 to pursue a career in music. This version of narrative, however, was not corroborated.

The late singer’s life remains a mystery. He rarely spoke about his personal life. In certain instances, writers had to rely on narratives given to them by his late young brother, Naison, the man he started his musical journey with in 1980.

Naison told then Radio Two presenter, Musavengana Nyasha, that he and Simon launched their musical career in 1980. They were backed by the OK Success, a band that at one time featured the legendary James Chimombe.

They recorded a number of singles that included Nherera before joining Sungura Boys in 1986. Sungura Boys relocated to Bulawayo and left the Chimbetu brothers without a band.

“The owners of Mushandirapamwe Hotel asked us to look for new members and form a band. We identified some talented instrument players and formed a band which we named Marxist Brothers. During our days with the Ok Success and Sungura Boys we were not yet playing guitars. I started playing the guitar in 1988,” said the late Naison Chimbetu in his interview with the then Radio Two now Radio Zimbabwe.

But Naison could not say whether Simon went to war or not.
There were conflicting narratives on Chopper’s participation in the liberation struggle although he was buried at Mashonaland West Provincial Heroes Acre in 2005.

Another version says Simon was one of the pupils abducted from a school in Msengezi but was ordered to return home because he was too young to be involved in the armed struggle. When Simon returned to the family home in Chegutu, he was sent to Harare as a way of escaping the Rhodesian army.

Naison later followed his brother to the capital and the two were staying in Dzivaresekwa. They started singing in local bars until one day they were discovered by the now late veteran music producer, Chris Matema. Matema sent the brothers to see Zexie Manatsa sometime in 1978. At that time, the war was drawing to an end.

When the Chimbetu brothers got to Zexie’s place, they failed to find help and they went back to Matema who then sent them to Mushandirapamwe Hotel in Highfield. That is how the Chimbetu brothers ended up joining the OK Success which was a resident band at the hotel.

At the time, both Simon and Naison could not play any musical instrument although they could compose good songs.

OK Success eventually left the hotel leaving the Chimbetus without a backing group. The brothers, again, turned to Matema who sent them to Domboshava where the Sungura Boys were based.

After recording a few songs, the brothers were again dumped by the Sungura Boys Band. They then decided to form their own band, Marxist Brothers.

This is the narrative, according to Naison but again, Simon never confirmed nor denied it.

Simon and Naison went separate ways in 1990 as they pursued solo careers. Simon launched his solo career with a hit album, Nguva Yakaoma, in the same year. He was more successful as an artiste than his young brother.

Controversy stalked Simon throughout his musical career. He participated directly in the land reform programme and at one time had to settle his land dispute in court. In 2002, the media had stories of how Chimbetu had gone for months without paying his own farm workers. At the peak of his popularity, he spent four years in jail from 1990 till 1994 for car theft but he never admitted that he indeed was guilty.

While Chopper was in prison, a younger musician, Leonard Zhakata, had capitalized on his absence and wooed many fans with his fast-beat music which saw him dominating charts. But Simon was able to reclaim his top spot soon after his release from prison when he unleashed the hit album, Pachipamwe in 1995.

When Chimbetu died on 14 August 2005, following injuries sustained in a car accident, he had more than 20 albums to his name.

He is survived by six children.

Chopper left the world with so many unanswered questions.

Did he indeed father musicians and copycats, Chamu Boroma and Paddy Kamusakara?

Did he participate in the liberation struggle and did he indeed steal a car?

How and why did he split with his brother, Naison?

If only graves could speak.

 

Ends