Formed in 1959 in Cape Town, South Africa, the Jazz Epistles was a short-lived but highly influential bebop band that recorded only one studio session but became the springboard for two of the country’s finest jazz musicians: trumpeter Hugh Masekela and pianist Abdullah Ibrahim. The band’s origins began when Hugh Masekela traveled from Johannesburg, South Africa to Cape Town in order to meet Abdullah Ibrahim – then known as Dollar Brand - one of the city’s most talked about pianists. The duo decided to form a band and brought in alto saxophonist Kippie Moeketsi, trombonist Jonas Gwangwa, bassist Johnny Gertze plus a drummer (possibly Early Mabuza or Makaya Ntshoko). The group began performing jam sessions, which raised local interest in the group. The Jazz Epistles went into the studio and recorded their first and only album, Jazz Epistle, Verse 1. The group’s members also became involved with King Kong, a musical from composer Todd Matshikiza. In 1960, the heavy hand of apartheid repression sent the band underground and they split up. When the King Kong musical toured Europe, the Jazz Epistles members that were involved with the show received passports to travel overseas. While in Europe, the members chose to remain in exile rather than return to the horrible conditions that apartheid had brought to South Africa. Hugh Masekela and Abdullah Ibrahim became popular jazz musicians and remained in exile for many years. Several members of the Jazz Epistles reunited for shows in 2016 – 56 years after they last played together - and in 2018. Hugh Masekela died on January 23, 2018. Abdullah Ibrahim died on June 15, 2026, at the age of 91.
