Phiri one of the best musicians I ever worked with - Hotstix Mabuse

Johannesburg - Sipho Hotstix Mabuse said he was shattered after finding out Ray Phiri had died.

“The news came as a shock to me because we were just talking about driving to Mpumalanga to see him,” Mabuse said.

Phiri died in the early hours of Wednesday morning after a long battle with lung cancer. He was 70 years old.

Mabuse spoke to The Star newspaper after hearing about Phiri’s death.

“I totally can't believe it even though I knew about his condition. Don (Laka) called me and told me about his condition, and thought it was a good idea for us to go and see him,” Mabuse said.

He reminisced about their last performance together at Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg in December and said Phiri gave off an “electrifying performance”.

“I am going to miss Ray because he was one of the best musicians I have had the pleasure of working with and I believe that his musical legacy will live through many of us who have worked with him,” he said.

He said Phiri was more than a musician, but a social commentator who wished to influence the political landscape.

“Ray was inclined to talking about politics - those are the topic we spoke about a lot - and he wanted to use art to change the political landscape,” he said.

Another musician, Ringo Madlingozi said it was sad for him to hear about Phiri’s death after attending Dr Johnny Mekoa’s funeral on Tuesday.

“When I heard from Mara Louw that his health had worsened, I took it lightly because we know Ray was a fighter but to wake up to news that he died is something I am still trying to come to terms with,” he said. 

Earlier this week Phiri's band mate Richard Mitchell said that the musician had exhausted all his private funds, including medical aid funds, and was in need of funding.

The guitarist nicknamed "Just Now" was the founding member of the Cannibals in the 1970s. When the Cannibals disbanded, Phiri founded Stimela, with whom he created gold and platinum-selling albums like Fire, Passion and Ecstacy (1991), Look, Listen and Decide (1992) as well as the controversial People Don't Talk So Let's Talk.

The Star