Collection: Winston Mankunku Ngozi

Born Winston Monwabisi Ngozi in Retreat, Cape Town in 1943, Winston "Mankunku" Ngozi became one of South Africa's most venerated tenor saxophonists, choosing to remain in his homeland during apartheid rather than seeking exile like many contemporaries. Starting on piano at age seven before moving through clarinet and trumpet, he found his voice on saxophone in his mid-teens, drawing inspiration from John Coltrane whilst remaining rooted in indigenous African folklore. His family suffered under the Group Areas Act, forced to relocate from Retreat to Gugulethu township, and in 1964 he was compelled to play behind a curtain at Cape Town City Hall with an all-white big band, hidden from audiences under the Separate Amenities Act.

His 1968 landmark album Yakhal' Inkomo, recorded with Early Mabuza, Agrippa Magwaza, and Lionel Pillay, remains one of South Africa's best-selling jazz albums and won him the Castle Lager Jazz Musician of the Year award. The album brilliantly captured the bittersweet reality of living as a Black musician under apartheid, its melody carrying jubilant urgency and the weight of unattainable freedom. Mistrustful of the recording industry, Mankunku maintained a low profile following this success, collaborating extensively with Chris McGregor, Dudu Pukwana, and Abdullah Ibrahim. Later albums including Molo Africa (1997-1998) showcased his ability to fuse funky African rhythms with Western jazz. He toured Europe in 1989 and performed at major South African festivals throughout the 1990s before his death in 2009.