Bakithi Kumalo

When aspiring bassist Bakithi Kumalo found out that

he had been recommended for the project that would become Paul Simon’s Graceland, his first reaction was “Paul who?” In Soweto, the depressed apartheid-era South African township where Bakithi was born and raised, the American superstar was largely unknown, save for a single chart-topping track, Mother and Child

Reunion. Little did the young and talented Bakithi have any idea that Graceland would become a huge international hit, propelled by fretless bass playing that would help define the album’s signature sound and deliver to a grateful audience a host of immediately recognizable bass hooks.

35 years later, Bakithi is still part of Paul Simon’s band, still delighting audiences with the Call Me Al bass break, and still imparting a feel and sound that is uniquely Bakithi to music beloved by a generation.

Bakithi’s bass “voice”—often described as having a human vocal quality—was formed from local influences: his mother’s church choir, his sax-playing uncle’s band, and a host of neighborhood musicians. Taking inspiration from

from Soweto to Graceland

“...this cable is unbelievable. I’m just

loving it!”

the left-hand work of accordion players in township bands, then later from the likes of Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller and Jaco Pastorius, Bakithi’s unique approach to bass earned him coveted sideman positions with a host of artists, from Cyndi Lauper and Gloria Estefan to Grover Washington and Herbie Hancock. Along the way: Five solo albums, The Lion King 2019 soundtrack, and the joyous live Graceland Experience.

Bakithi keeps his bass rig simple, the goal being for his unmistakable tone to shine through. The latest addition to that rig: Cordial cables. Says Bakithi: “The performance of this cable is unbelievable…now I can hear all the frequencies in my bass sound. I’m just loving it!”

www.CordialCablesUSA.com

1986 1990 1995 2005 2015 2020

Paul

Sim

on

Hug

h M

asek

ela

Laur

ie A

nder

son

Joan

Bae

z

Cynd

i Lau

per

Tony

Bird

John

Cap

ek

Miri

am M

akeb

a

Davi

d H

ewitt

Edie

Bric

kell

Rand

y Br

ecke

r

Gro

ver W

ashi

ngto

n

Car

l Per

kins

Glo

ria E

stefa

n

Rube

n Ra

da

Chr

is Bo

tti

Hira

m B

ullo

ck

Mick

y H

art

Ang

éliq

ue K

idjo

Her

bie

Han

cock

Arm

stead

Chr

istian

Mel

Hol

der

Eilee

n Iv

ers

Felic

ia M

ario

n

Paul

Win

ter

Jay B

ecks

tein

Chi

co C

ésar

Vieu

x Dio

p

Rube

n Ra

da

Davi

d C

hesk

y

Ant

on F

ig

Josh

Gro

ban

Max

Gab

riel

Vusi

Mah

lasel

a

Tede

schi

Tru

cks B

and

Bakithi’s Cordial Favorite:

CSI METALHigh Copper InstrumentTh

e In

spiri

ng M

usica

l Jou

rney

s of C

ordi

al A

rtist

s