Piet Botha (18 July 1955 – 2 June 2019) was a South African musician
at Musicians.co.zaCelebs hit city to usher in new year

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, 30 September 2011 and the frontman of the South African rock band Jack Hammer (in which he was known as "The Hammer"),Jack Hammer history at the band's site
/ref> which has been an

opening act A opening act, also known as a warm-up act, support act, or supporting act, is an entertainment act (musical, comedic, or otherwise), that performs at a concert before the featured act, or "headliner". Rarely, an opening act may perform again a ...

for bands such as

ZZ Top ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Houston, Texas. For 51 years, they comprised vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard and vocalist-bassist Dusty Hill, until Hill's death in 2021. ZZ Top developed a signature sound ...

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Ori ...

and Uriah Heep. He also performed solo.

Biography

He was the son of the South African Minister of Foreign Affairs

Pik Botha Roelof Frederik "Pik" Botha, (27 April 1932 – 12 October 2018) was a South African politician who served as the country's foreign minister in the last years of the apartheid era, the longest-serving in South African history. Known as a liber ...

(1932-2018) and the uncle of

Roelof Botha Roelof F. Botha (born 19 September 1973) is a South African actuary, venture capitalist and company director. Botha is a partner at Sequoia Capital and as of 2022 sits on the boards of MongoDB, Evernote, Bird, Ethos, Natera, Square, Unity, an ...

, former

CFO The chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization that is assigned the primary responsibility for managing the company's finances, including financial planning, management of financial risks, record-keeping, and financ ...

PayPal PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers, and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper ...

. Botha went to the US in 1985 to work, but returned to South Africa the next year. In 2011 Botha appeared in the television series "Wie Lê Waar" (Who Lies Where) on the

Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gra ...

TV channel kykNET. In the programme he visits the graves of famous

Afrikaner Afrikaners () are a South African ethnic group descended from Free Burghers, predominantly Dutch settlers first arriving at the Cape of Good Hope in the 17th and 18th centuries.Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopædia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: ...

icons and tells about their lives. The series led indirectly to the recording and release of "Spookpsalms", Botha's first solo album in eight years. A documentary about th
life of Piet Botha
as a musician was released in 2019.

Death

Botha was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in early 2019, and died on 2 June 2019. He was 63.

Albums

*n Suitcase Vol Winter'', 1997 WILDEBEEST **Donkermaan **Sien Jou Weer **Marilyn Monroe **Suitcase Vol Winter **Van Tonder **Die Kind **Goeienag Generaal **Klein Bietjie Reën **In Die Transvaal **Staan Saam Burgers **Gipsey In Jou Oë **Kom Huistoe *''Jan Skopgraaf'', 1999 WILDEBEEST **Jan Skopgraaf **Haiku Vir Rooijan **Blues Vir Louise **Loftus Versfeld **Kankerreën **Slawereën **Allesverloren **Van Tonder deel II **Boomstraat **Laat Die Wiele Rol **Riemtelegram *''Die Mamba'', 2003 RHYTHM **Warm Heuning **Bye Bye My Darling **Man Met Kitaar **Die Mamba **O My Heiland **Al Die Stede **Skielik Somer **Die Gemmerbroodman **Bordello **Bosveldpad **Herfsgedagtes **Kitty **Jacob Klipkop **Jeffreysbaai (instrumental) *''Spookpsalms'' 2011 Wolmer Rekords (independent)

Gallery

File:Piet aan die brand.jpg, Live set by Piet Botha

References

External links

Official site
of Piet Botha
Official site
of Jack Hammer
Biography
of Piet Botha 1955 births 2019 deaths Afrikaans-language singers South African rock musicians Afrikaner people South African people of German descent {{SouthAfrica-musician-stub