Sheer Sound is a South African independent record label formed in 1994 by Damon Forbes.

History

Sheer Sound was formed in November 1994, shortly after South Africa's first democratic elections. The label was initially a home for jazz and world music and fast gained a reputation for its extensive South African and African

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

catalogue. By the mid-1990s, a young music marketer,

Damon Forbes Damon may refer to: Places in the United States * Damon, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Damon, Missouri, a ghost town * Damon, Texas, a census-designated place * Damon, Virginia, an unincorporated community * Lake Damon, Florida * Damon M ...

, was getting restless with the limited vision of his industry. "I sunk my teeth into jazz because it carried a world music message for me; it was truly culturally representative.... I just looked at the market and I saw the economics of the people of South Africa changing, due to better access to education.... ndhe workplace was going to change; a lot more black people getting into jobs that are of medium and higher income levels.... With all that, comes the aspiration to listen to better quality music. othe market, in the long term, is going to increase." With what he calls "R1 500 (just over $200) and a dream", Forbes established his own label, Sheer Sound. (Ansell 2005:269) In 2006 two imprint labels,

Seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiosper ...

and

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, were formed under the Sheer Sound umbrella and has since released some of the most prolific rock and singer-songwriter music, respectively, in South Africa.

Roster

Singer-songwriter

Farryl Purkiss Farryl Purkiss is a South African-born singer-songwriter. Farryl first picked up the guitar when he was fifteen years old and began writing songs shortly after his sixteenth birthday. He self-released an EP in 2005 (''Chapter One'') that creat ...

* Chris Letcher *

Nibs van der Spuy NIBS or Nibs may refer to: *National Institute of Building Sciences * Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation, noninvasive forms of neurostimulation *Non-invasive backscattering * Nib (pen) *Cacao nibs, pieces of roasted cocoa bean, generally ground into ...

Shawn Phillips Shawn Phillips (born February 3, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter and musician, primarily influential in the 1960s and 1970s. His work is rooted in folk rock but straddles other genres, including jazz fusion and funk. Phillips has rec ...

Baz Corden Baz may refer to: Places *Baz, Albania, a village *Baz, Iran, a village in central Iran *Baz (tribe), an Assyrian tribe from eastern Turkey *BAZ, IATA airport code of Barcelos Airport, Barcelos, Brazil *BAZ, FAA airport code of New Braunfels Munic ...

Simon van Gend Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...

Rock

* Wonderboom *

Myepic Myepic is a South African band featuring singer Jeff Strodl, bassist Matthys Cronje, lead guitarist JP Sing and percussionist Jonathan Jackson. The band's debut full-length album, ''The Love Industry'', was released on Murdercall Records under ...

* Cassette (Outside of

RSA RSA may refer to: Organizations Academia and education * Rabbinical Seminary of America, a yeshiva in New York City *Regional Science Association International (formerly the Regional Science Association), a US-based learned society *Renaissance S ...

only) * Bed on Bricks *

Paul E. Flynn Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

* Martin Rocka and The Sick Shop * Misled * Pestroy * Insek *

Libido Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act ...

* Gently Scar'd * Underbelly * New Academics * Lionel Bastos *

Elusion Elusion was a female R&B group that consisted of two separate sets of identical twin sisters, Tamica and Tanya Johnson, and Michelle and Marie Harris. They only released one album as a group, ''Think About It'' in 1998. Michelle and Marie were bo ...

The Dirty Skirts ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in En ...

* Mann Friday *

Gonzo Republic Gonzo may refer to: People * Gonzo (nickname), a list of people with the nickname * Radislav Jovanov Gonzo (born 1964), Croatian music video director Radislav Jovanov, also known as Gonzo * Matthias Röhr (born 1962), German musician whose stage ...

* eVoid * Walt

Afropop

* Jaziel Brothers * Lesego *

Mina Nawe ''Mina Nawe'' is the fifteenth studio album by South African singer Brenda Fassie. The record was released on November 2, 2001, by CCP Records. Fassie wrote most of the album's songs with Sello Chicco Twala. Originally released by CCP Records, ...

* Phinda * Naledi

Jazz

Jeff Maluleke Jeff Maluleke (born 1977) is a South African musician of the M'nwanati people. Jeff was born to Dora and Johannes Maluleke in the town of Bushbuckridge, Mpumalanga in 1977. In 2002, the Kora All-Africa Music Awards honoured him as the "Revelatio ...

McCoy Mrubata McCoy Mrubata (born 1959) is a South African jazz saxophonist. Biography McCoy Mrubata was born in 1959 in the township of Langa, Cape Town, South Africa. He was surrounded in childhood by many African hymns, from the sounds of Zion churches to ...

Winston Mankunku Ngozi Winston Monwabisi "Mankunku" Ngozi (21 June 1943 – 13 October 2009) was a famous South African tenor saxophone player.

Paul Hanmer Paul Hanmer (born 1961, Cape Town) is a South African jazz pianist. Career As a child he studied piano. He attended the University of Cape Two for two years before beginning a music career with guitarist Paul Petersen. During the 1980s he started ...

* Louis Mhlanga *

Gavin Minter Gavin is a male given name originating from Scotland. It is a variation on the medieval name Gawain, meaning "God send" or "white hawk" (or falcon). Sir Gawain was a knight of King Arthur's Round Table. '' Sir Gawain and the Green Knight'' is an e ...

* Tony Cox * Ernie Smith

Awards and nominations

External links

Sheer Sound official site

References

* Ansell, Gwen. 2005. Soweto Blues. New York: Continuum Books. (The history of Sheer Sound taken from this book) {{Authority control South African independent record labels Record labels established in 1994 Jazz record labels Rock record labels World music record labels House music record labels