It’s been called “The Greatest Music Story of the past 50 years”, the tale of this wonderful and talented musician and his journey to his well-deserved and long-overdue fame. But enough about James Stewart”!
In this innovative, informative and slightly irreverent show, James joins Stephen “Sugar” Segerman, the man behind the rediscovery of Sixto Rodriguez and “Searching For Sugar Man”, the Oscar-winning documentary about the whole story, as these two old “choms” share their respective stories and play and sing some great Rodriguez and South African classic songs.
For 20 years, Sugar, as he is popularly known, has been involved in the rediscovery of, and resurgence of worldwide interest in, Sixto Rodriguez. This legendary and internationally acclaimed American folk-rock singer-songwriter, who was a huge success in South Africa from the ‘70’s onwards, was believed to be dead but was found alive and well and living in Detroit in 1997. Since then his career has gone from strength to strength following a series of international tours, the re-release of his albums, and the success of the Oscar-winning film in 2013.
Since then, Sugar has travelled around South Africa, and overseas, giving talks and answering questions about the whole Rodriguez story. He attended the Academy Awards ceremony in 2013, followed by the publishing of his best-selling book in 2015, titled “Sugar Man – The Birth, Death and Resurrection of Sixto Rodriguez”, co-written with his fellow “Musical Detective” in the story, Craig Bartholomew Strydom. For the past 15 years he has also been the owner of Mabu Vinyl, the Cape Town record shop featured in the Rodriguez film.
James Stewart, the Multi SAMA award-winning, EMMY-nominated, chart-topping, singer-songwriter, cut his teeth in classical music with the usual childhood distaste, and then “surfed passionately and messed around with synthesizers” in his early teens. The following decade would see him form his own band, abandon a law career and take a leap into the great unknown. As singer-songwriter for The Usual, he achieved fame with enduring classics like ‘The Shape That I’m In’ and ‘Like A Vision’. Since then ‘Shine’, ‘A Man Like Me’, and many other solo hits, have found their way into hearts and homes across South Africa.
Hear James tell his side of the story and play a selection of songs by himself, Rodriguez and other South African artists.
Listen to these two musical journeymen connect the dots between their respective adventures.
Catch these two on Saturday 9th February at Franschoek Cellars (3-5pm) and then on Thursday 28th February at Café Roux in Noordhoek (7.30 for 8)
Contact:
James Stewart
Email: james@music-alchemy.com
Phone: 082 807 9544
SugarMan.org 
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