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Robbie Jansen

Known primarily as an alto saxophone player, Robbie Jansen was born in Cape Town in 1949. A self-taught musician, arranger, singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer, Robbie was an original member of the [a=Pacific Express] brass section and part of [a=Abdullah Ibrahim]'s group on many recordings and live shows. Other recording credits include work with [b]Spirits Rejoice[/b], [b]The Genuines[/b], [b]The Rockets[/b], and [a=Juluka]. A leading figure in the Cape jazz scene, he returned to his Khoi-San roots, recording "his own arrangements of traditional Goema songs in a jazz format" and earned the "Cape Doctor" nickname. Respiratory problems prevented him from international travel; he passed away from emphysema on July 7th, 2010.