Abdullah Ibrahim – born Adolphus Johannes Brand in Cape Town, South Africa on
October 9, 1934 – is a jazz keyboardist formerly known as Dollar Brand prior to
his conversion to Islam in 1968. He is one of the most influential musicians to
emerge from South Africa and one of the founding fathers of the so-called Cape
jazz movement. He is best known for his composition “Mannenberg,” a song which
he wrote after being driven into exile in the 1970s by the increasingly
oppressive South African government. The song was produced by record shop owner
Rashid Valley and recorded during one ...