Christmas Together
“I AM BRINGING my heart and my soul.” That is what the ever humble musician and legendary guitarist Jonathan Butler has promised his fans ahead of his live concert at the Mittah Seperepere Convention Centre in Kimberley on Sunday.
In an interview with the DFA, the 61-year-old Butler said that he can't wait for the concert after his last visited Kimberley while he was still a young boy.
He said he is at his happiest on stage and would like to share that experience because music is in his blood and he feels that he was born to do it.
Butler, who is based in Los Angeles, has been back in the country for about six weeks and is enjoying the hot weather, which he said is completely the opposite to LA.
Butler’s visit to Kimberley comes only a few weeks before the release of his new album titled “Ubuntu”, set for April.
He said his new album is dedicated to his country and to the late Desmond Tutu.
Speaking about his regular visits to Cape Town, Butler said “home still feels like home, and will remain special”.
“My kids don't speak Afrikaans although they understand it a little bit. My wife is from St Louis so she does not speak Afrikaans. Maar ja, ek praat nog altyd Afrikaans,” he laughed.
“It’s beautiful being home every time, it's hard to even put it into words, but I can only put it this way: ‘When a man gets older or gets on in life, his desire is to spend the rest of his days among his people’. I'm coming home with that spirit.
“What I miss out on while in Los Angeles is the community, our people, familiar things and faces like those of family members. It feels good just to come home and appreciate my city, my country and everything around me.
“I try to manage my time so that I can enjoy my grandchildren, my daughters and my life with those that I love.”
He said his favourite dishes are tripe and trotters, butter beans, oxtail, samp and beans, roti and curry, and prawns and kingklip.
Being a chef, Butler mostly prepares his favourite dishes himself.
He admitted that he does not really spend much time in the public eye, except when he is travelling and performing.
“When I perform I am in the public eye. When I'm home, I'm home. I'm a homebody. I love to cook, entertain my family and play golf all the time. I’m 61 years old now and need to manage how I live and how I spend my time.”
He said he is looking forward to investing in several projects and collaborating on them in the near future.
He identified challenges that local artists in South Africa endure and tries to uplift them through his involvement in local community organisations.
“There are so many opportunity, potential and great talent that I have identified and I look forward to investing in some in the future.”
As advice to mostly young artists and musicians who wish to grow in the music industry, he said: “Write your own music. There is no luck in this business. It's all hard work.”
He said his all-time favourite musician has always been Stevie Wonder.
“That is why the greatest highlight of my music career was when Stevie Wonder performed with me and he (Stevie Wonder) called me his friend.”
And the best advice that someone has ever given him was to “maximise your strength and minimise your fears”.
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