Canamii’s “Concept”: A Rare Gem of South African Progressive Rock

Back in 1980, a South African band called Canamii released their one and only studio album, “Concept.”

Think of them as a studio project, kind of like The Alan Parsons Project, spearheaded by keyboard whiz Phillip Nel and singer Claire Whittaker. Guitarist Paul Woodley was also a key player. Fun fact: the band’s name, Canamii, was a mashup of Nel’s and Whittaker’s star signs – Cancer and Gemini!

If you’re a vinyl collector, especially of South African prog-rock, “Concept” is a real treasure hunt. It’s considered one of the rarest finds out there. How did they pull it off? Well, Nel and Whittaker actually worked as EMI studio engineers. This meant they could use the recording gear for free during off-hours, bringing in various guest musicians to help flesh out their sound.

So, what does “Concept” sound like? It’s definitely prog-rock, but with a good dose of symphonic and folk rock vibes. People often compare them to big names from that time like Renaissance, early Curved Air, ELP (Emerson, Lake & Palmer), and Kate Bush. You’ll hear a lot of intricate keyboard work from Phillip Nel, beautiful, often dreamy, vocals from Claire Whittaker, and some killer guitar riffs. They managed to blend all this into a rich, ambitious sound that was classic prog, but they also threw in some shorter, catchy tunes that made it pretty easy to get into, even with its grand ideas. The album includes tracks like “Afrock,” “The Phantom Players,” “Spiral,” “Rain,” “Come And Fly,” and their own (too short!) version of Alberto Ginastera’s “Toccata,” which ELP made famous.

Even though “Concept” was a pretty ambitious and well-produced album, Canamii never actually played it live, and it ended up being their only record. When it came to influences, Whittaker looked up to singers like Annie Haslam from Renaissance and Kate Bush. Nel, on the keyboard front, was inspired by bands like ELP. Whittaker said the lyrics were all about telling stories, like poetry, hoping to take listeners to a higher state of mind. “Concept” is remembered as a unique, if somewhat hidden, gem from the South African music scene of the late 70s and early 80s.

And here’s another cool prog-rock connection: take a close look at the album cover. You might notice some similarities to the iconic styles of Roger Dean (especially his logo work for Greenslade) and the surreal art on Camel’s ‘Moonmadness’ album. While it’s not officially confirmed, it definitely gets you thinking!

Take a listen to a vinyl rip of the album

“Concept” is also available on Spotify however there are discrepancies in the track names (also on Bandcamp, and possibly other streaming sites). By listening to the YouTube video of the vinyl rip, using the track timings printed on the album’s inner sleeve, and reading the lyrics on Genius, the following list provides the accurate track names for each corresponding Spotify track number.

Tracks (Spotify)

1. Tri [3:33] listed as Afrock
2. The Phantom Players [2:56] listed correctly
3. Afrock [3:20] listed as Spiral
4. Spiral [4:02] listed as Rain
5. Rain [3:57] listed as Come And Fly
6. Come And Fly [4:54] listed as Toccata
7. Toccata [1:26] listed as And The Moon Be As Bright
8. And The Moon Be As Bright [3:36] listed as Children
9. Children [2:47] listed as Feelings
10. Feelings [4:03] listed as The Jester
11. The Jester [2:19] listed as The Duel
12. The Duel [3:06] listed as Tri