South African band African Jazz Pioneers began in its current form in 1981 under the leadership of the saxophonist Ntemi Piliso - the driving force behind the band until his death in 2000.
The band's music derived from South African jazz music, a bebop-influenced style that was popularised by groups such as The Jazz Epistles and Piliso's own Bra Ntemi and his Alexandra All Stars in the 1950s and '60s. They also brought the Marabi sound from the townships of Apartheid South Africa, the Mbaqanga mix of Western and African music and rhythms that fused the big band sounds of Count Basie and Duke Ellington.
Following Nelson Mandela's release from prison in 1990, and the lifting of the cultural ban that saw South African artists finally able tour outside their home country, the band began extensive gigging in Europe, Japan, Australia - playing on the same bills as acts such as Nina Simone, Quincy Jones, Winston Mankunku, Rita and Ziggy Marley among others. This new, more open cultural environment also enabled the band finally to release their music on record, cassette and CD with five albums emerging between 1991 and 1999.
The death of the band's founder, Bra Ntemi Piliso, in December 2000 brought about a sabbatical for the group, which released one further album, '76-3rd Avenue' and a final track, 'Alextown' in collaboration with reggae legend Ernest Ranglin in 2005.
