The musical legend who put the late Brenda Fassie on the map by writing the hit song, Weekend Special, Melvyn Matthews, died at the weekend, surrounded by family at his home in Nelson Mandela Bay.
He was 67.
The singer and songwriter is survived by his siblings, Naomi Bruintjies and Charlotte Matthews-Van Wyk.
He also leaves behind his children, Bramley, Tracey and Wayne Clark and Feroze Linx.
Matthews’ niece, Sharon Bouwers, said her uncle had suddenly become sick six months ago and died from a heart attack at home, surrounded by his family.
She said the family was leaning on their faith for strength and expressed gratitude for the outpouring of support.
Dozens of people visited the home in Cleary Park on Sunday.
“He died on Saturday at home,” Bouwers said.
“Our cousin called us, so we have been here since April 1 because he was on and off, but last night all of us were here, because he was not in a good state,” she said.
“He died after 11pm with his family around him.
“He was sick for about six months, he was in hospital for two weeks in January and then he was released.
“He was not better, but he was fine, but as time went on, he got worse.”
She described her uncle as a well-known people’s person who was handsome, God-fearing, humble and talkative.
His older sister, Matthews-Van Wyk, said Matthews grew up as a quiet person who loved his privacy.
She said they never knew their brother was musically talented until they heard the hit song he wrote for Fassie.
“He worked for Shatterprufe. I do not know what happened, but he left for Johannesburg when he was very young.
“When the song came on the radio, he was washing his car.
“He said to me that was his song.
“I did not know [a lot] about my brother. [He was] very private, but we had that bond.
“We did not grow up rich, but our parents taught us respect, and that is what carried us through the years,” Matthews-Van Wyk said.
Matthews travelled to Johannesburg in pursuit of a breakthrough in his musical career.
In a desperate bid for recognition, he auditioned for legendary producer Blondie Makhene on the street, where his talent was immediately recognised.
He shared the stage with Stevie Wonder, The Manhattans and Mbongeni Ngema before his song helped make Fassie a household name.
Former musician Sylvia “Sylvia Green” Groenewald said she met Matthew in 1972 when he came looking for her at Dower College in Kariega.
She spent a year teaching before being approached by a promoter from Gqeberha, who was searching for a singer for the multi-award-winning Jonathan Butler show in 1973.
It was during this production that she met Matthews.
The following year, she relocated to Johannesburg.
Matthews then followed, staying with Groenewald.
“Matthews was doing songwriting.
“But before that, he came to me with a song. He said he had never shown that song to anybody.
“He wanted me to just listen to it. I asked what the name of the song was, and he said it was Weekend Special.
“He said he had a singer who could sing the song, and her name was Brenda Fassie.
“There were a lot of queries around the song, because Brenda was singing with another group. He went to show them the song, and she was madly in love with it.
“That is why he was called Mr Weekend Special, he is still earning royalties for that song,” Groenewald said.
Singer and songwriter Victor “Dr Victor” Khojane, who is well known for hits like Gimme Hope Jo’Anna and Shambhala, posted his condolences on his Facebook page.
“The SA music industry has lost a true legend,” he wrote.
“I had the privilege of playing with Matthews in my band, CC Beat, in 1985 at Club Lipstick in Durban for almost a year.
“When that gig ended, we moved on to another in Namibia. We were young and full of energy.
“Matthews was a real character, always ready with a joke, a great singer and songwriter and a true team player.
“We were both big fans of Bruce Lee. I will miss him very much. Rest easy, my friend,” Khojane wrote.
Matthews was a real character, always ready with a joke, a great singer and songwriter and a true team player.
— Victor “Dr Victor” Khojane
Jazz singer, pianist, composer and arranger Denzil Africa sent his condolences to the Matthews family.
He said their friendship started in the 1990s, when they shared the stage at different festivals.
“I wanted to honour my friend. Matthew sang many songs, and he could belt out high notes that stunned audiences and musicians.
“I met him in Gqeberha, but I had already heard of him in my musical career while I was growing up.
“I spoke to Matthews about a month ago. I was shocked to learn of his passing.
“Weekly, we would fly out of Gqeberha to Cape Town, Bloemfontein, Johannesburg or Mauritius.
“We shared the stage for five years.
“The Herald was flooded with information on us as the Motown show, even Stevie Wonder was shocked when Matthews took to the stage to sing one of his songs.
“He performed with the best of the best in the world.”
He said Matthews had successfully secured royalties for Weekend Special, expressing satisfaction that the South African Music Rights Organisation formally recognised him as the song’s composer.
Speaking on behalf of Centre Stage at Baywest Mall, Gary Hemmings said they looked at Matthews as the Godfather of Eastern Cape vocals.
Having started working with Matthews in the early 2000s, Hemmings said he was the most incredible vocalist they had ever heard.
“He would be completely fearless when he took to the stage, be it two or 10,000 people, he would get them jumping.
“He was not about playing beautiful music.
“It was about connecting with the audience, and he used that magnificent voice to that effect.
“I learnt lessons from him that I still carry today, like entertaining people with short attention spans,” Hemmings said.
Matthews’ daughter, Tracey, said one thing that she loved about her father was his voice, adding that he was a bubbly, soft person, but she believed he was in a better place.
“My dad always had something funny to say, that would make me laugh.
“He was a plain, simple person who liked helping other people,” she said.
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