The music fraternity has been robbed of one of its finest lead guitarist, Nicholas Samaita Zindi, who was a member of the Transit Crew.
By Freeman Makopa
A close family member and arts critic, Fred Zindi, has confirmed the development.
Transit Crew band is one of the best groups ,having been formed in 1988.The original members of Transit Crew were Munya Brown (former Misty In Roots drummer who had stayed behind when the band visited Zimbabwe), the late Tendai Gamure aka Culture T and Emmanuel Frank, both on vocals, Munyaradzi Nyemba on bass, Samaita Zindi on guitar, Temba Jacobs on guitar and Anthony “Leba” Amon on keyboards.
This union resulted in the production of three albums — Sounds Playing, The Message and Money. The albums were well-received nationally and internationally and helped to establish Transit Crew as a formidable reggae outfit in Zimbabwe. A successful six months tour of Tokyo, Japan, followed in 1990.
In the early 1990s Transit Crew played alongside or acted as support act for Jamaican artists who visited Zimbabwe such as Culture, Dennis Brown, Ijahman Levi, Eric Donaldson and Shabba Ranks. They were the backing band for British-based reggae artist Benjamin Zephania in the late 1990s.