They said he 'could do better' so he did.:.but not in the classroom

The Star TONIGHT! Thursday May 24 1984 (South Africa)

They said he 'could do better' so he did.:.but not in the classroom

Manfred Mann, whose latest single, "Runner", has been chosen as the official song for this year's Olympics in Los Angeles, was the despair of his teachers during his Johannesburg schooldays.

According to his father, Mr David Lubowitz of Highlands North, Manfred's absorption with music affected his school work. He said: "The doleful footnotes to his reports reflect the despair of his schoolmasters. In one footnote a master, Mr E Pienaar, wrote 'Manfred could do bet-. ter if he did not waste his time in class. Manfred has great ability and many other good qualities, but he must concentrate on his studies'.'

It's an interesting point when one looks back now at the musical achievements of Manfred Mann, a musician who left South Africa to achieve a major international breakthrough with such classics as "Do Wha Diddy Diddy", "Mighty Quinn", "Pretty Flamingo" and "Ha Ha Said the Clown".

His new album, "Live at Budapest", a live recording of a recent Hungarian tour, was released by Gallo this week.

The teacher did not perceive that under that  scholastic indolence there were capacities of some worth, said Mr Lubowitz.

"The trouble was that Manfred found schooling an exasperating interference with his musical activities."

His father remembers the "quality" of the schoolboys in those days. In between playing they would gather in the bedroom and discuss world affairs with 'a maturity beyond their years.

Mr Lubowitz says he did not pass on any musical genes to his famous son. "My achievements in the field of music do not go beyond being able to croak `Bobbejaan Klim Die Berg'.

"This shortcoming," he said, "was made up for by two people. His mother is a fine piano player of the classics, so from his first days he heard beautiful melodies.

"The other person who developed Manfred was Professor Hartmann with whom Manfred took lessons which helped him enormously."

Mr Lubowitz recalled the early days when Manfred and some musically inclined friends got together at his home for rehearsals. "They also collected some girls to sing, among whom was Barbara Itzler who later became an actress. "Manfred's younger sister, though she had a thousand charms, also had a singing voice that could startle a crow. She was excluded from the band and bitterly resented it."

After leaving school Manfred joined his father's business, later moving across to England. "When I reckoned he was running out of funds, and to spare him the discomfort of sleeping on the Thames embankment, I sent him money.

"After awhile I got a note to say it was unnecessary to dispatch these funds as he had started to earn as a musician."

Manfred visits his parents in Johannesburg. But he always maintains a low profile. Once I saw him taking in the music at a Johannesburg restaurant, sitting unobtrusively in the corner enjoying a' meal with a friend.

My first meeting with Manfred Mann was shrouded in secrecy. It occurred in the early  '70s. His close friend in Johannesburg, Saul Ozynski, who had been his drummer in his schoolboy band, telephoned me one Sunday morning to ask if I'd like to interview Manfred Mann who was here on a private visit.

I jumped at the opportunity, but I only got to meet the musician after two infuriating false-starts when the artist failed to materialise.

The meeting eventually occurred hours before 6e was due to catch his flight back to. London. Our rendezvous was the lounge of a small hotel in Berea and Manfred spoke about many things including politics, a subject close to his heart.

As I was leaving, Manfred said I shouldn't print any of his political comments. I argued that he had given them to me during the course of the interview and I was perfectly entitled to publish what he had said.

That was the last time we spoke.

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