When Peter Tosh agreed to perform at two concerts in Swaziland in December 1983, little did his manager, Copeland Forbes, know that the Reggae icon would order the promoter to “buss the gate” and allow thousands of people waiting outside the venue to gallop in for free.
According to Forbes, after months of negotiations with himself and Tosh, the concerts, which were the Westmorelite’s first and last in Southern Africa, were scheduled for December 17 and 18, 1983, at the Somhlolo Stadium in Mbabane.
“1983 was one of, if not the biggest year in the musical journey of Peter Tosh. The album “Mama Africa” was released and the lead-off single, Johnny B Goode was on the top of most radio station’s playlist across the world,” Forbes explained.
The organizers behind the concerts were South African promoters residing in Australia but serving as key figures in Africa Vibrations, an entertainment company. This followed Peter Tosh's extensive tour in Australia, spanning almost a month, during which he performed live concerts and filmed the video for "Johnny B Goode."
Forbes, detailing the sequence of events leading to Peter's dramatic request, explained that on December 14, 1983, Peter Tosh and his entourage of 16 flew from Kingston to London, then proceeded to Germany and Zimbabwe. Subsequently, four chartered planes transported them to Swaziland, avoiding South Africa as Peter had explicitly expressed his desire to avoid passing through that country. This decision would have been unavoidable if they had opted for a commercial flight.
“It was not, at that time, deemed appropriate for recording artists to be seen in South Africa as this was still the period of Apartheid. Nelson Mandela was still in prison,” Forbes noted.
“Peter had refused many offers (paying huge sums) to perform in South Africa. He was afraid to even have a connecting flight through the racist nation as he knew that someone could take his picture at the airport and use it for propaganda purposes,” he added.
In further outlining Peter’s reticence about South Africa, Forbes said that the Mama Africa singer had participated in an interview earlier that year with a journalist in New York, who had asked him if he would perform in South Africa on which Apartheid had a stranglehold.
Peter unequivocally responded with, "Yes, but the only way I would play is if I am performing for my people. Why should I keep my music away from my people?" However, the journalist distorted Peter's answer and released an article with the misleading headline "Peter Tosh Said He Would Play in South Africa." This misrepresentation sparked significant controversy, leaving Peter furious, as recounted by Forbes.
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