The Hidden Years Archive Move

3rd Ear Music can announce that we may have acquired a major long-term research & archive grant. It's been 2 lean & hard hand-to-mouth years, and although this it is confidential for now, Fran & I just had to share this with you.

There was some concern since 446 Currie Road has been sold. We were not too certain about what was going to happen with 3rd Ear Music & this vast 'hidden history' collection of music material. The completion of our Hidden Years Story book & our move from Durban to Nebo (Eastern Free State) now seems imminent.

Whatever happens, it looks certain that we will form a partnership with the University of KwaZulu-Natal - a few of the Humanities will be involved.

After years of negotiating – too commercial for academia & too academic for commerce? – it took just one lady person 1 week to do what 20 odd acronymic heavy weight arts & culture organisations couldn’t do in 14 years; which is, basically, to make a plan & save a piece of history & heritage that the mainstream ignored, avoided or even sometimes banned.

It (almost) goes without saying, that the reason for the lack of interest – in this very colourful hidden history – is obvious; the very institutions & companies who played those restriction ‘games’ with all ‘alternative’ music & musicians, pre-1990, are still in radio control & still calling the tune. Do they have something to hide?

Even if they did, the Hidden Years Music Archive Project is NOT a witch-hunt. No regrets or recriminations need apply. It’s just that we happened, to be in the right place at the wrong time - more by default than design. If it murmured or moved, we taped it! Now it’s here & it sounds wonderful. Let’s keep it, if for nothing else, then to hopefully help future generations not to repeat the past.

That’s as much as we can say until the official announcement.

More especially – we must thank those who have hung in there with us & who have contributed. As soon as details become a little clearer, we will let you know what's happening.

A few Random Archive Gallery Shots of the Lucey House – where we’ve stored the 3rd Ear Music collection these past 7 years.

Archive 446 Currie Road - Office - Front	Archive 446 Currie Road - House & Office
3rd Ear Office	Archive Oxidized Tape - Roger Lucey Master
David's Desk corner	Archive Storage Desk Shelves
Charles Mvune HY Archive	Cassette Passage Shelves
Shelly Knipe in HY Archive	Archive Storage Room 1 Reel Shelves
Archive Storage Room 1 Cassette Shelves	Upstairs Cassettes Books Videos
Tribal Blues Garage Shelves	1963 VW Kombi buried in paper
David, Ritchie and Theo from NEBO	Fran, Rich, Fiona and Theo - NEBO