“I don't look at the fingerboard, I listen to it. All of my fretless basses have no fret lines. I can't play on a lined fingerboard”: How Bakithi Kumalo’s swung, fretless bassline helped create one of Graceland’s defining sounds

Paul Simon performs on stage during a tour to promote his Graceland album. .

By now, many bassists know that Paul Simon’s Graceland album has earned time-capsule status as one of the highpoints in the recorded history of the fretless bass guitar.

Bakithi Kumalo put the instrument's trademark buzz in the ears of millions globally with his singular melodic and rhythmic step-outs on hits like Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes, You Can Call Me Al, and Graceland.