FROM ROCK 'N 'ROLL TO HARD CORE PUNK - UKZN ...

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music and bitterly resented the expectation that, as
feminists, they should restrict themselves to being
'spiritual.,44
The debate presented in the above quote applies most pertinently
to the women punk musicians who made their mark in Durban in the
early 1980s. On the whole, these women felt that 'if men could
do it, then so could they', and they therefore fitted very snugly
into the feminist camp which desired to penetrate the 'male
dominated' realms of rock music rather then create their own
space.
Thus, women punk musicians in Durban did not ever attempt to
create their own gigs with all-female audiences (as bands in the
U.K. did). They played on the same bill as the male punk and rock
bands and managed to attract a great deal of publicity this way.
It is questionable, however, how much of the support they
received was based on their musical talent rather than on sex
appeal and novelty value.
A Discussion of Women Rock Musicians in Durban and Their Music
The general observations above help to explain why female rock
musicians have been few and far between in Durban. Probably
exacerbating the situation were the highly paternalistic values
of South African society, in which male supremacy was deeply
entrenched and women were expected to conform to the roles of
housewife and mother.
Dawn Selby (Third Eye)
Dawn Selby was the most prominent women musician to surface in
Durban in the late 1960s. Dawn, a highly talented musician, has
become an important figure in popular music in Durban through the
44 M. Bayton, 'Feminist Musical Practice: Problems and Contradictions',
p. 186.