Headman Shabalala was a member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, a group that Traffic allegedly stole some riffs from. Winwood and Capaldi felt guilty about this and wrote this song about being pursued by an army of Headmen. The stashed loot refers to the money they made on the stolen riffs. Obviously, though, they did not feel guilty enough to give back the loot, and escaped while their pursuers were reloading.
Headman Shabalala was a member of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, a group that Traffic allegedly stole some riffs from. Winwood and Capaldi felt guilty about this and wrote this song about being pursued by an army of Headmen. The stashed loot refers to the money they made on the stolen riffs. Obviously, though, they did not feel guilty enough to give back the loot, and escaped while their pursuers were reloading.