Shifty often felt more a like-minded collective than a record label. There were those Shifty repeat offenders who cropped up again and again on recordings – musicians like drumming maestro Ian Herman, trombonist Jannie “Hanepoot” van Tonder, and guitar slinger Willem Möller played on multiple albums. James Phillips took it upon himself to write sheet music and arrangements for every track on the second album of (the self confessed music semi-literate) Koos Kombuis. And the older musicians mentored the young urban creeps who joined the Shifty stable late in the day. Chris Letcher remembers:
it was amazing to have connections to bands that I was also listening to... like The Genuines, with Ian Herman playing on stuff we were recording in those days, which was just – crazy; it felt like a ridiculous privilege to have such a genius musician playing on the songs that we’d written ... it felt like everyone was in it together... it felt like really being accepted by this extremely talented and extremely warm and welcoming family.
Musicians who recorded on Shifty releases include:
- André Letoit / Koos Kombuis - solo artist; performed on the compilation album Voëlvry
- Brendan Jury - band member of Urban Creep
- Carl Raubenheimer - band member of Corporal Punishment
- Carlo Bombelli - band member of Abstractions
- Chris Letcher - band member of Urban Creep
- Dagga-Dirk Uys - manager of the Voëlvry tour
- David Davies - band member of the Radio Rats
- David Ledbetter - band member of Illegal Gathering
- Didier Noblia - band member of Urban Creep
- Frank Leepa - band member of Sankomota
- Gary Herselman / Piet Pers - band member of the Gereformeerde Blues Band, the Kêrels and Radio Rats; performed on Radio Rats album Big Beat
- Gerard O'Brien - band member of the Genuines
- Gil Marais-Gilchrist - band member of the Radio Rats
- Gito Baloi - band member of Tananas; performed on Simba Morri album Wasamata, Mzwakhe Mbuli albums Change is Pain and Unbroken Spirit
- Hamish Davidson - band member of the Happy Ships and Kalahari Surfers; performed on Mzwakhe Mbuli album Change is Pain
- Hilton Schilder - band member of the Genuines; performed on MAMU Players album Township Boy, Mzwakhe Mbuli album Unbroken Spirit
- Ian Herman - band member of the Genuines, ISJA and the Tananas; performed on Simba Morri album Wasamata, Mzwakhe Mbuli album Change is Pain, MAMU Players album Township Boy, Gereformeerde Blues Band album Eet Kreef!, Mzwakhe Mbuli album Unbroken Spirit, Noise Khanyile albums Itwasa Lika Puzu Shukela Namagugu Akwazulu and The Art of Noise, Koos Kombuis album Niemandsland, Kalahari Surfers albums Sleep Armed and Bigger than Jesus, Jo'burg City Stars album Grooving Jive #1
- Ivan Kadey - founder member of Shifty Records; band member of National Wake
- James Phillips - band member of Corporal Punishment, Illegal Gathering and the Cherry Faced Lurchers; performed as Bernoldus Niemand during the Voëlvry tour, on Koos Kombuis album Niemandsland, compilation albums Voëlvry and A Naartjie in Our Sosatie, Kalahari Surfers album Bigger than Jesus, Radio Rats album Big Beat
- Jannie 'Hanepoot' van Tonder - band member of the Gereformeerde Blues Band, Winston's Jive Mixup; performed during the Voëlvry tour; performed on Simba Morri album Wasamata, Mzwakhe Mbuli album Change is Pain, Radio Rats album Big Beat, and Rian Malan album Alien Inboorling, Kalahari Surfers album Sleep Armed
- Jennifer Ferguson - solo artist; performed on the compilation album Forces Favourites
- Johannes Kerkorrel - band member of the Gereformeerde Blues Band; performed during the Voëlvry tour; performed on Koos Kombuis album Niemandsland, Radio Rats album Big Beat
- Jonathan Fesant - band member of the Happy Ships
- Jonathan Handley - band member of the Radio Rats
- Karl Helgard - band member of Corporal Punishment and Illegal Gathering
- Lee Edwards - band member of Cherry Faced Lurchers
- Lesego Rampolokeng - performed with the Kalahari Surfers
- Lloyd Ross - founder member of Shifty Records; band member of the Happy Ships and Radio Rats; performed on Simba Morri album Wasamata, Mzwakhe Mbuli album Change is Pain, Rian Malan album Alien Inboorling
- Mac MacKenzie - band member of the Genuines
- Mark Bennet - band member of Corporal Punishment, Die Swart Gevaar, the Softies and the Cherry Faced Lurchers; performed on Mzwakhe Mbuli album Change is Pain, Koos Kombuis album Niemandsland, Radio Rats album Big Beat, Kalahari Surfers album Bigger than Jesus
- Maruti Selate - band member of Sankomota
- Matthew van der Want - solo artist; also performed with Chris Letcher as Van der Want and Letcher
- Mike Lurcher - band member of the Cherry Faced Lurchers (replaced by Richard Frost)
- Moss Nkofo - band member of Sankomota
- Mzwakhe Mbuli - solo artist
- Noise Khanyile - solo artist
- Philip Nangle - band member of the Happy Ships
- Richard Frost - band member of Cherry Faced Lurchers
- Robin Auld - solo artist
- Ross Campbell - band member of Urban Creep
- Simba Morri - solo artist; also performed on Mzwakhe Mbuli album Unbroken Spirit
- Steve Howells - band member of the Gereformeerde Blues Band (GBB), Winston's Jive Mixup and the Radio Rats
- Steve Newman - band member of Tananas
- Tonia Selley / Karla Krimpelien - band member of Die Swart Gevaar, the Gereformeerde Blues Band and Khaki Mionitor; performed during the Voëlvry tour
- Tony Cox - solo artist
- Vusi Mahlasela - solo artist
- Wayne Raath - band member of Illegal Gathering and the Happy Ships
- Willem Möller / Mr Volume - band member of the Gereformeerde Blues Band; performed during the Voëlvry tour; performed on Koos Kombuis album Niemandsland, Radio Rats album Big Beat
- Warrick Sony - Shifty Records partner; band member of the Happy Ships and Kalahari Surfers
