Uhuru Dance Band - The Sound of Africa (Agoro, 1975)

The Uhuru Dance Band's rare, 1975 album The Sound of Africa was recently posted in full by an ebay seller last month. Released on Kwadwo Donkoh's Agoro label, this unique album blends funk, American soul/jazz, highlife, and dance-band music much in the same vein as the Ogyatanaa Show Band (you may recongnize the Uhuru's "Yahiya Mu" which was featured on the Ghana Special compilation). Accordingly, this unique sound was largely driven by saxophonist George Amissah (Uhuru's then band leader) and Kwadwo Donkoh, who worked as a composer, arranger, and musician on this album as well as Ogyatanaa's Yerefrefre and Obra Mu Asem. At the same time, much of the lead singing on The Sound of Africa (as well as the two Ogyatanaa albums) is recognizably performed by the same individual (see "I Know My Mission" for an example). Unfortunately this singer's name remains a mystery, as does the actual relationship between this album, Kwadwo Donkoh, and the Ogyatanaa Show Band. Of course, any additional information would be greatly appreciated.


Considering the high prices that old, rare & funky Ghanaian records routinely fetch on websites like ebay (anywhere from several hundred to several thousand dollars), these low-quality sample recordings may very well represent the only opportunity for most of us to hear albums like the Uhuru's The Sound of Africa. Here, I've posted the album in full for your downloading convenience as offered on ebay, with track titles added and problematic clicks/skips cleaned up. However, some questions remain. For one thing, what is the correct order of the eleven tracks? Secondly, are any readers able/willing to submit a photo of the album's back cover? This would certainly clear up the question of the track order and potentially provide some additional background info.

In the meantime, take some time to enjoy this unique and diverse album.

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Update: Thanks to Akwaboa, here's a scan of this album's back cover. Track order is now revealed, along with song translations and background info about Kwadwo Donkoh/Uhuru. Excellent!

Ogyatanaa Show Band - Yerefrefre (1975)

Hello there! I apologize for the long gaps between posts around here lately.  To make up for this, I offer one of my favorite highlife albums, Ogyatanaa's Yerefrefre (this record also might just have one of the best covers ever!). 

The Ogyatanaa (or "burning torch") Show Band was founded in 1971 by Kwadwo Donkoh, a former diplomat turned highlife musician and record producer.  I don't have much information about Donkoh, yet I consider him one of the big names in Ghanaian highlife, a behind-the-scenes figure and master arranger/composer.  In addition to his work with Ogyatanaa, Donkoh founded Agoro records in the early 1970s.  Agoro released diverse popular and traditional records, and later it would introduce the first albums by Ga cultural groups like Wulomei.

On this first album by the Ogyatanaa Show Band, we have classic tracks like "Mmobrowa" and a funky "Yaa Amponsah," yet my absolute favorite here is the "Yerefrefre" medley on side one, a twenty minute long track which pays tribute to Ghana's highlife greats.  Musicians like E.K. Nyame, C.K. Mann, King Onyina, E.T. Mensah, Nana Ampadu, and K. Gyasi are acknowledged, while hit songs by these artists are also "quoted" throughout the medley.  The group switches rapidly between songs, offering snippets of such tunes as E.T. Mensah's "All for you" and the Black Beats' "Lai momo."

See how many songs you can identify!

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On March 6, 1957 Kwame Nkrumah announced Ghana's independence at the stroke of midnight.

Happy Independence Day, Ghana!

Joe Mensah - "The Afrikan Hustle"

Here we have a classic album from "Bosueman" Joe Mensah. Recorded in Lagos, Nigeria, "The Afrikan Hustle" features Mensah's hit tune "Bonsue." This 17-minute long track incorporates elements of jazz, dance-band, and funk, all built over a Yaa Amponsah riff. I love this song for Mensah's rhythmically spoken outbursts (Bo Bo Bo Bo Bonsue!), but also for its unique opening. Here, each instrument enters one after the other, creating the effect of layers being built upon each other (a process which lasts for over two and a half minutes).

The other three songs on side two of this album are just as good, no surprise considering that Mensah is backed by none other than the Sweet Talks! Smark Nkansah & A.B. Crentsil appear here as guitarists, while providing backup vocals throughout the album. Who knew!

Joe Mensah - Rokpokpo

Here, we also have a rendition of "Bonsue" performed live by Ebo Taylor and Gyedu-Blay Ambolley, via Youtube. I think Ambolley is perfectly suited for this song, with his own interpretation of the tune's signature spoken sections (Bo Bo Bonsueee!).  This performance looks like it was a blast, and its a shame that this video ends prematurely as the group is about to launch into "Yaa Amponsah." Enjoy!

 

               

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                        "The Afrikan Hustle"

Ogyatanaa Show Band - Obra Mu Asem

Here we have a second album by the Ogyatanaa Show Band, the group responsible for the legendary Yerefrefre (or "African Fire") album. Tracks from that record like "Yaa Amponsah" and "Mmobrowa" have appeared on the Ghana Soundz compilations, as well as the Agoro Records compilation I've posted here some time back (Agoro Nkoaa). Obra Mu Asem hasn't received the same kind of attention that Yerefrefre has (the cover is rather bland...), but in my book it's a great overlooked album that deserves some listening.

As with their other releases, this record from Ogyatanaa showcases the group's unique fusion sound. At its core Ogyatanaa is a dance-band in the tradition of Uhuru, Ramblers, E.T. Mensah, etc., yet elements of funk and soul have also been added. The classic dance-band sound has undergone development here with the integration of the other sounds of '70s Ghana. Just listen to the heavy organ throughout and that soulful singing!

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More Danceband: Telephone Lobi

On the heels of the previous post, here's the other Original Music compilation featuring Ghanaian "Dance band" music, Telephone Lobi (1995).  This album offers some more variety, as a greater selection of bands have been chosen by the OM folks. This broader representation of the Ghanaian "dance band" scene in turn reflects a greater diversity of individual styles and sounds. Be sure to check out these great tunes, including some of my favorites like the Ramblers' "Agbo Ayee" and "Me Ye Fun" by the Police Band #1.

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Mbra Nimfo Quist - Builders Brigade

Giants of Danceband Highlife, 1950s-1970s

Giants of Danceband Highlife (1990) is another great, hard-to-find Original Music compilation. This one features tracks by three of the most famous and prolific Ghanaian dance bands, E.T. Mensah's Tempos, the Ramblers, and Uhuru.

               Download it Here.

"The big dance bands flourished during the 1950s and 1960s in both Ghana and Nigeria. In Ghana, the leading bands played regularly in the major towns, now growing rapidly in population ... The large towns like Accra, Cape Coast, and Kumasi had prestigious ballroom orchestras which played waltzes, foxtrots, quicksteps, ragtimes, rumbas, and highlifes to a black elite audience in top hats and evening dress. The earliest of these was the Excelsior Orchestra formed in 1914. It was in this context of local melodies like the Osibisaba and Ashiko, being orchestrated for an upper class audience, that the term "highlife" was coined (Collins, Musicmakers of W. Africa).   

Comprising a typical line-up of brass, vocals, percussion, drums, double bass and electric guitar, the bands could play a bewildering variety of styles reflecting popular demand although highlife itself remained the staple affair. The lyrics were also delivered in a variety of languages including Twi, Fante, Ga, Efik, Ibo, Ewe, and Hausa (as well as English and Spanish).  

During the 1960s, many dance bands suffered at the hands of the state bands who, by offering a regular salary and stable employment, attracted many of the best musicians away from the private highlife bands. Many of the large state corporations, from the Cocoa Board and the Black Star line to the state hotels and the Builders Brigade, formed their own outfits.  By the 1970s, hard on the heels of economic decline and an increase in the demand for imported music, highlife dance bands were steadily declining in number and popularity.  The Tempos and the Uhurus staggered on but it was really only the Ramblers who survived as a viable musical unit (R. Graham, The Da Capo Guide)."

Note: Graham's description of Dance band stagnation seems somewhat inaccurate to me, as he fails to mention contrary trends such as the continuous popularity of King Bruce's dance bands, Uhuru's later successes (e.g. excursions into Afrobeat and fusion music with Oscar Sulley), and E.T. Mensah's '70s revival.

E.T. Mensah

Ramblers Dance Band

Stan Plange & Uhuru

Jerry Hansen of Ramblers