It’s sleeve is quite worn out, I took the liberty to repair the
name which was almost gone on the frontside. Lovely lp
by the Shining Star, Akwasi Ampofo Adjei, or Mr. AAA
and his Kumapim Royals International Band. I like the
sound very much but already know it’s a good thing not
to understand the lyrics on this one. You know why.
The record itself fortunately doesn’t have to many
scratches and plays reasonably well. I’m happy to
bring you another of their albums, we had three
of them so far, go find them using our
search-bar and have fun playing..
tracks;
01 – Anomaa antua
02 – Gyama wosuro
03 – Time changes
This is one of the most underrated highlife albums from Ghana … Most collectors prefer the funk type but this is a very groovy album & one of my personal favorites … Even though it’s not in the discography, this album features Sammy “Red” Cropper on lead guitar, Maringe on bass guitar & Senior Thomas on rhythm guitar… That’s a very serious combination & will pass for my dream team any day … Akwasi ampofo adjei is a very great singer & got better with time, unfortunately he passed on but his music still lives on … Any album that has Maringe on it is an instant hit, he is very good on bass guitar … So good enough to be featured on an album cover here (http://www.discogs.com/Kumapim-Royals-Band-Ewiase/release/4260719) instead of the usual band or producer being featured as most artistes do … He was a regular feature on Alex konadu’s band & I have spoken enough about him on my previous comments … We all know who Sammy cropper is by now & I must say I was impressed by senior Thomas, a new entry … Akwasi Ampofo adjei gave them all a chance to show their worth on “gyama wo suro” track from the 3.50 minute going … & anybody who listens will really appreciate the worth of these instrumentalists … Time changes is also a great track, a classic in Ghana & osibisaba gave us a sneak preview of it sometime ago … It’s great to finally get to listen to the whole album … I usually like a track or two on the albums but am enjoying every track on this album & it’s a must have for every highlife fan … Thank you very much
it is not a gospel album despite the crucifix chain he is wearing on the album art…. Akwasi Ampofo Adjei is a very philosophical singer, most of his songs have to do with life issues, real life events using animals to represent the characters and everyday challenges… I would put him second only to Nana Ampadu of African brothers when it comes to philosophical songs… perhaps the next closest will be K. Frimpong … thats my top picks even though most highlife artistes are generally philosophical
“Anoma antu aa” is from a popular Ghanaian proverb which literally means if a bird doesnt fly, it remains where it is… meaning we have to make an effort towards our goals despite the challenges or else we wont make any progress in life…. B.B. Collins & the powerful believers have a very groovy song with the same tittle
“Gyama wo suro” is a song questioning why we dont pursue our interests no matter our sentiments or external criticism about it … it literally means you seem to be afraid
“Time Changes” is a song which means that no condition is permanent, conditions can change over a period of time, either from good to worse or bad to good… it is a direct translation from the akan language into english & am not sure if its proper english to say that time changes, cos time doesnt… time is the same, its the conditions that change… this is a Ghanaian classic, a very long & deep medley with a catchy melody
Whoa….. Kwabena Boakye, thanks for all of the information, this is fantastic!! Had no idea Sammy Cropper played on this release.
Thanks Moos!
Mike
NYC