In two days, this blog celebrates it’s first anniversary.
We are not as big as our fellowblog Loronix who had about
a million visitors in it’s first year but no complaints.
Global Groove is alive and kicking. Check out this great album
by Dr. Victor Olaiya, it was the first post on this blog.
Classic highlife and hard to find, enjoy it once more!

tracks;

1 Omo pupa
2 Pariboto riboto
3 Yabonsa
4 Ewa
5 Opatarisius
6 Kiriji Kenkeluke
7 Omo lere aiye
8 Lafia san wa
9 Kale san wa
10 Aigana

Another album of Nigerian Highlife, when I was on my way to
Normandie where the party was, I dropped by the shop of ‘A’,
in Le Havre, he’s one of the dealers I use to meet in Utrecht
at the fair.That’s where I found this LP. From ’78,
don’t be too late.

tracks;

1 Nwanne awu enyi
2 Ama onye wu onye

I found someone extremely happy with Prince Nico Mbarga last
week, I like happy. Another Prince Nico finds his way to you
for that reason. On this LP the prince is surprising us with
juju, not very common but very welcome it is. The year on this
one must be somewhere early 80’s I guess, tell us if you know.

tracks;

1 My pickin
2 I, dey wonder
3 Panco juju system
4 Green revolution

This LP contains the sweetest highlife from Ghana. Eric Agyeman
is here and I think it’s a late 70’s album, if anyone knows..
The musicians he brought along are not the least, names like
Frimpong and Crentsil are the ones we want to see, great stuff.

tracks;

1 Matutu mirika
2 Abenaa
3 Ao ! Masem yi
4 I don’t care
5 Dee abe beto biara

E.T. Mensah was born in 1919 in Accra, Ghana as Emmanuel
Tettey Mensah. He was the main performer of early Ghana
highlife and took over leadership of the already famous
‘Tempos’ after the war. He semi retired through the 60’s
but had a kind of come back in the 70’s. He recorded several
albums for Afrodisia producer Faisal Helwani and this is one
of them. Although recorded in his late days, a sweet album.
Many of us know the two CD’s that appeared, ‘All for
You’ and ‘Day by Day’. Absolute recommendable, both of them.
Originated in Ghana, highlife was taken over by Nigerians
after seeing E.T. Mensah perform on one of his many tours.

tracks;

1 Bus collector
2 Ebe tatale
3 E.T. nkebo baaya
4 Yoonaabu
5 Sekondi market
6 Dofo san brafie
7 Dzoyilo
8 All for you

The always exentric Oliver de Coque started out in 1976,
with this LP if I’m correct. He was one of the first to use
Congolese guitarstyle in Nigerian Highlife. I posted a couple
of his albums last year, check the highlife section on this page.
( below on the left ) here‘s one to start with.
Track one starts out a little bumpy, sorry.

tracks;

1 Messiah messiah/Mbanese ayi ekene
2 My cherry
3 Ekeoha fire disaster ( Aba )
4 Kaduna special

One of my favourite Nigerian groups is this fine band,
Ikenga Super Stars of Africa. Early eighties I bought
one of my first African LP’s by them. This one I found at
that Recordfair in Utrecht last weekend. The cover looks
quite worn out but the vinyl is still in good shape.
Enjoy this rare piece of Nigerian Highlife.

tracks;

1 Anyi anu ukwu mu nka
– Ikengas in search of peace
2 Austerity
3 Okamma na ama

Victor Uwaifo had quite an impressive career, built his first
guitar age 12, became a professional wrestler, poet, sculptor,
painter. As a musician he was the most amazing figure, check out
this article at With_comb_and_razor.
This one was contributed by one of the French record dealers
I use to meet at the Utrecht Recordfair, thank you Aiden,
on behalf of the Global Groovers community.

tracks;

1 Ekassa 28 Ebibi
2 Ekassa 34 Igiodo giodo
3 Ekassa 31 Isede
4 Ekassa 32 Votumamuoga
5 Ekassa 25 Aiworo
6 Ekassa 36 Ame’sihion-segbe
7 Ekassa 24 Kirikisi
8 Ekassa 26 Akhuankhuan
9 Ekassa 35 Sumwensowa
10 Ekassa 29 Osulelemule

Quite a funny surprise, when you come home with an LP looking
like it’s really old and dusty, and then when you take it out of
it’s cover it turns out to look all fresh and funky.
And then you play it and it sounds like this, wow..
Awesome highlife by one of Nigeria’s greatest bands of the 70’s.

tracks;

1 Origbu onye one
2 Ihe eme uwa adimma

Another Lp by the great Ikenga, some time ago we had an album
by them without title too. These guys are completely cool, such
hypnotic highlife. The Ikenga Super Stars of Africa, led by Victor
Okoroego, weigh in here with a funky slice of Ikwokilikwo. The
Ikengas were born in 1973 as “The Nkengas” when they split from
bandleader Osita Osadebe, in the process read_more

tracks;

1 Ikenga go marry me
2 Ikenga in Africa