Salty Dog were a Zambian rock quartet of the mid-1970s. The band issued two singles and a 1976 self-titled album on the local Zambezi label. Members: Norman Muntemba (vocals, bass, tambourine), Alex Mwilwa (drums), Hassan Hassan (drums), Jackie Mumba (guitar, vocals) Of the album’s ten cuts, the bi-chordal/cymbal-rattling “Have You Got It,” the tom/snare-wrestled “Fast,” […]
Asiko Rock Group was a Nigerian ensemble that released a singular album titled Rock Group on EMI in 1976. Members: Njoubi Basile (bass), Z. Joseph Bolandi (vocals, keyboards), Ntaillou Idrissou (guitar), Ndovmbe Jylvand (trumpet), Essombe Antoine Madie (vocals, percussion), Paul Monnu (drums), Evgene Ndema (guitar) Discography: Rock Group (1976)
Witch were a Zambian zamrock band that formed in 1971 and was active for 14 years. The band released seven albums on the ZMP, Teal, and Gallo labels. The albums Lazy Bones!! (1975) and Lukombo Vibes (1976) were instrumental in drawing foreign ears to the African nation’s zam/psych sound. Guitarist John Muma and bassist Gedeon […]
Ngozi Family were a Zambian zamrock band that was active during the mid-to-late 1970s. Eight albums bearing the nameplate appeared on ZMP and Chris Editions, with two highlighting the presence of drummer Chrissy Zebby Tembo. The band’s namesake frontman/guitarist Paul Ngozi concurrently recorded as a solo artist. Members: Paul Ngozi (lead guitar, vocals), Chrissy Zebby […]
The Otis Waygood Blues Band was a Zimbabwean hard-rock/psych combo that released three albums on Parlophone circa 1970/71. Despite their brief recorded run, the band were active for 11 years in their adopted market of Johannesburg, South Africa. Members: Martin Jackson (vocals, flute), Ivor Rubinstein (vocals, percussion), Rob Zipper (vocals, guitar, saxophone), Benny Miller (guitar), […]
Michael Gibbs (born Sept. 25, 1937) is a Rhodesian jazz-rock/Third Stream trombonist, keyboardist, composer, conductor, and producer. He started recording as a leader in 1970, having established his reputation among the U.S. New Music cognoscenti during the early 1960s and on the U.K. jazz and rock scenes during the latter part of the decade. During […]
Tirogo were a Nigerian Afro-funk/psych band that released three albums on EMI between 1977 and 1980. The band’s first album, Float, gained newfound popularity when it was reissued by Shadoks and QDK in the late 2000s. Members: Elvy Akhionbare, Funmi Onabolu, Godwin Debogie, Wilfred Ekanem, Wilfred Iwang In 2013, Afrobeat merchants Voodoo Funk selected the […]
Ofege were a Nigerian Afro-psych band formed by Obalende teenagers in the early 1970s. The band released two albums on EMI, drawing international ears to the West African scene. Two further albums appeared later in the decade on Polydor. Members: Melvin “Noks” Ukachi (vocals), Felix Inneh (guitar), Dapo Olumide (keyboards), Paul Allade (bass, vocals), M-Ike Meme […]
Peter King is a Nigerian Afrobeat musican who was active during the 1970s. He released four albums on Orbitone between 1975 and 1978 and a further two albums on Grandstar Records the following year. During the 2000s, he became an icon of the burgeoning Rare Groove community when his lost 1974 album Shango was issued […]
Nkengas were a Nigerian highlife ensemble that released two albums on Orbitone in 1973. The band subsequently morphed into the Ikenga Super Stars of Africa. Members: Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe (vocals), George Atomba, Linus Opara, Pele Asampete Discography: Destruction (1973) Nkengas in London (1973)
The Mebusas were a Nigerian Afro-funk ensemble that issued the album Blood Brothers on Afrodisia in 1973. Members: Chike Emegokwe (saxophone, flute), Harry Udofia James (trumpet), Fuzzy Gbagi (tenor sax), Raimi Olalowo (trombone), Laja George (drums), Williams Okolie (guitar), Cyril (organ), George Neuville (vocals) Mebusas’ brass/woodwind players were ubiquitous on the West African scene. Harry […]
The Funkees were a Nigerian Afro-funk band that released a slew of singles and two proper albums during the 1970s. The band also co-headlined a solo release by guitarist/vocalist Harry Mosco. Members: Harry Mosco (guitar, vocals, gong), Chyke Madu (drums, vocals), Sonny Akpabio (congas), Jake N. Sollo (guitar, organ, piano, vocals), Danny Heibs (bass, vocals, […]
Jake Sollo was a Nigerian guitarist who was active during the 1970s and early ’80s. He first recorded for Lagos psych-rock quintet The Hykkers, which released two singles on His Master’s Voice in 1971. This was followed by a lengthy stint in London-based Afro-funk group The Funkees, which recorded numerous singles and two albums over […]
Colomach was a Nigerian Afro-funk band that released a self-titled album on EMI in 1976. Members: Gneni Mamadou Discography: Colomach (1976)
Babatunde Olatunji (April 7, 1927 — April 6, 2003) was a Nigerian drummer who popularized Afro-beat throughout the First World with a run of albums on Columbia during the 1960s. The following decade, he joined stateside Afro-jazz ensemble Ju Ju, which morphed into Oneness of Juju after two albums. In the wake of Manu Dibango‘s […]
Manu Dibango (Dec., 12 1933 — March 24, 2020) was a Cameroonian saxist, vibist, and composer with a musical career that spans more than 50 years. In 1972 he cut the Afro-funk classic “Soul Makossa,” which became a much-covered, much-sampled global hit for the artist. Discography: Manu Dibango (1968) Saxy Party (1969) O Boso (1971) […]
Anthony Reebop Kwaku Baah (Feb. 13, 1944 – Jan. 12, 1983) was a Ghanaian percussionist who recorded five solo albums and did stints with several big-name jazz and rock acts on the U.S., U.K., and German scenes. He first appeared in 1968 on the album Out of the Frying Pan by English soul-jazz band Wynder K. Frog. […]
André Marie Tala (born Oct. 29, 1950) is a Cameroonian guitarist, percussionist, and vocalist who was prolific during the 1970s and ’80s. He launched his career with the help of breakout local Manu Dibango. Discography: Hot Koki (1973) Na Mala Ebolo (1973) Tala André Marie (1975) Black Woman (1976) Arabica (as Tala A.M., 1978) Mother […]
Ekambi Brillant is a Cameroonian musician who released a string of albums between the mid-1970s and mid-’80s. Discography: Africa Oumba (1975) Nayô-Nayô (1976) Djambo’s Djambo’s (1977) Reverend (1982) Musiki Too Hot (1984)
Sweet Talks were a Ghanaian highlife ensemble that was active during the second half of the 1970s. They attracted an international following with their 1976 release The Kusum Beat and recorded a subsequent album in Los Angeles. The band also released material as El Dorados of Aboso Glass Factory and the Flamingos of Ghana. The […]
Marijata were a Ghanaian Afro-funk trio that released three albums on Gapophone during 1976 and 1977. The trio functioned as both an autonomous unit and the backing band for vocalist/guitarist Pat Thomas, who had led the three in his earlier band the Sweet Beans. Members: Kofi “Electric” Addison (guitar), Bob Fischian (organ), Nat Osmanu (guitar) […]
Osibisa are an Afro-funk/jazz-rock band founded in London in 1969 by four Ghanaian and three Caribbean musicians. The band released eight albums on MCA, Warner Bros., and Island between 1971 and 1976, including a soundtrack for the second installment of the Super Fly franchise. Yes/Uriah Heep illustrator Roger Dean painted the covers for Osibisa’s first […]
Hedzoleh Soundz were a Ghanaian highlife/Afrobeat band that was active during the late 1960s and early ’70s. In 1973, the band debuted as a backing act to South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela on an album for Blue Thumb Records. The band released their own album, simply titled Hedzoleh, on EMI later that same year. Guitarist […]
