We're taking a deep dive into the Igbo highlife sound of eastern Nigeria on this week's program. The whole first hour will be devoted to this marvelous, mellifluous genre that combines the modern highlife music popular across Anglophone West Africa with Igbo traditional rhythms, also factoring in the influential guitar stylings from bordering Cameroon's makossa and the not-too-far-away Congo's soukous and successors.
Like the Zimbabwean sungura I played last week, Igbo highlife found a bit of a first-world audience during the 1980s world music boom. Our ears have long since turned to newer novelties, but the category never went out of style at home. Now guitarist Oliver Nayoka is reminding northern listeners of what they've forgotten with two fabulous new albums. I'll play a track from each plus some classics from the 70s and 80s, including Africa's favorite song as chosen in 2004 by BBC's Network Africa listeners.
Also this week (Sunday February 20, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): songs Charlie Gillett taught me, some new roots reggae, and what the Super Bowl hip hop halftime show needed was some cumbia.
Oh, and here's a great read about one of Igbo highlife's superstars, the man behind the aforementioned "Africa's favorite song": narratively.com/his-biggest-hit-sold-more-copies-than-any-of-the-beatles-so-why-havent-you-heard-of-him
All the podcasts: radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go
Artist | Country | Song | Recording | Label | Year
Oliver Lake | USA | Separation | Matador Of 1st & 1st | Passin' Thru | 1997
Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros | England UK | Global A Go-Go | Global A Go-Go | Hellcat | 2001
Dr. Sir Warrior & The Oriental Brothers International | Nigeria | Ihe Chi Nyerem | Uwa Atualamojo / Ihe Chi Nyerem - Single | Afrodisia | 1973
Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe & His Nigeria Sound Makers International | Nigeria | Osondi Owendi | Osondi Owendi | Polydor | 1984
Oliver Nayoka | Nigeria | Prince Ndubueze Special | Club Series Chapter One | Odogwu Entertainment / Palenque | 2021
Oliver Nayoka | Nigeria | Njiri Mara Mu Bu Egwu | Aja Wele Wele | Odogwu Entertainment / Palenque | 2021
Prince Nico Mbarga & Rockafil Jazz | Nigeria | Sweet Mother | Sweet Mother | Rogers All Stars | 1976
Sekouba Bambino | Guinee Conakry | It's A Man's Man's Man's World | Sinikan | Stern's Africa | 2002
Terry Hall & Mushtaq | England UK | The Hour Of Two Lights | The Hour Of Two Lights | Honest Jon's | 2003
Joe Dukie & DJ Fitchie | New Zealand | Midnight Marauders | Midnight Marauders - Single | The Drop | 2002
Tiken Jah Fakoly | Cote D'Ivoire-Jamaica | Is It Because I'm Black? (feat Ken Boothe) | Racines | Barclay | 2015
Friendly Fire Band | England UK-Jamaica | Tenament Yard (feat Duane Stephenson) | Rastamantic Riddim | Friendly Fire Music | 2022
Black Am I | Jamaica | Jah In My Corner (feat Kabaka Pyramid) | Jah In My Corner - Single | Ghetto Youths International | 2022
Johnny Clarke | Jamaica | Jah Jah Bless Joshua | Jah Jah Bless Joshua - Single | Justice | 1974
Quantic Y Su Conjunto Los Míticos Del Ritmo | England UK-Colombia | Nuthin' But A "G" Thing (Dre En Cumbia) | Hip Hop En Cumbia | Tru Thoughts | 2011
Sam Redmore | England UK | Get Ur Freak On (Sam Redmore remix) | Bootleg Remixes | unreleased | 2022
Gypsyphonic Disko | USA | Solar Phonic | Nola-Phonic Volume 1 | self-released | 2010
Los Auténticos Decadentes | Argentina | Jurabas Tú (feat Los Palmeras) | Jurabas Tú - Single | Popart | 2022
Radiocumbia | Colombia | El Pipiloco | De Mente Caliente | Polen | 2008
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