from the 7” single, Philips Records, 1974
Anyone seeking an understanding of the direct link between many styles of Latin music and the African continent should begin their musical journey in western Africa, the area where a huge percentage of those living in South America & the Caribbean can trace their lineage back to, and the region which served as the continent’s richest source of rhythm-based music. The term “highlife” is used to describe a gumbo of varying musical styles which came to be mixed together during the Colonial period, but really got going during WWII as jazz & swing music gained more popularity in the growing urban centers of countries like Ghana, Togo & Nigeria. Found primarily in the southern region of Ghana, the Ewe people have contributed greatly to this body of melodic fusion, which isn’t surprising when you consider that Ewe culture sees drumming as a holy activity, believing that if someone drums skillfully, they have been given the sprit of drumming from an ancestor who also drummed… dig it. T.O. Jazz was one of the more popular Ewe highlife crews in Ghana, and although I have no clue what they are saying, this funky little number never fails to get my body moving & grooving. Music is universal!
from the 7” single, Philips Records, 1974
