🎺🇬🇭🎸📀🔥👯♂️ The Ogyatanaa Show Band was formed in Accra in 1971 by diplomat-turned-composer, musical arranger, organist, singer and producer Kwadwo Donkoh, and guitarist and bandleader Nana Ofori-Atta. The group quickly gained in popularity, winning second place in the national dance group competition with their version of the highlife classic “Yaa Amponsah”. After several successful singles, Ogyatanaa finally recorded their first album, “African Fire – Yerefrefre“, in 1975. A side is entirely taken up by a 20-minute medley, a moment of bravura enhanced here and there by little distortions rather unusual here, “Yerefrefre”, which pays tribute to the giants of Ghanaian highlife such as E.T. Mensah, Nana Ampadu and King Onyina. The B-side features the group’s first singles, with their fiery groove, “Mmobrowa”, the famous “Yaa Amponsah” and “Agya Nyame”. “Yerefrefre” has become a classic of Ghanaian highlife, and at the same time a mythical album, now impossible to find at a decent price. So it’s an excellent idea on the part of Australian label Survival Research to release this reissue in 2020.
African Fire / Yerefrefre – The Ogyatanaa Show Band, 1975
