Osibisa

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Cover of Osibisa, 1971. Designed by Roger Dean.
Cover of Osibisa, 1971. Designed by Roger Dean.

Osibisa is a band, founded in 1969 by four African and three Caribbean musicians, who peaked in popularity in the 1970s.

Contents

[edit] History

Founding members included Ghanaians Teddy Osei (saxophone), Sol Amarfio (drums) and Mac Tontoh (trumpet); Grenadian Spartacus R (bass); Trinidadian Robert Bailey (keyboard); Antiguan Wendell Richardson (lead guitar); and Nigerian Lasisi Amao (percussionist and tenor saxophone).

Ghanaians Darko Adams Potato (died 1995) and Kiki Djan (died 2004) have also been members of the band.

Osibisa describes itself as the godfathers of world music, claiming to have paved the way for more famous musicians like Bob Marley, who became popular in the mid-1970s. Their music is described as a fusion of African, Caribbean, jazz, rock, Latin and R&B.

Many of Osibisa's works are highly danceable. A fair comparison would be to Earth, Wind, & Fire from the USA only with a “world” flair. Both groups feature highly complicated and sophisticated dance music with Afro-Caribbean bass-drum grooves and dynamic horn charts. (example: Ojah Awake) Both groups could be criticized as “insipid disco” on titles which seek a more commercial appeal. (example:Dance the Body Music)

The name Osibisa was actually described by the band members to mean "criss cross rhythms that explode with happiness". They also classified their music as "Afro Rock". The band went through many incarnations with the founder members Teddy Osei, Mac Tontoh and Sol Amafio being the only original members that stayed with most incarnations. They originally favoured instrumentals which were heavily interlaced with African chants and percussions as well as a well organized horn section featuring Tedi Osei and MacTontoh, all this underpinned with an aggressive bass line. Their style influenced many of the emerging African musicians of the time.

[edit] Later set of musicians

Saxophone — Teddy Osei
Trumpet — Colin Graham
Percussion, Congas — Kofi Ayivor
Drums — Sol Amarfio
Keyboards — Bessa Simons, Kwame Yeboah, Chris Jerome
Guitars — Kari Bannerman
Bass Guitar — Victor Mansah

[edit] Discography

  • 1971 - Osibisa
  • 1971 - Woyaya
  • 1972 - Heads
  • 1973 - Best of Osibisa
  • 1973 - Superfly TNT
  • 1973 - Happy Children
  • 1974 - Osibirock
  • 1975 - Welcome Home
  • 1976 - Ojah Awake
  • 1977 - Black Magic Night (Live)
  • 1980 - Mystic Energy
  • 1981 - African Flight
  • 1983 - Unleashed
  • 1983 - Live at the Marquee
  • 1989 - Movements
  • 1994 - Celebration: The Best of Osibisa
  • 1994 - The Very Best of Osibisa
  • 1995 - Monsore
  • 1997 - Hot Flashback Volume 1
  • 1997 - The Best of Osibisa
  • 1997 - The Best of Osibisa (2 CDs)
  • 1998 - The Ultimate Collection
  • 1998 - Live At Croperdy
  • 2000 - Millennium Collection
  • 2000 - Aka Kakra (Akustisch)
  • 2003 - African Dawn, African Flight
  • 2005 - Blue Black Night (Live) (2 CDs)

[edit] DVD

  • Osibisa - Live (DVD Plus) — issued 2003, (recorded 1983)
  • The Warrior — (recorded 1990)

[edit] Hits

Some of the biggest hits of this group included:

  • "Music for Gong Gong"
  • "Sunshine Day"
  • "Dance the Body Music"
  • "Coffee Song"
  • "Fire"

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../o/s/i/Osibisa.html"
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