various: afro-beat airways

ltd repress. Organ-driven Afro-beat, cosmic Afro-funk and raw, psychedelic boogie -- just some of the flavors to be found on this highly danceable compilation by Samy Ben Redjeb, founder of Analog Africa. No effort has been spared! To document these irresistible tracks and the music scene from the '70s, Samy crisscrossed the lengths of Ghana and Togo in search of the producers and artists -- or their relatives. In the process, he recorded a dozen interviews, scanned 90 pictures and transferred 120 master tapes. Afro-Beat Airways showcases an amazing diversity of local rhythms spiced with Afro-American funk, soul and jazz. Samy Ben Redjeb, in his own words: "While some light has been cast on the Ghanaian music scene of the 1970s, Togolese music is relatively obscure and badly documented. However, we are working on this! In fact, we've already made a start, with our previous Analog Africa compilation African Scream Contest which showcased 3 Togolese artists. Afro-Beat Airways presents two more -- Orchestre Abass and Cos-Ber-Zam. While the first band developed into one of the country's best, to such an extent that none other than Fela Kuti once offered them a contract to play at his Afro-Spot night club (which later became The Shrine), the second artist was a one-hit wonder. "Né Noya" was a monster hit in Togo, but it is to-date the only release by this obscure artist. The reason why I decided to include these Togolese tracks on this compilation is that they were all recorded in Ghana and thus they worked well in the mix." These tracks have been hiding for 30 years, and, as you will hear, these are modern African sounds created to stand the test of time. Afro-Beat Airways is like a time capsule, and promises to take you on a fascinating musical journey through West Africa's vintage Afro sounds.