Cameroon

Tourist literature always describes Cameroon as "Africa in miniature", so much so that it has become almost a cliché. But the country does exhibit all major climates & vegetation of the continent: coast; desert; mountains; rainforest; & savannah. Cameroon’s worst problem is one I can relate to myself. It is a victim of lousy neighbors. It sits in a tough neighborhood, bordered by some problematic countries. Just avoid the troubled border areas, & enjoy the Cameroon hospitality. One of the most culturally diverse countries on the continent, its people include ancient tribal kingdoms, Muslim pastoralists & forest-dwelling pygmies.

The landscape is no less dizzying in its diversity. Mt Cameroon (4095m) is the highest peak in West Africa. A still-active volcano, it rises almost straight from the sea in a spectacular manner. Further north are the rolling grasslands of the Ring Road area, while the Mandara Mountains are a complete contrast again, dry, rocky, with isolated villages barely eking out a living. Fringing all of this are some of Africa’s oldest rainforests, & the excellent Parc National de Waza, with abundant mammal & bird life, with large herds of elephants gathering at water holes in the dry season.

Or you can just head for one of the fine palm-fringed beaches, throw back a few cold beers, & dig some lively home-grown makossa music. This is no mellow pop bikutsi dance music. This is the late 70s when ‘Makossa was King’. These people might have lousy neighbors, but they sure know how to throw a great party. I dare you to stay seated. I double-dog dare you!

Sam Fan Thomas is born in 1952 in Bafoussam, the capital of the West Province of Cameroon. The city is also the cultural & economical center of the Bamilike people. Thomas is a famous singer & guitarist who became known in 1984 when his album African Typic Collection sold more than one million copies.

This is Sam Fan Thomas’ second solo LP. He went solo after he left Andre Marie Tala's Les Tigres Noirs in 1976. Thomas went to Cotonou the following year, where he recorded this LP with the l’Orchestre Black Santiago. Great late 70s makossa/soukous.

Sam Fan Thomas – self-titled, Disques Tropiques SATEL SAT 159,1977. 

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Face A –

Kapap

Kello Kello

Ni ate Dje

Face B –

Na Ma Pula Dimbea Oa

Special Kwongne

Yayakam

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Louis Wasson is a great guitarist & arranger from Cameroon. During the 70s, he spent several years in Benin where he recorded with greats such as Danialou Sagbohan & Fidegnon Ambrose. He also worked on the arrangement for albums by artists including Antoine Dougbé.

Ma Fille Fait Attention features a unique blend of experimental psychedelic Afro-reggae makossa/soukous.

On Ma Fille Fait Attention, the performers are: Louis Wasson - vocals & lead guitar; Pierre A. Dikaki – rhythm guitar; Dieudonne Tsang – organ & strings; Ignace de Souza – trumpet; Jean Katou-Zingila – tenor saxophone; Black Pepper – alto saxophone; Pierre Egnile – bass; & Danialou Sagbohan Miguelito - drums & backing vocals, with Giles Toffo & Miguelito Hossou – backing vocals.

LouisWasson – Ma Fille Fait Attention, Disques Tropiques Satel SAT 175, 1978.

decryption code in comments 

Face A –

Ma Fille Fait Attention

Message

Face B –

Give Us Heavy Sound

La Facilité est Ephémère

Okel’mvoe

Music Maker, give us heavy sound,

NØ

Central African Republic

Reuploaded by request 04/18/2026

 

Louis Sarno is an American romantic from Newark, New Jersey. Idly listening to a Flemish radio station one night in Amsterdam in 1985, he heard a recording of some pygmy singing. He was immediately transfixed. It was one of those rare moments which alters a person's life permanently.

 

Without any real idea of what he was doing, he bought a one-way ticket to Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic. From there he took a bus that was prophetically labeled 'Ainsi donc la vie' (& so there's your life). He found himself in the village of Bomandjombo. From there it was only a short distance to the pygmy settlement of Amopolo, which was to become his home. Louis Sarno is married to a Bayakan. He lives in the forests of Central Africa.

 

To learn more about Sarno's experiences, he relates all in his memoir, Song from the Forest: My Life Among the Ba-Benjellé Pygmies (Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1993). Additionally, there is a movie based on his life called Oka! (‘Oka’ is Bayaka for ‘listen’). While living with the Bayaka (how the Ba-Benjelle refer to themselves, rather than pygmies), Sarno made voluminous field recordings.

Ellipsis Arts has released two book that contain CDs of this music: Echoes Of The Forest: Music Of The Central African Pygmies, & Bayaka: The Extraordinary Music of the Ba-Benjellé Pygmies.

Echoes CD contains eighteen tracks recorded by three different anthropologists over a span of forty years. Bayaka CD is an hour long with eleven tracks recorded by Sarno & Krause.

What I am presenting here are soundscapes from recordings made by Louis Sarno & Dr. Bernie Krause, a world famous musician, author, soundscape recordist, & bio-acoustician, who coined the term biophony. Krause helped define the structure of soundscape ecology. Biophony is the collective sound vocal non-human animals create in each given environment. The study of natural soundscapes is called soundscape ecology.

"Louis Sarno's work is so important," sez Krause, "because it conveys for the first time, the connection between rain forest, its sounds and the music created by those intimately joined to all its resources."

These recordings have not only the songs & music of the Bayaka, but the sounds of the insects, the wind, the forest itself. These are unedited original recordings from master tapes.

 

Various – Music of the Ba-Benjellé Bayaka, Sarno & Krause’s Master Copies 2.

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Tracklist –

krekels zang percussie

krekels en grondboog

bos en fluit

bos en zang

bos & geedah & percussie

zang

lied & percussie

zang & percussie

zang & drums

bos en mbyo

bos en harp

 

 

 

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More field recordings. This is a wonderful old gem from the French Ocora label. While the previous offering was the Ba-Benjellé, these are field recordings made in the Central African Republic of nine other ethnic groups of the region. I could tell you about these groups, but you can look them up for yourselves. I’m just the DJ here.

 

 Various ‎– Musique Centrafricaine, Collection Radiodiffusion Outre-Mer, Ocora OCR 12, 1968. 

Face A –

Bagandou - Xylophone et Sanza Bagandou

Babinga - Musique de Chasse Babinga

Linda - Musique de Danse avec Xylophone Linda

Broto - Orchestre de Trompes Broto

Ndokpa - Exemple de Langage Instrumental Ndokpa

Ndokpa – Xylophone Ndokpa

Dakpa – Chant Dakpa pour l’Abbatage d’un Arbre

Face B –

Isongo – Chant de Femme Isongo

Zande – Ensemble Asande avec Xylophone

Babinga – Chant de Chasse Babinga

Dakpa – Musique Dakpa pour Attirer les Termites

Bofi - Chant d’Enfants Bofi

Bianda – Compliante Bianda

 

 

 

Enjoy boyo,

NØ

Chad

Ahamat Salet Rougalta (known musically as Maître Hamed Gazonga) was born May 27th, 1948 in N’Djamena (then Fort Lamy), Chad. As a young man he worked as a bookkeeper. When he was 21 he decided to become a musician. Together with several others he created L’Orchestre Saltanat Africa but before long he left them & formed his own band L’International Challal. Hamed drew his inspiration from the folk music of all the regions in Chad.

Maitre Gazonga recorded one of my favorite Afro-musique albums, Les Jaloux Saboteurs. It was recorded in the JBZ studio in Abidjan around 1984. It only contains four songs, but they are all tremendous. All the songs feature the great guitar playing of Nigayo Issa & a fantastic horn section. During the song "Koysse," Hamed says just before the beginning of the sebene (the sebene is a kind of instrumental bridge typically executed on the electric guitar & is a characteristic element of the Congolese rumba) “Les amis, c’est pas le temps de dormir, allez tout le monde debout” (loosely translated as“ Friends, it ain’t the time for sleeping, so get up off of your asses”), then off the band goes again playing a very wild racy rumba.

As you might expect from a country located in the geographical center of Africa, the musical influences run the gamut: from soukous to highlife, mbalax, even Ethiopian funk. Back in 2005 a lot of people were raving about "Les Jaloux Saboteurs," the tune that opened the compilation Golden Afrique Vol. 1.

Ahamat ‘Hamed Gazonga’ Rougalta died on the first of April 2006, of apparent heart failure.

On Les Jaloux Sabateurs, L’International Challal are: Maitre Gazonga – vocals; Nigayo Issa – lead guitar; Mamboué Maurice – rhythm guitar; Kabiné Traoré – trumpet; Beugré Edouard – tenor saxophone; Niamké Louis – bass; & Téoquer Léon – drums, with Rastayou & Saleh – backing vocals.

 Maître Gazonga & L'International Challal ‎– Les JalouxSaboteurs, Tangent TAN LP 7003, 1984. 

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A1 Le Jaloux Saboteurs

A2 Koysse

B1 Fatoumata Kante

B2 Kelina

Get up off yr ass & enjoy,

NØ

Niger

This post has been updated 1/9/2022

Here I get a chance to feature some of my personal favorite music so far, so if I’ve ranted on too much, just skip the words & dig right into the music. I don’t think you will be disappointed. But if you are concerned with the plight of indigenous people around the world, read on, I don’t think you be disappointed either. There is an incredible history that has progressed from 60s Ali Farka Touré, the father of desert blues, to 70s Tinariwen Tuareg guitar rock, to 90s & onward to today’s Tuareg Guitar Revolution music…the fight of an original people for freedom in their own homelands against the capitalist greed for Uranium profits & ethnic supremacy.

Niger is a landlocked country in West Africa bordered by Mali, Algeria, Libya, Chad & Nigeria. Niger has a very rich cultural heritage. It sits at the desert crossroads between the Berber & Arab cultures of the North & the many sub-Saharan cultures of the South. In Niger there are eleven different ethnic groups most of whom are farmers or pastoralists, some sedentary & some nomadic. Amongst theses are the Tuareg. They move with their camels, long-horned cattle, sheep, goats, & donkeys seeking pastures along the Sahelian savannah at the fringes of the South Sahara.

The Tuaregs are a Berber ethnic group, whose immense homeland covers parts of Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso, Algeria, & Libya. The Tuareg people of Northern Africa operated the much-coveted trans-Saharan caravan trade for centuries. Nomadic pastoralists & broadsword-wielding raiders, the fiercely independent people have resisted European hegemony since Europe began colonizing Africa. The latest revolt was in the early 1990s against the governments of Mali & Niger over the Tuareg’s desire for self-governance of their traditional homeland. The uprising introduced a new form of rebellion thanks to the initiation of the electric guitar into Tuareg culture: political commentary relayed via song.

Cassettes of such music carrying messages through Libyan Refugee camps where the freedom fighters & their families had gone for safety, referred to as the ‘Tuareg Guitar Revolution’, spread quickly across the Tuareg society (whose population is well past the million mark). Unsurprisingly the music was banned by the opposing governments. The 1995 Peace Pact Accord between the governments of Mali & Niger with the Rebels may have diminished the violence, but the electric guitar & the political song’s influence on the culture would not go away.

Another of the pastoralist ethnic groups is the Wodaabe. In Niger the Wodaabe & the Tuareg live side by side on the desert’s fringes sharing pastures & water sources. They try to work together to be strong, to give their cultures a future in this changing world. The music of the two tribes is very different. However, that all changed in 2004. Etran Finatawa was formed as a band at the time of the 2004 Festival in the Desert near Timbuctou. The literal meaning of their name is ‘the stars of tradition’. They are the first group ever to use the songs & music of the Wodaabe in a modern context. They began as a group of ten musicians, both Tuareg & Wodaabe, who wanted to unite these two nomadic cultures as a symbol of peace & reconciliation. The way Etran Finatawa combined these two musical traditions has produced a powerful & hypnotic sound, a new musical style of Nomad Blues.

In this interchange of modern & traditional styles, handclapping & rich percussion often lead the songs. This is an invitation to dance, while the guitar work of Alhousseini Mohamed Anivolla (also bass & rhythm guitar) & Ghalitane Khamindoune gives a special blues groove to the music. These melodies, rhythms, & vocals evoke a haunting image of the Sahel arid desert. The rich heady blend of the particular stylings of the Wodaabe singers Bagui Bouga, Mamane Tankari, & Bammo Agonla, the strong singing voices of the Anivolla, Khamindoune, & Jamil, the polyrhythmic tende drumming of Zaig Ag Abdoul Jamil, & the polyphonic chorus of the whole band is highly innovative, unique & richly rewarding.

Etran Finatawa – Desert Crossroads, Riverboat Records TUGCD 1048, 2008.

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Tracklist –

Saghmar N Nanna         

Kel Tamascheck

Iguefan

Tea Ceremony I

Jama’aare

Tekana

Ganyo Maada

Soto

Asistan

Bagui’s Soundscape

Gaynaako

Alghalem Taxat

Tea Ceremony II

Amidinine

Naanaaye

Tea Ceremony III

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Although the most famous of the Tuareg Guitar Revolution bands is Tinariwen, Group Inerane make up in musical ability anything that might be lacking in international following. Helmed by the enigmatic guitar player Bibi Ahmed, Group Inerane encompasses the most exciting aspects of the Tuareg guitar style. Ahmed plays elliptical bluesy riffs over minimalist rhythmic patterns while a chorus of chanting voices add to the polyphony. On the first volume of Guitars of Agadez, Adi Mohammed traded amazing riffs with Bibi. Adi Mohammed was shot & killed during the latest round of skirmishes between the Tuareg of the Agadez region & the government of Niger, a conflict rooted in the struggle for a Tuareg independence but deeply linked to the profitable uranium industry which dominates the northern half of this poor nation. In Mohammed's stead is the older Koudede Maman, who represented a link between Tinariwen, which began in the late 70s, & younger Tuareg guitarists like Ahmed. In October 2012 Koudede Manan died in an accident while returning from a gig in Burkina Faso. 

The idiosyncratic tone of the guitars with buzzing amplifiers on Guitars from Agadez takes on a new form of Sahel psychedelia. One can hear amplified roots rock & blues elements in the music, but it doesn’t sound influenced by American or European counterparts. It sounds as secluded as its geographic homeland, though surprisingly very accessible. Like the Tuareg people themselves, the music is resilient & commanding, making for a continuously exciting listen.

On Guitars from Agadez vol. 3, Group Inerane are: Koudede Manan – vocals; Bibi Ahmed – vocals & guitar; Abdulai Sidi Mohamed – bass; & Mohamed Atchinguel - drums.

Group Inerane – Guitars from Agadez vol. 3, Sublime Frequencies SF061, 2010.

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Side A –

Telalit

Alemin

Tamidit in Aicha

Itrara

Side B –

Tchigefen

Ikabkaban

Golf

Medan

Deran Deran

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As with Tinariwen & Group Inerane, the electric guitar is the most important instrument with Toumast. Coupled with guitarist Moussa Ag Keyna’s playing is his songwriting & rebel attitude. Toumast’s music personifies everything that the Tuareg Guitar Revolution & the Taureg struggle for self-reliance represents. Ag Keyna is a former Tuareg freedom fighter. Clashes between Tuareg freedom fighters & Mali’s /Niger’s military resulted in thousands of casualties. Ag Keyna himself was seriously wounded in 1993. He was taken to France to recuperate. There he continued his fight through music. He got together with his niece, percussionist, & haunting vocalist Aminatou Goumar & the French multi-instrumentalist/ producer Dan Levy who whilst not on the cover can be seen as the third member of Toumast (which means ‘our identity’ or ‘our people’ in Tuareg Tamasheq).

Call it desert blues or Tuareg rock’n’roll, it’s the hypnotic, addictive groove which makes it so easily appealing. While listening to "Maraou Oran", keep in mind that Ag Keyna wrote this when he learned that 12 of his fellow freedom fighters had been assassinated. This music is vital on many different levels.

 Toumast – Ishumar (Tuareg Music of Resistance), Real World Records 50999, 2007. 

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Tracklist –

Ikalane Walegh (These Countries that are not Mine)

Tallyatidagh (That Girl)

Innulamane (The Falcon)

Ammilana (O My God, O My Soul)

Ezeref (The Camel)

Dounia (Life)

Maraou Oran (For Twelve Moons)

Kik Ayittma (Hey, My Brothers!)

Amidinine (O My Friend)

Enjoy,

NØ

Nigeria

 Ganja, palm wine, & high life. I'm gonna dig my time in Nigeria.

Orlando Owoh is a highlife singer, composer, & guitarist. He was born in the early 1940s in Owo, Oyo State, Nigeria. His music career started when Owoh was young. He began playing the bongos with The Fakunle Major Band in 1960. He moved to Lagos & learned guitar from Fatai Rolling Dollar. After spending three years fighting in Nigeria's civil war, Owoh returned to Lagos, picked up his music career & formed his own group, the Omimah Band. He recorded his first record in the mid 60s. About this time he decided to play highlife style. He started a new band called the Young Kenneries. Considered to be one of the best bands in Nigeria, Owoh & his new band recorded more than 40 LPs. They gained international recognition. For more than four decades, until shortly before his death in 2008, Owoh's ganja-relaxed voice was a mainstay of popular culture.

Dr. Ganja’s Polytonality Blues contains four songs from three earlier Owoh albums: sides from his Omimah Band's 1974 albums Ire Lowo & Ajo Ko Dun Bi Ile; & two from Owoh & Young Kenneries Beats International 1981 album Obirin Asiko, reworked in a most innovative manner. To create a polytonality superior to even that of Stravinsky or Charles Ives, Owoh has the two guitars & bass tuned in three different keys. Add to this Owoh’s vocal talents, expert song composition, frenetic percussion, & torqued guitar genius & you have a unique rendition of highlife guitar music with massive juju percussion.

Fans of Owoh’s rugged street-style music dubbed his style ‘toye’, which is Yaruba slang for marijuana. Owoh has been called ‘King of Toye’ & ‘Dr. Ganja’.

This release contains four medleys, four psychedelic suites/jams.

 OrlandoOwoh - Dr. Ganja's Polytonality Blues, Original Music OMCD 035, 1995. 

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Tracklist -

Suite 1 - Logba Logba/Edumare Da Mi Lihun/E Se Rere/Prof Oyewole

Suite 2 - Emi Wa Wa Lowo Re/Alun Gbere Wa De

Suite 3 - Easter Special/Baba Wa Silekin/Obinrin Asiko Lagbo

Suite 4 - Cain Ati Abel/Alhaji T'Oyo Mayan/Omi l'Eman

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Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe is one of the few bandleaders from the 1960s Golden Age of Nigerian dance band highlife active on the music scene until his death at age 71 on May 11^th, 2007. He was born in March 1936 in Atani, near the Igbo trading city of Onitsha, Nigeria. Osadebe's musical apprenticeship began with E.C. Arinze's Empire Rhythm Orchestra in the 1950s. He recorded his first record, Adamma, in 1958 while still with Stephen Ameche's band. His next recording was Lagos Life Na So So Enjoyment with trumpeter Zeal Onyiya's band in 1959. Over the years he recorded countless 45s, EPs & LPs, many on the Philips & Polydor Nigerian affiliates of those labels.

He is ‘Chief’ among the Nigerian highlife musicians. Osadebe sings, plays piano, & composes most of his songs.

Chief Stephen Osita Osadebe & his Nigerian Sound Makers International 

- People’s Club of Nigeria Special cassette, 

Sposa 010, 1987.

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Side One – People’s Club of Nigeria (part one)

Side Two – People’s Club of Nigeria (part two)

Here are two great releases by Osadebe, often overlooked in his discography, because they are cleverly disguised as the work of the 'People Star in London'. These were recorded in 1973 at a time when members of Osadebe’s orchestra left to form Ikenga Super Stars. It was probably released under this alternate name (Osadebe was the Nigerian People Star) due to a licensing or copyright dispute, or possibly because these records are  pirate recordings. Whatever the reasons behind all this, these are probably some of Osadebe’s finest material. They contain stellar jams in Osadebe's trademark style merging highlife, juju, funky elements, psych, & more.

The People Star in London– Festac Explosion Vol. 1, Emerge EMLP 0001, 1976.

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Side 1 –

Ije Awele

Onwu Dinjo

Side 2 –

Onye Lusia Olie

Van Komesia

 The People Star in London– Festac Explosion 77 Vol. 2, Chiemeka Records VOLP 0077, 1977. 

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Side A –

Mbaukwu Boys Special

Side B –

Ogomu Egbunam

Ngozy Ka

Meringue Alto

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Ambrose Campbell was born Oladipupo Adekoya Campbell in Lagos, Nigeria on August 19, 1919. He was the son of a church minister. He started out by singing in the church choir. In his teens, Campbell worked as a printer in central Lagos. He found excitement at night by sneaking out to where palm-wine was sold: stalls under the moonlight where seamen & servants gathered to sing & play music, to drink the sweet, cloudy beverage. Coming from places as far away as Liberia, Guinee, & Cameroun, these men carried with them diverse cultural traditions. They also brought Western ideas picked up on their travels. Influences were exchanged & combined as they played. When he was old enough, Campbell joined them, singing & playing a tambourine.

Campbell left Nigeria & moved to Liverpool in the midst of World War II in the early 1940s. He subsequently moved to London where he assembled a band, the West African Rhythm Brothers, Britain’s first-ever black band. Campbell sang & played percussion & gradually learned the guitar (under the tutelage of Lauderic Canton from Trinidad). He teamed up with bongo-player Ade Bashorun from Lagos, guitarist Brewster Hughes, from Ibadan in Western Nigeria, trumpeter Harry Beckett & reed player Willy Roachford from Barbados, & pianist Adam Fiberesima, an Ijo from the Niger delta of Nigeria. The group made its first public appearance in London at the May 1945 celebrations in honor of VE Day. They performed in Trafalgar Square & Piccadilly Circus as their fellow Londoners celebrated the Nazis’ defeat.

In 1946 the West African Rhythm Brothers toured the U.K. in support of Les Ballets Nègres, Britain’s first black ballet company. Campbell & his band played in the jazz venues of London’s West End, including a club called Abalabi on Berwick Street in Soho, which was owned by a fellow Nigerian, Ola Dosunmu. Ola Dosunmu & his English wife later opened another club on Wardour Street called Club Afrique. Ambrose & the Rhythm Brothers performed there too.

Ambrose was a celebrated figure in bohemian Soho. His friends & contemporaries included British jazz greats Ronnie Scott & Johnny Dankworth. Campbell moved to America in 1972 where he continued to be involved in music. He performed on Willie Nelson’s One for the Road. He received a gold disc for his recording. Campbell returned to the UK in 2004. He settled in Plymouth. He died on June 22, 2006 at the age of 86.

Sadly enough, He never received any credit or payment for his work with the West African Rhythm Brothers. He commented on this during one of his rare interviews. All  he could say was that he felt elated that so many had been privy to his musical ingenuity. He had no regrets about how millions had been milked away from his hard work. He believed music was for sharing, not for selling.

 Ambrose Adekoya Campbell - London is the Place for Me 3 2xLP, 

Honest Jon’s Records HJRLP21, 2006.

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Side A -

West African Rhythm Brothers - We have It in Africa

West African Rhythm Brothers - Oba Adele  

Nigerian Union Rhytm Group - The Wind in a Frolic

West African Rythm Brothers - Iku Koni Payin

Ayinda Bakare And His Meranda Orchestra - Ibikunle Alakija

Side B -

West African Rhythm Brothers - Omo Laso

West African Rhythm Brothers - Calabar-O

West African Rhythm Brothers - Emi Wa Wa Lowo Re

West African Rhythm Brothers - Iwa D'Arekere

West African Rhythm Brothers - Ominira

Side C -

Nigerian Union Rhytm Group - The Memorial of Chief J.K. Randle

West African Rhythm Brothers - Mofi Ajobi Seyin

Nigerian Union Rhytm Group - Unity

Nigerian Union Rhytm Group - Oratido Soso

West African Rhythm Brothers - Ayami  

West African Rhythm Brothers - Oba Ademora II

Side D -

West African Rhythm Stars - Late Ojo Davies

West African Rhythm Stars - Geneva Conference

West African Rhythm Brothers - Ele Da Awa

West African Rhythm Brothers - Aye Wa Adara

West African Rhythm Brothers - Lagos Mambo

West African Rhythm Brothers - Odudua

West African Rhythm Brothers - I Am a Stranger

Enjoy,

NØ

 

Benin

T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou for many are a newly discovered treasure of 1970s African music. They play gritty guitar riff laden, warm horn infused, hypnotic Farfisa organ induced, heavy on the distorted bass African 70s tunes from the Republic of Benin that leads to frenetic body movements in all who listen.

T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou are a band from Benin, which plays Afrobeat, Funk, Soukous, & other styles, typically based on Vodun rhythms. The 'T.P.' stands for the French 'Tout Puissant', which means 'All Mighty'. The band was formed in 1966 & still records to this day, although many original band members have died (in 1982 both Bernard 'Papillon' Zoundegnon – guitar & Yehoussi Leopold – vocals, & most recently on December 17, 2012 Melome 'Boss' Clement – vocals & guitar, among others)  & new members have been added along the way. Their output has been extremely prolific, numbering upwards of 50 LPs & a hundred 45s. Between 1970 & 1983, the T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou recorded at least 500 songs. Although they had an exclusive contract with Albarika Store, the band recorded ' in secret' with a variety of small labels. The runs were negligible. Now in the 21st Century, Soundway & Analog Africa have worked at re-releasing & re-introducing Poly-Rhythmo to the modern listener.

As their name implies, the music relies on a blend of all mighty poly-rhythmic percussive elements. It draws from the French heritage of Benin along with the influence of their anglophone neighbors like Nigeria & Ghana. & it must be remembered that Dahomey, which is present day Benin, is the birthplace of vodun, so underlying all the poly-rhythms are the sounds of the voodoo rituals. These influences & rhythmic elements form the backdrop for varied styles they play, a mix ranging from: Afrobeat; soukous; highlife; jazz; soul; rhumba; & Latin music.

A partial list of band members: Melome Clement – vocals & guitar; Bernard 'Papillon' Zoundegnon – guitar & piano; Adjanohoun Maximus – guitar;  Lohento Eskill – vocals; Amenoudji Joseph Vicky – vocals; Agbemadon Paul Gabo – vocals; Kounkou Diak Theo – vocals; Yehouessi Leopold – drums; Sagbohan Danialou – vocals & drums; Vincent Ahehehinnou – vocals; Somassou Nestor – congas; Bentho Gustave – bass; Loko A. Pierre – vocals & saxophone; Koutouan Ossey Theodore – trumpet; Cakpo Cosme – trumpet; Tidiani Koné – saxophone & trumpet; Allade Lucien – vocals; Anago Cosme – vocals; Agbahoungba Philibert – guitar; D'Almeida Mathurin – drums & congas; Agonglo Bayo – drums;  Loko Moïse – piano; Hounnonkpe Léon  -piano; Guedou Thierry – brass; Ahouandjinou Martial – brass; Gnonlonfoun Samuel – brass; Alladé Vignéré – percussion; & Atohoun Sylvain - vocals), Francois Hoessou – bass & bass kalimba.

 T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo de Cotonou – Albarika Store ASB 228, 1975. 

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Side A –

Houzou Houzou Na Yi Noukou (part 1)

Side B –

Houzou Houzou Na Yi Noukou (part 2)

T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo de Cotonou – Albarika Store ALS 030, 1976. 

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Side A –

Houzou Houzou Na Yi Noukon

Bonne Annee

Side B –

Ehouzou Dandan

Ma Won Ye O

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Now two more releases, the first featuring the backing of T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo de Cotonou with one of the Ivory Coast most notable vocalists.

Amédée Pierre was born on March 30, 1937 at Tabou, Kroo , southwestern Côte d'Ivoire. He died on 30 October 2011 at Treichville. His given name is Nahounou Digbeu Amédée. He was christened Pierre at his Catholic baptism. Amédée Pierre is Singer Nahounou. He sings in his native Bété language. Here he is backed by T.P. Orchestre Poly Rythmo de Contonou Benin.

These are a couple heavy soukous tracks along with a hybrid Afro-pop tune.

The performers are: Singer Nahounou – vocals; Zoundegnon 'Papillon' Bernard – lead guitar; Adjadohoun Maximus – rhythm guitar; Bentho Gustave – bass; & Yehoussi Leopold – drums, with Agbemadon Paul Gabo, Amenoudji Joseph Vicky, Lohento Eskill, & Melome Clement – backing vocals.

 Singer Nahounou et du T.P.Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou Benin -

Albarika Stores ALS 060, late 70s.

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Side A -
Aventure De Nahounou

Gbabouo

Side B -
Gniabeye

The second one here, while we are being all incestuous, is Singer Nahounou again with another excellent band from Benin, the renowned l’Orchestre Black Santiago.

Singer Nahounou et l’Orchestre Black Santiago - Albarika Store ALS 095, 1980.

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Side A –

Bayi Tagro

Zoaka Nigi

Side B –

Gbayranzabou

Digbeu Labato

Get up offa that thing & enjoy da homeys,

NØ