EBO TAYLOR AND UHU - Conflict Nkru! - LP - Yellow Vinyl

LABEL: Mr Bongo
CAT NO.: MRBLP109Y
BARCODE: 7119691269917

Tracklisting:

1. You Need Love
2. Love and Death
3. What is Life?
4. Christ Will Come
5. Victory

EBO TAYLOR AND UHU – Conflict Nkru!

LP – Indies Only Limited Edition Yellow Vinyl
(Features fully reproduced original artwork.)

Ebo Taylor has been a vital figure on the Ghanaian music scene for over six decades now. He is an all-time great of African music, now rightly revered as one of the world’s most important Highlife, Afrofunk and Afrobeat musicians, composers, and arrangers. During his illustrious career he has released multiple acclaimed solo albums and collaborated with luminaries such as Fela Kuti and Gyedu-Blay Ambolley to name just a few. Taylor was heavily influential in the unique sound that emerged from the Ghana in the 70s. Working with bands such as Apagya Show Band and fellow musicians such as C.K. Mann and Pat Thomas, he created his own remarkable style of African music: a unique synthesis of Highlife, Jazz, and Afrobeat.

‘Conflict Nkru!‘ was originally released in 1980 and captures the artist in his prime. The five tracks that make up the album are a perfect example of Taylorʼs trademark approach where he injected a heavy dose of funk into Ghanaʼs traditional highlife grooves in an attempt to move away from what he saw as the musicʼs more traditional qualities. The album opens with ‘You Need Love‘, a highlife track with catchy chants, horn riffs and guitar licks, and soon moves into funkier territories with ‘Love and Death’ and then ‘What Is Life?’, a song with thicker grooves and a flute offset against the horn section. ‘Christ Will Come‘ is another highlight, combining percussion with funky drums, flute and horns to devastating effect on an apocalyptic jam heralding Christʼs return on judgement day. The album closes with ‘Victory’, which is based on a traditional song of the Asafa (war people). The song puts forward the horn section over a rapid groove and calls for the unity of all mankind. Taylorʼs arrangements and funky grooves combined with lyrics that touch on subjects ranging from faith, love, death and redemption make ‘Conflict Nkru!‘ a magnum-opus of Ghanaian afro-funk – ripe for rediscovery.