VA - Ghana Special - Volume 2

More than 20 years after the release of the heavy funk and Afrobeat-focused Ghana Soundz compilations, and following the success of 2009’s Ghana Special: Modern Highlife, Afro Sounds & Ghanaian Blues 1968-1981, Soundway is now shining the spotlight on the multifaceted, diasporic sounds of the ‘80s on new compilation Ghana Special - Volume 2: Electronic Highlife & Afro Sounds In the Diaspora, 1980​-​93 - a collection of 18 burger highlife, electronic afrobeat, and reggae tracks.

Though Ghanaian to its very core, burger highlife emerged mostly outside of Ghana and just as the sun was setting on the country’s musical golden age. In the 1960s and 1970s cities such as Accra, Tema, Takoradi, and Cape Coast were home to thriving music scenes, and the loud horn sections of the big highlife bands, or the simpler, socially conscious palm wine music ruled the dance halls, locals drinkeries, and airwaves.

Back then music represented a powerful force, and an artist’s endorsement or dissent could make or break a politician. Perhaps to curb this power, the incoming military regime-imposed curfews and substantial import taxes on musical instruments in the early 1980s. These measures, coupled with a profound economic downturn and shifting musical preferences that saw DJs replacing large live bands, served as the final blow to Ghana's once-thriving music scene.

Musicians left Ghana in droves, scattering across West Africa, Europe, and North America. Thanks in part to its more permissive migration policies Germany became the heart of this scene, and the movement in fact takes its name from “Bürger”, the German for “citizen”. Less confined by genres than back in Ghana, artists in the diaspora were quick to engage with the different styles, working disco, boogie, and funk into their highlife melodies. Access to state-of-the-art studios and modern musical technologies also gave birth to all sorts of mutations: burger highlife in fact is less defined by one particular sound, than by the experimental approach and global outlook of its artists.

Throughout the 1980s Ghanaian artists kept producing increasingly innovative and experimental hybrids, winning over new audiences abroad. Though back in Ghana the new sound was initially met with disapproval by purists, it slowly became a symbol of a new, worldly and modern Ghanaian identity. The creativity and open mindedness that characterised burger highlife have gone on to shape the evolution of Ghanaian music since, giving artists the freedom to explore new global sounds while preserving a proudly Ghanaian soul. Ghana Special - Volume 2 stands as a vibrant tribute to the lasting legacy of this groundbreaking musical era. 

Tracklist:
A1    The Godfathers–    Ebe Ye Yie Ni
A2    Pat Thomas–    Gye Wani
A3    Bessa Simons–    Sii Nana
B1    Rex Gyamfi–    Obiara Bewu
B2    Pepper, Onion, Ginger & Salt–    M.C. Mambo
B3    Andy Vans–    Adjoa Amisa
C1    Starlite–    Anoma Koro
C2    Abdul Raheem–    Alaiye
C3    Ernest Honny–    New Dance
D1    Kwasi Afari Minta–    Barima Nsu
D2    Marijata–    Otanhunu
D3    Jon K–    Asafo
E1    Dadadi–    Jigi Jigi
E2    Gyedu-Blay Ambolley–    Apple
E3    Charles Amoah–    Fre Me (Call Me)
F1    George Darko–    George Darko
F2    Nan Mayen–    Mumude
F3    Nana Budjei–    Asobrachie