All posts by Banning Eyre

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  video May 16, 2013

  Accra Journal: Men Cheers Brass Band

    Perhaps the most enjoyable two hours I spent in Accra were on the back of a flatbed truck, surrounded by the ebullient players of the Men Cheers Brass Band of Tema.  This procession through the streets of Accra was … Read more »

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  blog May 1, 2013

  Accra Journal 2: FOKN Bois–Hiplife’s cutting edge

  A lot’s been going on here in Accra.  Our Hip Deep colleague Mark LeVine (UC Irvine historian and rocker!) has joined us.  He’s put up a post about our adventures with the inimitable Ebo Taylor, who will be the central … Read more »

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  blog April 24, 2013

  Accra 2013 Journal: First Two Nights

  Plenty jetlag on arrival in hot, happening Accra!  But a quick plunge in the ocean, a plate of local fish, and a tall Star beer, and we were ready to go to work for Afropop’s Hip Deep adventure in Ghana.  … Read more »

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  review April 10, 2013

  Jama Ko

  Bassekou Kouyate, the pre-eminent master of the humble West African spike lute—called ngoni in Mali—offers a grand summation of musical, personal, and even military history in his third CD with the group Ngoni Ba.  First, there have been some changes … Read more »

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  review March 22, 2013

  Freshlyground, Take Me to the Dance

  Freshlyground have staked out unique territory on the South African music landscape. A multi-racial pop band that filters traditional and local musical ideas through savvy, often quirky, international pop and rock production, the band is a true reflection of contemporary … Read more »