{"product_id":"release-date-15-05-26-sikyi-highlife","title":"Sikyi Highlife","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe vocal arrangements echo the traditional Akan modal style, grounding the music firmly in Ghana’s cultural heritage. Yet Sikyi Highlife is equally forward-thinking. As electric guitars became standard in highlife during the 1960s, the 1970s ushered in further experimentation. The Noble Kings broke new ground as the first highlife guitar band to incorporate keyboards and a full horn section into their sound, expanding the genre’s sonic possibilities while retaining its rootsy spirit.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eGyasi’s approach was part of a broader indigenisation movement among Ghana’s electric highlife bands in the post-independence era. Inspired by the nation’s ‘African Personality’ ethos and reinforced by Afrocentric messages arriving from American soul and funk, artists began reclaiming traditional forms within modern arrangements. Contemporaries included Koo Nimo, who revived the older palmwine style, and drummer Nii Ashitey, whose Wulomei band pioneered a folklorised Ga highlife sound from 1973.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLike many musicians of his generation, Gyasi was a passionate supporter of Ghana’s independence movement. In 1963, he travelled as a musical ambassador alongside Ghana’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, performing across North Africa and the USSR and carrying Ghanaian culture onto the world stage.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Noble Kings’ mid-’70s line-up featured some of the country’s finest musicians, including guitarist Eric Agyeman (who led the band at the time), Thomas Frimpong on drums and vocals, Ernest Honny on organ, and bassist Ralph Karikari - who was renowned for his innovative technique of translating the rhythms and tonal language of the traditional talking drum onto electric bass.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTRACKLIST:\n\u003cbr\u003eSide 1:\n\u003cbr\u003eMedley:\n\u003cbr\u003eYEDE ABA\n\u003cbr\u003eMENE MENUA MIENU\n\u003cbr\u003eSABARIMA\n\u003cbr\u003eEBIA NIE\n\u003cbr\u003eAMINTIMINIM\n\u003cbr\u003eSIAKWAA\n\u003cbr\u003eNANA AGYEI\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSide 2:\n\u003cbr\u003eMedley:\n\u003cbr\u003eEFIE NE FIE\n\u003cbr\u003eNYANKONTON NKO NYAA\n\u003cbr\u003eKWANKWAASEM NTI\n\u003cbr\u003eEGYA ANANSE YI WONAN BAAKO\n\u003cbr\u003eKWAADEDE MEYARE MEREWU\n\u003cbr\u003eEDA A MEWU\n\u003cbr\u003eUpon its original release, Sikyi Highlife became one of the biggest-selling albums of the 1970s for Essiebons, earning Gyasi the affectionate honorary title of “Dr” from his devoted fans. Today, the album remains an evergreen classic, still cherished across Ghana and beyond.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Capsule Records","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":58050997256573,"sku":"STRUT438LP","price":26.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0660\/3826\/8152\/files\/20c9a0cba0d3e92bd12a5c6afcc1a3a9.png?v=1776331115","url":"https:\/\/capsulerecords.co.uk\/products\/release-date-15-05-26-sikyi-highlife","provider":"Capsule Records","version":"1.0","type":"link"}