REVIEW: EBO TAYLOR – LOVE AND DEATH

Ebo Taylor
Love and Death
Strut

The past few years have been good ones for African music. While the likes of Damon Albarn and Vampire Weekend have led a new wave of interest in incorporating African rhythms and sounds into indie and rock, Madlib’s third installment in his twelve part Medicine show series showed that hip-hop artists have also started to look to Africa for beat making inspiration.As is often the case when Western artists start getting enthusiastic about music from countries that were previously off their radar, this interest in African sounds has brought new opportunities for musicians who have been plying their trade for some time with only modest success. One such case is the Ghanaian guitarist and producer Ebo Taylor, who has been making music since the 1950s but has only now got an international solo release. A mixture of new tracks and fresh takes on classic Taylor compositions, Love and Death sees Taylor join forces with a group of musicians including members of the Poets of Rhythm to produce a classy and tight piece of Afrobeat. Standout tracks include the opener, “Nga Nga,” and “Kwame,” which highlight both Taylor’s ear for a good rhythm and the quality of the musicians he’s worked with on the album. All pretty impressive for a 74 year old! Top marks to Strut for putting this record out.

Words: Prof Chris Renwick