Ernie's African Odyssey Pt 22 - Gambia

We have arrived in The Gambia - possibly prematurely for those of you who think it should be listed under T rather than G. We are also now exactly 40% of the way through our African tour. We kicked the series off back in May, so at this rate our bandwagon is unlikely to be rolling into Harare until November next year.

The Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa and, except for the 30 miles of coastline, is completely surrounded by Senegal. This is unusual but not unique. There is one African country that is completely contained within the borders of another country. There may be a prize for the first person to name it.

I've never visited The Gambia myself but my dear old Dad worked there for about a year in the mid-1960s, helping to build parts of the Trans-Gambia Highway. He had some great stories about his time there, like how he and his crew spent two days pretending to be hotel staff for the benefit of a French honeymooning couple who had been taken in by the hand-drawn 'Club Med' sign someone had put up outside their remote camp.   

A group called Super Eagles were just getting started around about the time my Dad was working there. If you happen to own Volume 3 of the Luaka Bop "World Psychedelic Classics" series you will be familiar with them. They were a very good soul band, and nearly featured here in that incarnation, but in the mid 1970s they mutated into Ifang Bondi. With the name change came a change of style, with much greater use of indigenous rhythms and instruments. Today's choice is taken from their excellent 1978 album "Saraba".

Ifang Bondi's new style (known as 'afro-manding') inspired a wave of other bands. Foremost among them were Guelewar, or The Guelewar Band of Banjul to give them their full name, who set the local scene alight in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They were also very popular over the border in Senegal, and the great Youssou N'Dour has evidently cited them as an early influence. I've opted for the title track of their 1979 album "Sama Yaye Demna Ndar".

Ifang Bondi's influence continues to be felt in many ways and in many places. Take the example of their former percussionist Musa Mboob who dedicates his life to promoting Gambian culture from his home in the remote village of (checks notes) Brighton. He also continues to make some cracking music in his own right, as demonstrated by this track from his 2010 album "Haral". 

Our fourth act have also been around since the early 1980s, ploughing a similar furrow to the others, and are also still very much active today. They are the Juffureh Band, named after the town that was a major slaving post (and the fictional birthplace of Kunte Kinte in the novel "Roots"). Today's track comes from their 2018 EP, "Abarake Bake". Very good it is indeed.

We round off the audio with some Mandatory African Reggae courtesy of Masta Lion. Hailing from Birikama in The Gambia but now based in Finland, this track comes from his 2021 album "Tribute To Mama". Masta Lion managed to enlist the help of well-known Jamaican singers like Sizzla and Anthony B on the album, so he is clearly a well-connected man.

"Atis-A-Tis" - Ifang Bondi

"Sama Yaye Demna Ndar" - Guelewar

"Dunia" - Musa Mboob

"Kunung Wularo" - Juffureh Band

"Tribute To Tata Dinding" - Masta Lion