ガーナの内陸北東部の街ボンゴで、音楽スタジオを経営しているフランシス・アヤムガは、キング・アイソバのバンドで打楽器を担当もしていて（アイソバの故郷もボンゴにほど近いソー、という街）、その縁で、ガーナはフラフラの人々のコロゴ音楽を世界に紹介する功労者、オランダはマックム・レコーズを主宰するアーノルド・デ・ボア（ギタリストでもあり）はフランシスと懇意になり、ボンゴの彼のスタジオで録音された様々なフラフラ・ミュージックを聴くことができたそう。そんな中から厳選された音楽家達による新録が本CD収録の８曲ということになります。ラップ、ゴスペル、コロゴ・ミュージック、伝統的なチャンティングなどのバリエーションに富んだ、ガーナはアッパーイースト音楽の多彩さを、ヴァイタリティに満ちた曲の並びで紹介したオムニバスとなっています。

1.Fausty Amoa Mabila – Nosanayine 03:40
2.Awudu messenger – Seero 04:21
3.Linda Ayupuka – Ndaana Eera Ymah 05:15
4.Atiah Mba – Hunanki 08:37
5.Ragazeer – Matala Ligri 03:55
6.I Remember Yesterday – Boboriga N Lobema 04:26
7.Big Gad – Socre 05:51
8.Sugri Hajia Zenabu – Sugri 08:41

Bongo is a small town and is the capital of Bongo District, a district in the Upper East Region of Ghana. It’s a twenty minute drive to the border of Burkina Faso; “we share water” one of King Ayisoba’s band members once said. King Ayisoba, one of Ghana’s most famous musicians, was born and raised in Soe, a small village just outside Bongo; a fifteen minute drive on a sand road. Each time I visit the Bongo District, I have to visit King Ayisoba’s family too and pay my respects. Ayisoba’s father and mother are old but vital, they still work the land. I heard that during the harvest time everyone is a farmer. Young people come back home from the big cities like Accra and Kumasi to help with the harvesting and most of them have herded cows and goats when they were young.
Sitting on the back of Francis Ayamga’s motorbike we make many stops. Francis plays the traditiona drum in King Ayisoba’s band and he runs a studio in Bongo. He knows most of the people in Bongo, and there is always something new going on. Of course he has to explain why he has a white man on the back of his bike. The people in Bongo are proud of all the musicians and especially of King Ayisoba and his band who play the whole world and bring the Frafra tradition to all the continents. Actually he is teaching the world some Frafra along the way since King Ayisoba is well known for his powerful shouts and interaction with the audience.
During one of the King Ayisoba tours Francis gave me a pendrive full of music he recorded in his studio. I listened through all and heard a lot of great music. I made a selection, sat down with Francis and King Ayisoba and then came the idea to make a compilation that represents the music from the Upper East, focused on Bongo, all in Frafra and full of variation: rap, gospel, kologo and traditional chanting, it’s all there. I spent a week at Francis’ Top Link studio and met many great musicians. One of them was Zenabu, a traditional singer who brought her whole women group. They did not fit in the studio so we recorded them outside and it sounds beautiful. （以上、メーカーインフォより）