Review: Osibisa’s New Dawn

1 May 2021 - 10:24

With a collection of 14 original songs, New Dawn, Osibisa’s first album in more than three decades, is undoubtedly the band’s strongest, most vibrant offering to date.

Osibisa.

Osibisa is an Afro-rock band founded in London in 1969 by four expatriate African and three Caribbean musicians. Their music is a fusion of African, Caribbean, jazz, funk, rock, Latin, R&B and highlife. They were originally signed to MCA Records and became the most successful of the African heritage bands in London, alongside such contemporaries as Assagai, Chris McGregor’s Brotherhood of Breath, Demon Fuzz and Noir, and were largely responsible for the establishment of world music as a marketable genre. Osibisa’s vibrant sound and ground-breaking live performances influenced some of the greatest musical icons, such as Stevie Wonder, Santana, Al Green, The Rolling Stones, Johnny Nash and Bob Marley.

The new project, released on Marquee Records and distributed by Universal, also arrives 45 years after their debut song ‘Sunshine Day’ stormed onto the UK Singles Chart. Written predominantly by Robert Bailey and Gregg Kofi Brown, New Dawn is Osibisa's first album distributed by a major label in more than 30 years. The original three Osibisa albums released by MCA/Universal were their eponymous debut in 1971, Woyaya in 1972 and Heads in 1973.

On New Dawn, founder Teddy Osei reunites Robert Bailey (keyboards) and Gregg Kofi Brown (guitar and vocals). The band also welcomes the first female talent in the previously male-dominated band. As the first-ever African band to play at the iconic Marquee Club, it’s fitting that Osibisa is now the first signing of Marquee Records. Promising an eclectic mix of Osibsia”s signature Afro-rock and contemporary popular dance-floor fillers, the LP is a much-needed offering of joy.

“Forty-five years since our first UK chart hit with ’Sunshine Day', it’s a privilege to see the Osibisa vibe still going strong today,” Osei said about the new album and line-up. “The band has always been a fluid collective of passionate musicians, which injects an ever-evolving freshness to our sound ... New Dawn is a diverse, dynamic collection of tracks, all underpinned by the original Osibisa Afrobeat vibe that I brought to the UK over half a century ago. I couldn’t be prouder to present this latest evolution of Osibisa.”

Among the highlights of New Dawn is ‘Doula’, which celebrates the life of the late Manu Dibango, a godfather of makossa music who died of COVID-19 in Paris, France, in April 2020.

Harking back to a retro ’80s rock vibe, New Dawn also boasts the gritty ‘Adjuwa Aye’, catapulting us into sheer happiness. There’s also ‘Yo Luv Is Betta’, the joyous ‘Boni Wo Yu A,’ and the James Brown-esque ‘Lift Your Head Up’, written by Brown and Kari Bannerman (guitar), who say they were inspired by ex-Osibisa bassist Jean-Karl Dikoto Mandengue. Douala in Cameroon was Mandengue’s home town and his vibrant humour and personality resonated strongly during the songwriting process for this track. Osibisa spotlight the incredible talent of the Cameroon Dance Academy in a video that accompanies this danceable track.

The collection also takes us on a dreamy melodic road with a jazz-led, Jessica Rabbit-style slice of seduction from the deep rich vocals of Faye Brown on ‘Dark Matter’, the gentle soulful ballad of ‘Yen Kita’ and the endearing smoothness of ‘Wake Up’.

Guest performers on the album include Seal guitarist and songwriter Gus Isidore, Ashley Slater, the frontman from ‘90s band Freak Power (co-founded with Fatboy Slim), percussionist Pandit Dinesh (Blancmange, Michael Jackson, Dire Straits), drummer Richard Bailey (Jeff Beck, Stevie Winwood, Incognito) and jazz singer and composer Ola Onabule.

Reformed, revamped and reinvigorated, Osibisa of 2021 takes flight from their pioneering Afro-rock ties of old, leaping into genres like reggae, jazz, calypso, pop and soul – while weaving their signature African vibes into every melodic fibre: big band instrumentation fused with the utter joy that naturally gushes from the cumulative work of the many band members.

Listen to New Dawn here.