Ghana's Highlife Music Collection

Wulomei

Biography

Wulomei

Founded by Ga drummer Nii Ashitey and the dramatist Saka Acquaye in 1973, Wulomei (the Ga word for “chief priest”) is a folk revival band from Accra inspired by the Ga sea shanties, kolomashies (a Ga form of street highlife), Cuban pachangas and kpanlogos (a mixture of highlife and local drumming). The band includes three female and three male vocalists, bamboo flutes, percussion section of drums, calabash, clips, gong and giant frame gombe drum.

The first LP "Mibe Shi Dinn", which was released in 1974, was followed by "Walatu Walasa" in the same year, which led to a 45-day tour of the United States in 1975. Further LPs on Polydor encouraged and inspired the formation of other bands like Dzadzeloi and Abladei.

In 1975, Wulomei released a second LP called “Wulomei in Drum Conference” which consists of nine Ga songs and one old Liberian song that dates back to the forties. While young and talented folk performers have revived the Wulomei name and traditional concepts in folk music, the original Wulomei members have mostly retired from public performance.

Source: J. Collins, 1994, p. 141;