Over a decade ago, I saw him at the Airport hotel in Port Harcourt, and a couple of years after his death, Barclay issued 4 absolutely essential vinyl boxsets of Nigeria's legend Fela. He is one of the few African artists whose importance has been recognised out of Africa. Since then, many people rediscovered afrobeat and have even been directed, if the curiosity is there, to highlife or juju music. I clearly remember the day I heard Sir Victor Uwaifo's Guitar Boy on the radio, while in Warri in the Niger Delta, for the first time in the early 90s. My secretary was singing along and I nicknamed her Mamie Water as a result. By then, those 70s records were not reissued on CD and it was near impossible to find the original vinyls. I eventually did but the sound quality was very poor. On a trip to Benin City I even nearly made it to Sir Victor Uwaifo's house ready to ask for a copy from the mastertape. I caressed the dream of creating a label and making the western public aware of those great tracks. Alas. Years later some labels did a better job than I would probably have done. AfroStrut re-issued some lovely albums and compilations and many followed. The latest in the list is Brighton based label Soundway Records and they have just put together an amazing compilation of Sir Victor Uwaifo's lost classics. An essential purchase from the man who became the first African to be awarded a Gold disc on this continent. And for the small story, he is so popular in Nigeria that you can write him a letter simply addressed as “Sir Victor Uwaifo Nigeria” and out of the 150 million people of Nigeria, the letter will be delivered at his door step. Or so the legend says.
Listen / Download 'Guitar Boy' here
Purchase the album here
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