*King Bruce* was born in James Town, Accra, in 1922. His musical experiences started early and were varied. His mother belonged to a traditional women's singing group called *Etsi Penfo.* His eldest brother *Kpakpo Thompson* taught him piano. Another brother, *Eddie Bruce*, played palm wine guitar styles like "fireman" and "dagomba wire," in a band with a group of seamen called *Canteen.* At the same time and much against his parent's wishes, *King Bruce* was a keen follower of the Accra street music, such as the *alaha* (also called adaha), *kolomashie, tsibode, koyin,* and other popular dance-styles played by the Ga-Adangme Ethnic group. At the prestigious Achimota College, *King Bruce* continued to be inspired by music, particularly by some of the teachers who taught there. These included *Phillip Gbeho,* who composed Ghana's national anthem, and *Dr. Ephraim Amu.* "Dr. Amu was", as King Bruce recalled, "my house-master as well as my music teacher and taught us his Twi and Eʋe songs. He had come to *Achimota* after he lost his appointment as a Teacher at the Akropong Training College because of his strong African tendencies. He didn't believe in the idea of going to classes or church in Western-style suits, but always wore traditional kente cloth or batakari. He had these strong feelings about African culture as far back as the 1930s and was welcomed at Achimota, as the founders of the school- *Guggisberg, Fraser, and Aggrey* -were strongly interested in promoting African ways." It was at the end of his schooldays at Achimota that *King Bruce* developed a taste for swing and dance-band music. King recalled "These were the war years and we had British and American army units stationed here. They had *bands* for their entertainment and so ballroom music progressed very much. The airport was virtually taken over by the Americans and one wing of Achimota College itself was taken over by the British resident minister, who was taking care of the British war effort here. So this was the time of musicians like *Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw;* so by the time I left Achimota, I had a definite taste for jazz and swing." *King Bruce* did not actually start playing in dance band until he had spent a couple of years in England studying to be a civil servant with the *P & T* (Posts and Telegraphs) and learning to play the trumpet. On returning to Accra in 1951 he hung around for awhile with top musicians like *Adolf Doku, E.T. Mensah, Kofi Ghanaba (Guy Warren), Joe Kelly, and Papa Hughes.* He occasionally played clips (claves) for Ghana's leading highlife dance-band, *the Tempos*. When King felt he was ready to go on stage with his trumpet, he joined *Teacher Lamptey's Accra Orchestra*. *King Bruce* stayed with this group until 1952, when he and tenor saxophonist *Saka Acquaye* formed the *Black Beats band.* King recalled, "The name just came out spontaneously. One evening when we were coming home from rehearsals, *Saka* asked me what name we were going to use. Without hesitation, I said *'Black Beats.'* The reason was that Dr Ephraim Amu at Achimota had impressed on us the *necessity for doing things African*. At the same time, we were all very much enamored with *jazz, swing and music with a beat*. So we were all interested in playing good dance-band music, but keen on giving everything a *recognizably African beat."* In contrast with other Ghanaian dance-bands, the Black Beats vocalists *(the Black Birds, Lewis Wadawa, and Frank Barnes)* dominated the instrumental line-up; and in this they were influenced by the swing and "jump" music of Afro-American *Louis Jordan*. It was with this high vocal profile that the *Black Beats* began to release a string of highlife hits for the labels of the day, *HWV, Senophone, and Decca.* The titles *King Bruce* composed included "Teemon Sane" (A Confidential Matter), "Laimomo" (Old Lover), "Nkuse Mbaa Dong" (I'll Never Return), "Nomo Noko" (A Thing of Joy), "Srotoi Ye Mli" (Distinctions), and "Agoogyl" (Money - a song composed by *Oscarmore Ofori).* In 196, Alto saxophonist *Jerry Hansen and nine musicians* left the semi-professional *Black Beats* to form the fully professional *Ramblers Dance Band.* Nevertheless, within a few months *King Bruce* had reorganized his band and with this second-generation, *Black Beats* began releasing more hits for Decca, like "Se Nea Woti Ara" (I Love You Just as You Are), "Kwemo Ni Okagbi" (Take Care You Don't Dry Up), "Odo Fofor" (New Love), and "Nkase Din" (I Am Quietly Poised). During the whole period when *King Bruce* was running the *Black Beats*, he was slowly working his way up the civil service ladder, but getting a lot of criticism from his superiors for playing on stage. *King Bruce* recalled, "At first the opposition from my employers came in hints. Then in 1967 the opposition came in black and white as a result of a letter I received from the government. It was from the head of the Administrative Civil Service and they told me that I had now got to the stage where I was due for promotion from assistant to full principal secretary and that the only thing that stood in my way was my dance band playing. So I had to decide whether to continue playing or accept promotion. I replied that I had commitments to play up to Easter 1968, thereafter I would comply with the undertaking and wouldn't play in public anymore." "I was very much annoyed because I had always believed that *it was the actual playing in a band* that sharpens your faculties and brings new ideas. When you sit down doing nothing you don't create new music. So the ban on my playing hurt me very much as I had to sacrifice a lot to play music and had always wanted to pursue it and make something out of it." To keep his band running, *King Bruce* handed the Black Beats' leadership to *Sammy Odoh.* And instead of playing, King started managing the band, as well as other bands that soon began to base themselves at his house in James Town. During the 1970s he was running *8 "BB" bands*: the Black Beats, Barbecues, Barons, Bonafides, Barristers, Boulders, "B" Soyaaya, and Blessed Apostles. Besides being a senior civil servant, composer, band leader, manager, and teacher of the hundred or so musicians who have passed through his groups, *King Bruce* also found time to help organize all three of Ghana's music unions: the 1950s *Gold Coast Association of Musicians*, the short-lived (1960-1966) *Ghana Musicians Union*, and the present-day *Musician's Union of Ghana* (MUSIGA), formed in 1974. In August 1987, *King Bruce* gave a number of interesting presentations at the conference of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM) held in Accra on *"Africa in the World of Popular Music."* After 1977, *King Bruce* retired from the civil service but continued to actively pursue his musical career. He kept running two bands "B" bands *(the Black Beats and Barristers)* and began to re-record some of his old hits. He was also active in *MUSIGA*, and was involved in changes in the *copyright law* that now make *royalty infringement a criminal offence.* Towards the end of his life he became for a while the manager of the sixteen-track *Elephant Walk recording studio* in Kaneshie, Accra, established in the 1970's by *Phonogram* and the local producer *Dick Essilfie-Bondzie.* On April 30, 1988, an award was given to *King Bruce* by the Entertainment Critics and Reviewers Association of Ghana (ECRAG) for his "immense contribution to the development of Ghanaian art and culture in the field of Highlife music. In 1995 *King Bruce*, with the help of his son *Eddie Ayitey Bruce*, launched a very successful double cassette album of old Black Beats hits on the local market. This was followed by a fifteen track CD called the *`Golden Highlife Classics'* released in London by the Retroafric label. In 1996 he was involved in the *`Highlife Month'* organized by the German Goethe Institute and the local BAPMAF African popular music NGO to which he was a founding member. *King Bruce* passed on, on September 12 1997. He left behind many protégés, and his work will be felt in Ghana for years to come. According to his son *Eddie Ayitey Bruce*, " His father was truly gifted and so in a unique way he created tuneful, catchy and haunting melodies that made a serious impact on listeners"
Very creative with just a single theme! These were musical greats who thought outside the box and reflected on like and environment. Well educated too.
My late father used to play this song back to back to back in his shop. As a little boy back then it didn't mean much to me. These are deep lyrics. Adeboi nibiii srotoi y3 mli l33l3n
KING BRUCE 🤴 👑 and the B B band groups, About four house from where we grew up, The Great Azumah Nelson and his famous , I wear lenards shoe's advert sharing same street , okomfo sapei RIP THE QUIET GENTLEMAN 🤫, 70s and 80s, those days are forever gone
It's interesting to know a single fruit exists in different names and varieties. I know just two names for a limited number of them. How come we don't have them anymore in our textbooks? Maybe we are busy learning names foreign fruits like pumpkins, raspberry , kiwis, amongst others.
*King Bruce* was born in James Town, Accra, in 1922. His musical experiences started early and were varied. His mother belonged to a traditional women's singing group called *Etsi Penfo.* His eldest brother *Kpakpo Thompson* taught him piano. Another brother, *Eddie Bruce*, played palm wine guitar styles like "fireman" and "dagomba wire," in a band with a group of seamen called *Canteen.* At the same time and much against his parent's wishes, *King Bruce* was a keen follower of the Accra street music, such as the *alaha* (also called adaha), *kolomashie, tsibode, koyin,* and other popular dance-styles played by the Ga-Adangme Ethnic group.
At the prestigious Achimota College, *King Bruce* continued to be inspired by music, particularly by some of the teachers who taught there. These included *Phillip Gbeho,* who composed Ghana's national anthem, and *Dr. Ephraim Amu.*
"Dr. Amu was", as King Bruce recalled, "my house-master as well as my music teacher and taught us his Twi and Eʋe songs. He had come to *Achimota* after he lost his appointment as a Teacher at the Akropong Training College because of his strong African tendencies. He didn't believe in the idea of going to classes or church in Western-style suits, but always wore traditional kente cloth or batakari. He had these strong feelings about African culture as far back as the 1930s and was welcomed at Achimota, as the founders of the school- *Guggisberg, Fraser, and Aggrey* -were strongly interested in promoting African ways."
It was at the end of his schooldays at Achimota that *King Bruce* developed a taste for swing and dance-band music. King recalled "These were the war years and we had British and American army units stationed here. They had *bands* for their entertainment and so ballroom music progressed very much. The airport was virtually taken over by the Americans and one wing of Achimota College itself was taken over by the British resident minister, who was taking care of the British war effort here. So this was the time of musicians like *Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw;* so by the time I left Achimota, I had a definite taste for jazz and swing."
*King Bruce* did not actually start playing in dance band until he had spent a couple of years in England studying to be a civil servant with the *P & T* (Posts and Telegraphs) and learning to play the trumpet. On returning to Accra in 1951 he hung around for awhile with top musicians like *Adolf Doku, E.T. Mensah, Kofi Ghanaba (Guy Warren), Joe Kelly, and Papa Hughes.* He occasionally played clips (claves) for Ghana's leading highlife dance-band, *the Tempos*. When King felt he was ready to go on stage with his trumpet, he joined *Teacher Lamptey's Accra Orchestra*.
*King Bruce* stayed with this group until 1952, when he and tenor saxophonist *Saka Acquaye* formed the *Black Beats band.* King recalled, "The name just came out spontaneously. One evening when we were coming home from rehearsals, *Saka* asked me what name we were going to use. Without hesitation, I said *'Black Beats.'* The reason was that Dr Ephraim Amu at Achimota had impressed on us the *necessity for doing things African*. At the same time, we were all very much enamored with *jazz, swing and music with a beat*. So we were all interested in playing good dance-band music, but keen on giving everything a *recognizably African beat."*
In contrast with other Ghanaian dance-bands, the Black Beats vocalists *(the Black Birds, Lewis Wadawa, and Frank Barnes)* dominated the instrumental line-up; and in this they were influenced by the swing and "jump" music of Afro-American *Louis Jordan*. It was with this high vocal profile that the *Black Beats* began to release a string of highlife hits for the labels of the day, *HWV, Senophone, and Decca.* The titles *King Bruce* composed included "Teemon Sane" (A Confidential Matter), "Laimomo" (Old Lover), "Nkuse Mbaa Dong" (I'll Never Return), "Nomo Noko" (A Thing of Joy), "Srotoi Ye Mli" (Distinctions), and "Agoogyl" (Money - a song composed by *Oscarmore Ofori).*
In 196, Alto saxophonist *Jerry Hansen and nine musicians* left the semi-professional *Black Beats* to form the fully professional *Ramblers Dance Band.* Nevertheless, within a few months *King Bruce* had reorganized his band and with this second-generation, *Black Beats* began releasing more hits for Decca, like "Se Nea Woti Ara" (I Love You Just as You Are), "Kwemo Ni Okagbi" (Take Care You Don't Dry Up), "Odo Fofor" (New Love), and "Nkase Din" (I Am Quietly Poised).
During the whole period when *King Bruce* was running the *Black Beats*, he was slowly working his way up the civil service ladder, but getting a lot of criticism from his superiors for playing on stage. *King Bruce* recalled, "At first the opposition from my employers came in hints. Then in 1967 the opposition came in black and white as a result of a letter I received from the government. It was from the head of the Administrative Civil Service and they told me that I had now got to the stage where I was due for promotion from assistant to full principal secretary and that the only thing that stood in my way was my dance band playing. So I had to decide whether to continue playing or accept promotion. I replied that I had commitments to play up to Easter 1968, thereafter I would comply with the undertaking and wouldn't play in public anymore."
"I was very much annoyed because I had always believed that *it was the actual playing in a band* that sharpens your faculties and brings new ideas. When you sit down doing nothing you don't create new music. So the ban on my playing hurt me very much as I had to sacrifice a lot to play music and had always wanted to pursue it and make something out of it."
To keep his band running, *King Bruce* handed the Black Beats' leadership to *Sammy Odoh.* And instead of playing, King started managing the band, as well as other bands that soon began to base themselves at his house in James Town. During the 1970s he was running *8 "BB" bands*: the Black Beats, Barbecues, Barons, Bonafides, Barristers, Boulders, "B" Soyaaya, and Blessed Apostles.
Besides being a senior civil servant, composer, band leader, manager, and teacher of the hundred or so musicians who have passed through his groups, *King Bruce* also found time to help organize all three of Ghana's music unions: the 1950s *Gold Coast Association of Musicians*, the short-lived (1960-1966) *Ghana Musicians Union*, and the present-day *Musician's Union of Ghana* (MUSIGA), formed in 1974.
In August 1987, *King Bruce* gave a number of interesting presentations at the conference of the International Association for the Study of Popular Music (IASPM) held in Accra on *"Africa in the World of Popular Music."*
After 1977, *King Bruce* retired from the civil service but continued to actively pursue his musical career. He kept running two bands "B" bands *(the Black Beats and Barristers)* and began to re-record some of his old hits. He was also active in *MUSIGA*, and was involved in changes in the *copyright law* that now make *royalty infringement a criminal offence.* Towards the end of his life he became for a while the manager of the sixteen-track *Elephant Walk recording studio* in Kaneshie, Accra, established in the 1970's by *Phonogram* and the local producer *Dick Essilfie-Bondzie.*
On April 30, 1988, an award was given to *King Bruce* by the Entertainment Critics and Reviewers Association of Ghana (ECRAG) for his "immense contribution to the development of Ghanaian art and culture in the field of Highlife music.
In 1995 *King Bruce*, with the help of his son *Eddie Ayitey Bruce*, launched a very successful double cassette album of old Black Beats hits on the local market. This was followed by a fifteen track CD called the *`Golden Highlife Classics'* released in London by the Retroafric label. In 1996 he was involved in the *`Highlife Month'* organized by the German Goethe Institute and the local BAPMAF African popular music NGO to which he was a founding member.
*King Bruce* passed on, on September 12 1997. He left behind many protégés, and his work will be felt in Ghana for years to come. According to his son *Eddie Ayitey Bruce*,
" His father was truly gifted and so in a unique way he created tuneful, catchy and haunting melodies that made a serious impact on listeners"
This is a beautiful write-up. Thanks.
Very creative with just a single theme! These were musical greats who thought outside the box and reflected on like and environment. Well educated too.
My late father used to play this song back to back to back in his shop. As a little boy back then it didn't mean much to me.
These are deep lyrics. Adeboi nibiii srotoi y3 mli l33l3n
Old school music 🎶 🎵 👌 😌 🙌 ❤ 🎶
Ghanaian pride
Authentic beat, missed the old good days
KING BRUCE 🤴 👑 and the B B band groups, About four house from where we grew up, The Great Azumah Nelson and his famous , I wear lenards shoe's advert sharing same street , okomfo sapei RIP THE QUIET GENTLEMAN 🤫, 70s and 80s, those days are forever gone
my father mentioned his name. i needed to come and see for myself. i remember this song as a child
He is my grand pa
This is music by a genius. Magnificent!
This is music of great, talented Ghanaian musicians; King Bruce and the Black Beats of Accra, Ghana.
It's interesting to know a single fruit exists in different names and varieties. I know just two names for a limited number of them.
How come we don't have them anymore in our textbooks? Maybe we are busy learning names foreign fruits like pumpkins, raspberry , kiwis, amongst others.
A brilliant song from one of Ghana’s great bands!!!
so much metaphors and devices in one piece. great
I really like this song especially because I am a Ga
I'm loving it
Priceless Music💯
Old Ga songs
almost forgotten, thank you
I wonder why they don't celebrate such personalities