Shem Tupe, Justo Osala, Enos Okola – Guitar Music of Western Kenya: 45s from the archive of Shem Tupe
Raw Music International/Olvido Records – Limited Edition Cassette (Also available digitally)
This album is a selection of music from the archive of West African guitarist extraordinaire Shem Tupe (real name Shem Tupe Andayi) from the tiny village of Bunyore in Western Kenya. Shem plays in the guitar style called Omutibo, originated by George Mukabi in the fifties, in which a single guitar plays a melody, bass and rhythm line at the same time! As a guitarist, one can but stand in awe of such prodigious technique but in the sixties and seventies Shem teamed up with his friend and neighbour Justus Osala Omufila on second guitar and Enos Okola playing percussion to expand the sound and they became the Abana Ba Nasery (Nursery Boys) Band. According to Shem “… we played a Fanta bottle, an iron bar, and two guitars…” and I have to say they created a sound that cannot fail to bring a smile to your face. They played the dance halls of Nairobi and went on to gain a reputation that took them to London and Europe. They made many recordings but were seemingly not treated well by the music industry in Africa and never received the financial rewards they deserved.
Shem did not succumb to the temptations of the rock and roll lifestyle, always returning to his home in Bunyore. Thankfully he kept an archive of all his recordings, mostly 45 rpm singles (remember them?) preserved in plastic bags and fraying newspaper and, in 2016, after being interviewed at length by Cyrus Moussavi, this selection was released on cassette as ‘The Country Music of Western Kenya’ before being restored for this CD release.
If you want to hear Omutibo in its relatively raw glory listen to “Khwakosa Sina.” with its two minutes of breathtaking guitar and three joyous voices that will have you thinking of sunshine. During the seventies, Shem moved with the times and collaborated with other musicians in a move towards the Congolese Benga style. ‘Namulia Ayileni Wangu’ is a fine example of this more contemporary side to Shem’s work, featuring wonderful reverb and echo-laden guitar and somewhat higher production values in the recording. For myself, I much prefer the unadorned rural style of ‘William Mayoye Wefwe’ with its intertwining guitars, simple percussion and voices.
The restoration and remastering of this collection is a fine piece of work by Michael Graves and is all the more timely because, sadly, Shem passed away in February this year. He will be much missed but at least we have his fine collection with which to remember him.
This release is a second edition of the cassette and is being made available as a fundraiser for the family of Shem Tupe, and to help keep this beautiful music alive and appreciated.