IMOIKEME / ODODO by SOLO HIT

Analog Africa presents their new Series of Limited 45s. First 7inch single comes from Benin City in Nigeria. Solo Hit an Obscure artist with a very twisted and funky sound, discovered and produced by the legendary musician Victor Uwaifo. The record comes in a beautiful cover made in Thailand, hand stamped and numbered. Strictly limited to 1500 copies. TIP!!Solo Hit’s real name is Ohieirme, which means “God gave me” He was born in 1954 in Avbiosi, Western Nigeria. His father, Igbuan, was a popular guitar player and his mother composed and sang songs in the local idioms, while she worked at home. Legend has it the people of Avbiosi were known for their ability to soothsay. Solo Hit began his musical career when he was around 10 or 11 when he went into the woods, chopped down a tree, and made his first guitar. In his 2nd year of college he was able to replace his home made guitar with a new Spanish guitar and began playing regularly in other major towns in the locality like Auchi, Uzebba, and Sabongidda-Ora. After college Solo Hit went to the North to pursue a career playing rock music, but was lured back to play in Waziri Oshomah’s highlife band before joining Sir Victor Uwaifo’s Titibitis band in 1978 as the 2nd Rhythm guitarist. He stayed with the band for 5 years, before forming his own, which went under the names Solo Hits and his Ododo Soundz International. The word Ododo refers to the Edo people and is sometimes translated as the word “rare truth” or “beautiful flower”. He then began recording LP’s with several of the top record labels in the area including: Iroube Records in Eruere, Atose records based in Sabongidda-Ora and Akpolla Records in Benin City. Most of the music on these LP’s is listed as Owan Native Blues or Luleha Native Highlife. The two tracks presented here were released on an earlier LP he did in 1981 when he was still a member of the Titibitis. Recorded at the Victor Uwaifo’s Joromi studio, ths unique sound was dubbed Oba Afro Funk. According to Professor Victor Uwaifo it was a mixture of Ekassa music and pop sung in the Ora dialect of the Edo language. The sound on all his recordings reflects the way Solo Hit mined the local Edo folklore for rhythms and stories to use in his songs.