SWEETER THAN HONEY CALYPSO MAHUNO & HIGH LIFES CELEBRATION by PAT THOMAS / EBO TAYLOR

In 1980, Pat & Ebo met up and recorded Sweeter Than Honey, Calypso Mahuno. Composed and arranged by Taylor, burnished by Pat Thomas�s honeyed vocals, the album is a mix of highlife, calypso, funk, jazz, soul and pop.Pat Thomas and Ebo Taylor are the Jagger and Richards of Nigerian Highlife. Drawn together by a mutual love of the genre � and an equally intense desire to stop it becoming moribund and bereft of ideas � Ghana�s two most progressive musicians added a western twist to this traditional form of African music and gave it relevance again. It was by no means a continuous process. Pat Thomas and Ebo Taylor first came together in 1966. Over the decades they�d venture off to play in different bands and even different countries. Periodically they�d get back together and implement the new ideas and skills they�d developed. In 1980, they met up in London and recorded Sweeter Than Honey, Calypso Mahuno. Composed and arranged by Taylor, burnished by Pat Thomas�s honeyed vocals, the album is a mix of highlife, calypso, funk, jazz, soul and pop. From the title track to �Ma Huno�, the album�s undisputed highlight, the ambition � and musicianship � is breathtaking. Sweeter Than Honey, Calypso Mahuno is arguably the purest example of this extraordinary musical partnership. And what Highlife, unshackled, can be. - Peter Moore