No doubt about it, The Pace Setters, by Ghanaian group Edikanfo is a devilishly funky album. Their cocktail of traditional percussion, typical brass instruments from the local highlife music, organs that seem to have been borrowed from Stevie Wonder’s or Fela’s studio, tumbling guitars and subterranean bass, topped off with cheerful tribal chants, has been balanced wonderfully with Brian Eno’s production skills in Accra, Ghana. It’s release in 1981 marked the beginning of their commercial success but the coup d’état in Ghana that same year deprived the group of the fruits of their labour. Now, thanks to the very lively German label Glitterbeat, this joyful and energetic gem has been reissued for the first time since its release forty years ago. The occasion has brought together the surviving members of Edifanko who hope to perform on international stages once again in their upcoming tour. © Benjamin MiNiMuM/Qobuz