Thursday 2 October 2008

VICTOR OLAIYA & HIS ALLSTARS - 'Kiriji'

Boomp3.com
Artist: Victor Olaiya and his All-Stars

Track: Kiriji (taken form the Olaiya’s Victories EP)
Label: Phillips
Catalog#: P 13403 R
Format: Vinyl, 10”
Released: 1961
Country: Holland
Credits:

Top 10” featuring some of Victor Olaiya’s best recordings.

A brief synopsis of Victor’s career up until the forming this group: Victor Oliaya’s journey into music started in East Nigeria where he was admitted to The African School in Onitsha. He enrolled in the school brass band and started learning the B flat Bombadine and the French horn.

Victor Olaiya moved to Lagos in 1947 and formed the Epkos Band. This was a typical street brass band with a composition of three brass instrumentalists, one side-drummer, one drummer, and six stick players.

In 1948, Victor broke into Sammy Akpabot’s Sextet as Assistant Bandleader and first trumpeter. Between 1950 – 1952 Victor founded and led the old Lagos City Orchestra and The City Tempo Orchestra and in mid-May 1952, wangled his way into Bobby Benson’s Orchestra. Here he became bandleader of Benson’s second band, often referred to as the Alfa’s Carnival Group.

Then in 1954, at the West End café, with Tax Oluwa on bass and Karl “Dizzy” Woody on trumpet, Victor made his first appearance as Victor Olaiya and His Cool Cats (which eventually became Victor Oliaya and his All-Stars in 1957). Enjoy….

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