Georges Kouakou Surfaces In Ghana

Georges Kouakou may be an unfamiliar name in Ghanaian music circles but many world-class acts, including the late Joseph ?Culture? Hill, Burning Spear, the Wailers, the Peter Tosh band, King Yellowman and Alpha Blondy have, however, relied on his immense skills as a keyboards player, producer and engineer to enchant audiences around the world.

The United-States based Kouakou is a Ghanaian and says though his reputation over the years has been built on reggae, he is extremely conversant with all styles of popular music.

Currently in town for the Ghana@50 celebrations, he told Graphic Showbiz in an interview that the real test of musicianship is the ability to fit well into whatever genre you decide to deal with.

?I?m known for what I have done for top reggae people but I?m very flexible. I have produced albums for C.K. Mann, Pat Thomas, Nana Ampadu, Sonny Okosun and Shasha Marley over the last few years.

I?m currently occupied with a gospel project for Rev. Bernard Blessing, my host on this trip. I?m really happy to be here.?

Kouakou has been living away from our shores since 1976. His first lessons in music were from his church organist father by the time he was eight at Tarkwa in the Western Region.

The intention was to equip him to also play in the church like his father but the young Georges was already exhibiting his abilities with a concert party band in Kumasi before he was 15.

A desire to improve his knowledge in music led him to the National Institute of Arts in Cote Ivoire.

A job with the national television band facilitated a meeting with reggae singer Alpha Blondy. That led to a ten-year stint in which Kouakou played on and produced groundbreaking albums like Jah Glory, Cocody Rock and Jerusalem for Blondy.

?We finished the Jerusalem album with the Wailers in Jamaica in 1986. It was really exciting working with Blondy, a very jovial person. We travelled widely and made some nice music. The association was mutually beneficial and I enjoyed it while it lasted.?

He also enjoyed producing albums for over 20 other Ivorien artistes, including the famous Aicha Kone, before relocating to the United States in 1991 where he formally studied music recording.

The time logged with Blondy and the Wailers experience pushed up his profile and he was soon a sought-after personality on the international reggae circuit.

Work in the studio and tours with Culture, Burning Spear, King Yellowman and others followed.

?I do not know what makes me different from the other people who also do what I do. Maybe it is my passion for music which pushes me to always go for the ultimate that draw people to me. I love my work and I don?t joke with it.?

Despite spending so much time out of Ghana, Kouakou tries to keep abreast with what his countrymen, both home and abroad, are musically up to.

He sincerely believes there is nothing wrong with big foreign actors coming for shows in Ghana because interaction can breed the urge for curiousity and improvement.

An essential trait he wants the music establishment here to imbibe is a more serious approach to the business component of making music.

Kouakou feels proud that Ghanaian keyboards players are generally regarded as the best on the continent. ?I travel a lot and I meet musicians from everywhere. What I know is that in Africa, Camerounians are seen as the best bassists.

You cannot touch drummers from Cote Ivoire and Congolese guitarists are just fantastic. When it comes to keyboards, players from Ghana are the best rated.?

There?s no work yet out under his own name but Kouakou says that?s fine by him because it is not yet his desire to be seen as the frontman on a project.

He still loves helping other people realise their dreams and takes a lot of inspiration from Quincy Jones for his production skills.

He has no regrets at all becoming a professional musician because that has afforded him the chance to discover the world and provide handsomely for himself and his family.

What he could regret is an inability to impart the experience he has gathered. He feels positive that he would be able to share his knowledge when he finally decides to operate from Ghana. Such a move, he hints, would happen sooner than later.