Kari Bannerman, Ghana’s most renowned and versatile guitarist has over twenty years experience playing popular African music. He began his professional career in the mid seventies in Ghana, founding Boombaya, and within a year won the ‘Band of the year’ award. A successful tour of the U.K. followed, but Boombaya broke up before releasing an album that would document their freshness and originality.
Kari Bannerman then took his talent to Osibisa, who reportedly topped the album charts in four continents. Kari toured the world with Osibisa, recorded several albums with them, and was awarded a gold disc for Osibisa’s tour of India.
Kari has since become a sought after guitarist in Britain for both live performances and studio work. His list of international credits includes Hugh Masekela, Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac), Alexander O’Neal, Odyssey, Ronnie Laws, Femi Kuti, Dele Sosimi, Jason Yarde, Sister Sledge, Gasper Lawal’s African Oro Band, Highlife king E.T Mensah, Native Spirit, Palm wine king S.E. Rogie, Pat Thomas Kwadwo Antwi, Carol Grimes, Claude Deppa’s A.M.E, Rex Omar, Nana Tsiboe, Ed Bentley, Alex Wilson and Dave Chambers and many other artists in the music industry.
Further credits for studio work include contributions on over thirty highlife tracks, including the classics; Bunny Macks hit “Let me love youâ€, Ben Brako’s Baya album and S.E Rogies “ Dead don’t smoke marijuanaâ€.
Kari’s film credits include composing the guitar score and playing for “Feet of song†which won the best British Film Institutes Best video award (1991) and “Triangleâ€, which was nominated for an Oscar in 1995. He also composed and played guitar for the sound track of a film about the Rwanda disaster, commissioned by Oxfam.
Coming full circle, Kari reformed Boombaya in 1993, infusing the band’s Ghanaian roots with his international experience. Boombaya’s new sound aims to modernise Ghanaian music, with a repertoire that spans popular music such as highlife and traditional music, such as Agbadza.
Kari’s arrangements push the melodic and harmonic boundaries of Ghanaian music into adventurous and exciting musical terrain, which is wonderfully displayed in his track 'Cry of the Pigmy' from his 2001 Ghana Gone Jazz album. The rhythmic and dance element is fundamental to Boombaya’s music, but its strong improvisational elements make this music appreciated in jazz circles. Kari’s lyrics are as versatile as his music, sometimes playful, and at other times offering social and political comment.
Kari Bannerman and Paulina Oduro performing at the Royal Festival Hall
