The Original ‘Owa Nbe’ Sound, Vol. 1

Tunde Nightingale recorded several volumes of “The Original ‘Owanbe’ Sound”, named after the style he pioneered in which “S’owambe” and “O’wambe” were a customary call and response in reference to the waist beads worn by female fans or the money and gifts he expected to be placed on his head or at his feet as a sign of appreciation. Nightingale was born in Ibadan and formed his first jùjú group in 1944, becoming one of the first successful jùjú musicians following the Second World War. Nightingale helped popularize the electric guitar, but more than anything he changed the culture around this style of music: when he began playing jùjú was not popular among the elites, and was seen more as bar music for the working class. However, starting in the early ‘50s Tunde Nightingale and his Agba Jolly Orchestra began performing regularly at the West African Club in Ibadan, where he would entertain his high-class patrons with animated talking drum intermissions, nimble guitar playing, and by singing their praises. This practice would become a huge part of the jùjú culture, which would see future stars like Chief Commander Ebenezer Obey and King Sunny Ade become darlings of Nigeria’s rich and powerful.