It’s Fender Precision bass all over as Bongo Flava sees a stairway to heaven

DAR ES SALAAM: THE Motown bass guitar virtuoso James Jameson is virtually unknown in Tanzania’s Bongo Flava music despite drawing the blueprint for its bass groove and is so in Nigeria and South Africa, whose Afrobeat and Amapiano also borrow heavily from Motown bass riffs.

Jamerson was the legendary bassist for Motown Records whose bouncing bassline helped to push the rhythm forward.

He preferred a Fender Precision bass that signatured the walking bass approach chromatically.

Though unknown today, Jamerson’s influence has remained immortal and is now heard in the new generation of music.

But in America, the present-day musicians and bassists deeply honour the legendary bassist by regularly voting him the greatest electric bassist of all time and studying his melodic grooves as foundational modern music theory.

Major publications like Rolling Stone and Bass Player magazine consistently rank Jamerson at the very top of all-time bass lists.

Unlike in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s when every American release was known globally, today, almost five decades later, there are very few American musicians who are known globally.

Every piece of music played by Black Americans before the Bongo Flava reign in the mid-1990s was labelled as Motown sound by the DJing legends of that era: Seydou Mkandara, Choggy Slay, Neagre Jay, Deo Mazula, John Peter Pantalakis or Chriss Phaby the Lover.

It is now common to see Michael Jackson’s 90-degree dance in many of the Afropop or Afrobeat videos. In Tanzania, Michael Jackson’s Swahili words… Nakutaka Pia … he used in “Liberian Girl” or his Moonwalker dance are most often found in some of the Bongo Flava hits.

There is unmistakably Motown sound in now trending hits like “Enjoy” by Jux ft Diamond Platnumz, “Pom Pom” Bruce Melodie and Diamond or Salama by Barnaba Classic featuring Diamond Platnumz and the whole word heard it and commented.

“I’m addicted to this song from Japan,” “Mano era antes de escutar esta música carregada de uma mensagem muito forte, retrata factos reais,” says Gilda Udencio Macheco, an undisclosed Portuguese-speaking fan.

A fan who signed as @dvoice532 commented on “Salama”: “I so loved Diamond is a leader; he blends with the Tanzanian musicians, collaborating with them. He’s not selfish to say someone has made it; he has in the industry.

I do respect you with much love.” A Kenyan lady, Nancy Kwamboka, commented: “This song plays daily in the gym, in the morning and gives me more energy to work. Jay Mapepe Fatma joins with the comment: “I know I took so long to leave my comment and like, but I just came to say this was a great song.

It’s a strong love that comes out in Mozambique and was supported by Chamilo Chicongola who said,” Vó te mandar 1,00000000000 para este música só and later added: É boa sana esse música obrigado Diamond.”

Bongo Flava, as a music of the new generation formed by fusing American RnB and Coastal Swahili favours, marks its 30th anniversary with a huge global audience.

“Tanzania no longer imports music from America; we have it all in Bongo Flava,” notes JKT Ruvu Band’s guitarist, Ramadhan Cholobi.

Though its influence is everywhere, American music of today is less of a unified global monoculture than it was in the 1970s and 1980s because the internet and streaming have fragmented audiences and thriving local music industries have risen worldwide.

While the US still exports massive amounts of music, listeners now have instant access to regional powerhouses like K-pop, Afrobeats and Latin trap.

In the 70s and 80s, a few TV networks, global radio stations and MTV dictated a single shared pop culture.

With megastars like Diamond, Burna Boy, Davido dictating music terms globally, it is crystal clear that regions outside the West have now built massive, selfsustaining star systems and global hits in local languages.

Technological perfection also speaks volumes as modern production relies heavily on software, click tracks and pitch correction, which some listeners feel strips away the raw, organic human feel of classic 70s and 80s analogue recordings.

As guitar mania has now lost its past grip, bass guitar still remains immortal in all types of music being played in Tanzania and Africa today.

It is understood that today’s popular music has neglected guitar mania because digital production tools make beatmaking and synth-based sounds cheaper, faster and more central to mainstream genres like hip-hop, electronic dance music and modern pop.

As we have seen in Tanzania, where the Bongo Flava megastars like Harmonize, Diamond Platnumz own their own digitalised studios, there is a shift in youth culture toward software-based creation and instant gratification have moved the cultural spotlight away from traditional band instruments.

ALSO READ: See how live band music stands an edge above Bongo Flava

Through digital production, you can create music using a laptop and software plugins, as digital audio workstations replace physical amplifiers and six-string gear.

While celebrating its Pearl Jubilee, Ali Kiba remains the brightest Bongo Flava genius today. He has maintained a guitar mania while the Bongo Flava mainstream has shrugged it off.

Most of the dance music bands prefer to play Alikiba hits on stage as Ruvu JKT band lead guitarist, Rashid Sumuni noted.

“Alikiba music still cherishes sebene guitar that facilitates danceability.” He said.

In most of his hits, Alikiba has been using Congolese guitarist Pasiant Loso and Tanzanian instrumentalist Kenny Guitar (Kennedy Matibya Masanja).

They are notable guitarists associated with Ali Kiba’s classic and live acoustic performances.

Pasiant Loso’s fine guitar works can be heard in classic hits like “Mwana” and “Dushelele”, while Kenny Guitar, a prominent Tanzanian guitarist and recording artist who frequently collaborates with Ali Kiba on live acoustic renditions, stage performances and tracks like “Tumejipata” and acoustic versions of “Dodo”.