IFANG BONDI |
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 Ifang
Bondi, meaning "be yourself" in Mandinka language, grew out of the
former Gambian band called the Super Eagles. Founded in the 60's the
Super Eagles was the undisputed top group in the Gambia and Senegal. In
1968 they toured Ghana, making an enormous impact with their very
African sound in a country which was shortly to produce Osibisa.
In 1970 Super Eagles was disbanded only to rise up again in 1973, as
Ifang Bondi. The name was new as the sound, featuring for the first time
indigenous Senegambian rhythms, melodies and instruments. They
integrated traditional instruments as kora, balafon, sabar, talking
drum, bugarabu and djembe with mordern instruments as the electric
guitar, base and keyboards.
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 With
the latest CD "Gis Gis" Ifangbondi celebrates their 25 years of
existence with the leader bassist Badou Jobe who is the only original
member remaining in the band. Badou Jobe has been with the Super Eagles
from the beginning and has been the driving force in 1973 when the big
change in style happened. The group lives in The Gambia and makes tours
to Europe every year with a base in the Netherlands. |
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The current members are:
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Badou Jobe does Gambia proud at Kora awards Article from Daily Observer of September 6, 1999 Veteran
Gambian musician, Badou Jobe, has been named Africa's Best Music
Arranger in this year's
1999 Kora Music Awards. Kora is the leading annual pan-African music
awards.
Mr Badou Jobe is the first Gambian to win this award. The award ceremony was attended by Nelson Mandela, pop star Michael Jackson and other distinguished personalities from Africa and abroad. The Kora awards were televised live to more than a hundred million viewers worldwide and was hosted in Sun City, South Africa. Mr Badou Jobe's music career spans more than 37 years. He started his career in the late 50s with Foyer band (Hill Street) and later joined African Jazz. In 1968, he and his friends started Super Eagles, which metamorphosed into Ifang Bondi, arguably The Gambia's greatest band yet. Badou Jobe started as a plumber but quit his trade when he taught himself to play the guitar in the '50s. Speaking to Daily Observer yesterday, former band member Oussou Sénor Njie, said, "This is a very big achievement for The Gambia and a big boost for our fledgling music industry. Badou's achievement was a result of hard work and dedication. I urge young musicians to work hard if they want to achieve what Badou achieved." Mr Jobe has been living in Holland for the past 15 years, where he still maintains the Ifang Bondi logo. |
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E-mail Ifang Bondi: mail@ifangbondi.demon.nl
This Website is owned and maintained by Momodou Camara Last updated on April 9, 2006 
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