LEAVING behind a rich legacy of timeless and great cultural works of Ghanaian music, the highlife icon, King Bruce had as at the time of his death, become an indelible and indestructible monolith in Ghanaian showbiz history. Ten years after his death, he is as much alive in the hearts of music love as ever before.

Noted for his phenomenal talent, his melodiously rich music in his native Ga was possessed of a unique style. Indeed King Bruce was a huge influence on many a highlife great, dictating the trend of highlife music in the 1960s; in fact, he ruled West Africa through the 1970’s in his musical odyssey.

One of the lucky beneficiaries of King Bruce’s influences was Jerry Hansen, who later formed the once famous Ramblers Band International in 1961.
This week is the 10th anniversary of the icon’s death and The Spectator spoke to Mr Hansen. He re-called that Saka Acquaye picked King Bruce to play in the Accra Orchestra in the 1950, and King Bruce in turn, poached him (Jerry) from Accra Orchestra to form the Black Beats Dance Band.

Thus started the musical relationship between the two, a relationship that was to define Ghanaian highlife rendition for ages to come. What was very interesting and characteristic of both Bruce and Hansen was that they started musically from different angles en route to meet at a common point of destination.

After 10 years of togetherness, Jerry Hansen broke away from King Bruce to form his own, the Ramblers Dance Band International.

As a high ranking civil servant, (Principal Secretary – now known as Chief Director) King Bruce in 1994 released his original Golden Highlife Classics on the music market and obviously the public response was amazing. It sold like hot cakes.

Some of this golden classics included "Me Da Ho Mawo"; "Agoogyi" "Aban kaba" written by late Bob Cole "The Queen’s Visit" (in 1960) and "Enya wo do fo".

However, Jerry Hansen recalls: "Politicians were not liberal, and I suspected they might misinterpret our good intention when we wrote songs and played.

"As a senior civil servant, he had problems as a result of his indulgence in music since he was not understood and out of personal grudge he was a target of every employable means of frustrating his effort, but to no avail, as he kept focused on his vision."

King Bruce was one of the greatest icons in Ghanaian showbiz history.

Professor J.H. Kwabena Nketia wrote this of him "one was always struck when one listened to his music not only by his unique and particular beat from which his band derived its name but by the quality and flow of his lyrics and the tuneful and often haunting melodies to which they are set".

The late Professor Mawere Opoku once wrote that King Bruce’s texts and melody were often so intricately woven that one could enjoy his music, even if one did not understand the language of the text which was not only poetic and meaningful. The sounds and rhythms also made their own impact on the listener making it a musical language.

It had been said by critics that for King, defining his gift of innovation, a special premium of style of delivery was placed since he was conscious of form and design and perhaps his training in fine arts at Achimota explained why he was particularly sensitive to the need for employing humour, his composition.

His vision was not only to produce good music but to develop his own style and modes of expression beyond the calypso model which most Ghanaian bands played at the time.

In a separate interview, his son Eddie Ayitey Bruce, said his father was truly gifted and so in a unique way he created tuneful, catchy and haunting melodies that he said made a serious impact on listeners.