Matthew Chapter 5 Are Popchain Champions

The audience at the El-Wak Stadium for the Popchain competition dubbed Popchain Nostalgia 2004 was not as big as that of the ?Old Skuul Reunion? held at the Aviation Social Centre on July 31, but the fun was the same level.

Popchain Nostalgia was an appropriate name for the event as it indeed brought nostalgic memories of those days. Songs of that period evoked found memories that got the mostly elderly folks with their friends and family singing and dancing away with careless abandon.

Some of the songs performed by the popular groups in those days include Samba Party by Carlos Santana, Don?t Get Around Much Anymore (Duke Ellington), I will (Beatles), Hey Jude (Jimi Hendrix), Midnight Hour (Wilson Pickett), My Boy Lollipop (Millicent Small), House of the Rising Sun (Almanac Singers), Synthetic World (Jimmy Cliff), I Got My Mojo Working (Muddy Waters) and Redemption Song by Bob Marley.

Matthew Chapter Five, alumni of St. John?s, Sekondi emerged the winners after the show which also featured Majestic Breezing Beavers (Mfanstipim),Santaclausians (Adisco), Famous Flames (St Augustines),Kuziuniks (Achimota) and Alpha Beta which comprised alumni of Aquinas Secondary School, Kaneshie Technical School, West Africa Secondary School and Accra Academy.

Even though Alpha Beta did very well performing songs with a total command of their instruments and should have placed among the first three, the judges rightly decided that they did not fulfil the criteria of the competition which required that all groups performed their school anthem among others.

Opening with a performance by the Black Generation, the competition went into full swing when the Santaclaucians led by Kuuku Coleman mounted the stage to give a wonderful performance.They were followed by Alpha Beta led by Desmond Ababio who also showed their class by putting up a beautiful performance which earned them lots of applause from the audience.

When Matthew Chapter Five got on stage they opened with When the Saints Go Marching which was their school song. With heavyweights like Nana Nkrumah on drums, Rev Albert Sam on Keyboards, Shasha Marley, Yaw Owusu Addo, Director of Radio (GBC) and David Ampofo of Channel Four on vocals and Arckah of Western Diamonds fame, they gave a presentation that rocked the stadium.

The Majestic Breezing Beavers who backed Regina Pepra of St. Louis with Carlos Sekyi, Quayson Sackey, Alfred Sackey and others also thrilled the audience.Achimota?s Kuziuniks were a revelation when they took the stage.

Featuring Kweku Poku, Kate Baffour, Audrey Baffour, Derek Aryee and Jimmy Beckley, they took the stadium by storm opening with their school song Gambaga to Accra, My Boy Lollipop and Synthetic World were beautifully rendered by Kate Baffour to the delight of the audience.

The Famous Flames on the other hand had the famous Ernest Honey the man reputed to have played the keyboards for Dr. K. Gyasi?s Noble Kings when he introduced the electric organ to highlife music on their team.

Together with Kojo Dadson on vocals and Reggie Sawyer on bass, they also touched a lot of people through Ernest?s dexterity on the keyboard.

House of the Rising Sun and I Got My Mojo Working gave the ace keyboardist the opportunity give a thrilling display of his talent. It was a really good programme a few people suggested that headmasters, teachers and students should be encouraged to patronise the event.

The audience at the El-Wak Stadium for the Popchain competition dubbed Popchain Nostalgia 2004 was not as big as that of the ?Old Skuul Reunion? held at the Aviation Social Centre on July 31, but the fun was the same level.

Popchain Nostalgia was an appropriate name for the event as it indeed brought nostalgic memories of those days. Songs of that period evoked found memories that got the mostly elderly folks with their friends and family singing and dancing away with careless abandon.

Some of the songs performed by the popular groups in those days include Samba Party by Carlos Santana, Don?t Get Around Much Anymore (Duke Ellington), I will (Beatles), Hey Jude (Jimi Hendrix), Midnight Hour (Wilson Pickett), My Boy Lollipop (Millicent Small), House of the Rising Sun (Almanac Singers), Synthetic World (Jimmy Cliff), I Got My Mojo Working (Muddy Waters) and Redemption Song by Bob Marley.

Matthew Chapter Five, alumni of St. John?s, Sekondi emerged the winners after the show which also featured Majestic Breezing Beavers (Mfanstipim),Santaclausians (Adisco), Famous Flames (St Augustines),Kuziuniks (Achimota) and Alpha Beta which comprised alumni of Aquinas Secondary School, Kaneshie Technical School, West Africa Secondary School and Accra Academy.

Even though Alpha Beta did very well performing songs with a total command of their instruments and should have placed among the first three, the judges rightly decided that they did not fulfil the criteria of the competition which required that all groups performed their school anthem among others.

Opening with a performance by the Black Generation, the competition went into full swing when the Santaclaucians led by Kuuku Coleman mounted the stage to give a wonderful performance.They were followed by Alpha Beta led by Desmond Ababio who also showed their class by putting up a beautiful performance which earned them lots of applause from the audience.

When Matthew Chapter Five got on stage they opened with When the Saints Go Marching which was their school song. With heavyweights like Nana Nkrumah on drums, Rev Albert Sam on Keyboards, Shasha Marley, Yaw Owusu Addo, Director of Radio (GBC) and David Ampofo of Channel Four on vocals and Arckah of Western Diamonds fame, they gave a presentation that rocked the stadium.

The Majestic Breezing Beavers who backed Regina Pepra of St. Louis with Carlos Sekyi, Quayson Sackey, Alfred Sackey and others also thrilled the audience.Achimota?s Kuziuniks were a revelation when they took the stage.

Featuring Kweku Poku, Kate Baffour, Audrey Baffour, Derek Aryee and Jimmy Beckley, they took the stadium by storm opening with their school song Gambaga to Accra, My Boy Lollipop and Synthetic World were beautifully rendered by Kate Baffour to the delight of the audience.

The Famous Flames on the other hand had the famous Ernest Honey the man reputed to have played the keyboards for Dr. K. Gyasi?s Noble Kings when he introduced the electric organ to highlife music on their team.

Together with Kojo Dadson on vocals and Reggie Sawyer on bass, they also touched a lot of people through Ernest?s dexterity on the keyboard.

House of the Rising Sun and I Got My Mojo Working gave the ace keyboardist the opportunity give a thrilling display of his talent. It was a really good programme a few people suggested that headmasters, teachers and students should be encouraged to patronise the event.